Categories: Uncategorized

February 18, 2001 – Dale Earnhardt Sr. dies at Daytona

NASCAR superstar Dale Earnhardt Sr. died in an accident on the final lap of the Daytona 500 on this day in 2001. A three car accident sent Earnhardt’s #3 car into the outside wall head on. An autopsy revealed he had died instantly of blunt force trauma. The crash resulted in NASCAR

mandating numerous measures to improve driver safety.


Earnhardt in the No. 3 car by Darryl Moran. CC BY-SA 2.0.
Cover photo by James Phelps – Flickr, CC BY 2.0

Earnhardt’s career in NASCAR began in 1975 at the World 600. During his time on the track he racked up 76 Cup Series wins and seven NASCAR Cup Championships, a feat only Richard Petty had accomplished previously and would not be done again until Jimmie Johnson won his seventh in 2016. 


Brian Corey

Recent Posts

February 19, 2015 – Remembering Yutaka Katayama, Father of the Z Car and first president of Nissan USA

Yutaka Katayma with Datsun Z. (Nissan) Yutaka Katayama, Mr. K, if you will, and often…

3 days ago

February 17, 1966 – Remembering Alfred Sloan

On February 17, 1966, the automotive industry lost one of its most influential figures—Alfred P.…

5 days ago

February 12, 2014 – Sinkhole at the Corvette Museum

The Bowling Green, Kentucky GM plant has been pumping out Corvettes since 1991. Just a…

1 week ago

February 10, 1989 – The Mazda Miata MX-5 debuts

Mazda Miata (NA) Ah, the history of the Mazda Miata MX-5. A little roadster with…

2 weeks ago

February 9, 1846 – Engineer Wilhelm Maybach is born

| Wilhelm Maybach was a pioneering German engineer and inventor, renowned for his contributions to…

2 weeks ago

February 8, 1931 – Actor and racer James Dean is born

When actor James Dean, born on this day in 1931, finished filming Giant, he headed…

2 weeks ago