This is the final installment of a four-part series on the life, death and safety legacy of Dale Earnhardt, 20 years after his fatal crash at the 2001 Daytona 500.
THE WORLD HAS not seen Ryan Newman s 2020 Daytona 500 race car in nearly a year. The last time any of us saw that Roush Fenway Racing-constructed Mustang, we thought we were staring at a coffin.
The car that had been in the lead with the checkered flag in sight was upside down on the infield grass, twisted and on fire as safety crews crawled all over it, frantically working to save the unconscious driver inside, 42-year-old Newman, hanging limp from his seat belts.
The death of Dale Earnhardt from a crash during the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 is considered the darkest day in the history of NASCAR. The 20th anniversary of his death is coming up on Feb. 18 and the stock car racing community is noting that his legacy includes dramatic improvements in the safety of motorsports. As part of its coverage, The Associated Press is republishing its primary Daytona 500 story from Feb. 18, 2001:
AP Motorsports Writer
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) Dale Earnhardt, the greatest stock car star of his era, was killed in a crash on the last turn of the last lap of Sunday’s Daytona 500 as he tried to protect Michael Waltrip’s victory.
Ryan Newman was lying in bed one morning, his two daughters still tucked in down the hall, when a YouTube video of his death-defying crash popped up as a recommended watch. "Those are tears of respect and appreciation, not tears of sadness, because I was here and I was able to watch it and know that just down the hallway my kids were going to wake up,” Newman said. NASCAR fans and fellow competitors feared the worst for Newman, but the 2008 Daytona 500 winner walked out of the hospital 48 hours later holding hands with his girls.
This is Part III of a four-part series on the life, death and safety legacy of Dale Earnhardt, 20 years after his fatal crash at the 2001 Daytona 500. The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe. - Proverbs 18
THE BIBLE VERSE was taped to the instrument panel of Dale Earnhardt s Chevy Monte Carlo when it veered into the Turn 4 wall at the end of the 2001 Daytona 500. It had been there when his crew secured his window net on pit road and he rolled away to take the green flag. And it was still there three hours later, when, in the infield grass at the bottom of that turn, Ken Schrader took that same window net down to talk with his old friend about their wrecked race cars, only to find the seven-time champion slumped over in his seat and the cockpit covered in blood.
AP Was There: Earnhardt killed in 2001 Daytona 500 crash
By The Associated PressFebruary 11, 2021 GMT
The death of Dale Earnhardt from a crash during the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 is considered the darkest day in the history of NASCAR. The 20th anniversary of his death is coming up on Feb. 18 and the stock car racing community is noting that his legacy includes dramatic improvements in the safety of motorsports. As part of its coverage, The Associated Press is republishing its primary Daytona 500 story from Feb. 18, 2001:
AP Motorsports Writer
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) Dale Earnhardt, the greatest stock car star of his era, was killed in a crash on the last turn of the last lap of Sunday’s Daytona 500 as he tried to protect Michael Waltrip’s victory.