Dale Earnhardt Survives

On the last lap of the 43rd Daytona 500 on February 18, 2001, Michael Waltrip was in the lead with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in second. In third was Dale Jr.'s father, Dale Earnhardt. On the fourth turn, Earnhardt crashed though, but, as if fate came in just in time, Earnhardt survived. This is the POD for this timeline.
== History ==
=== Rest of 2001 ===
*Waltrip ended up winning the race, with Jr. finishing second, Ricky Rudd in third, Mike Wallace in fourth, and Bobby Hamilton in fifth. Dale, when asked in victory lane celebrating with Waltrip, said "Man, I'm glad he hooked me in the right, I felt the seat belts break the second I got hit the 5th time, and if he had hit me in the left, I may not be here talking to ya, and celebrating with my friend". Earnhardt later spoke out against the lack of requiring the HANS device in NASCAR. "If I had hit that wall with how fast I was going, I probably would have been been hurt bad."
*Earnhardt went on to win an incredible thirteen races, tying Richard Petty and Jeff Gordon for most wins in a season and only DNF once, otherwise finishing within the top ten at every race that season, a first in NASCAR history. Notable wins from this season include the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500, the Talladega 500, and the Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400. He clinched his eighth and final championship at the NAPA 500, the penultimate race of the season.
*At the Talladega 500, Earnhardt took Terry Labonte's record for most consecutive starts, using a special paint scheme; Labonte had run a paint scheme at the Harrah's 500 commemorating his last race as record holder, and both he and Earnhardt ran special schemes as co-record holders at the Virginia 500. 
*Earnhardt's paint scheme for The Winston was a special white version of his standard paint scheme.
*Dale Earnhardt won his eighth and final championship this season, winning over Jeff Gordon by just 85 points.
*Earnhardt's one DNF was when at Rockingham, during the Dura Lube 400, during the Monday section of the event, on lap 102, Dale was running 13th when Kurt Busch made an incredible run from 15th diving into turn 3. Kurt easily muscled past Mark Martin and rocketed towards Earnhardt coming out of turn 4. Kurt Busch went low of Earnhardt out of the turn, but Earnhardt didn't leave Kurt enough room. Kurt refused to lift and caught Earnhardt in the left rear, shooting him up the track sideways and into the wall at the "u" bend of the front stretch. Earnhardt, understandably furious, drove the mangled car to pit road where his crew got the car going again 54 laps later and as soon as Kurt Busch, then running 3rd, came by a 54 lap down Earnhardt, Earnhardt "accidentally" got loose and into the left side of Busch's car. Busch then spun around on the entrance to turn 1 and hit the wall in the middle of turn 2. Dale would then DNF due to the damage his car sustained in the second incident.
*Ron Fellows would start his 2 season part-time schedule with DEI, racing Corvettes in Lemans primarily but doing stints in the new part-time #29, starting a long standing relationship between sponsor Kraft and DEI. He would go on to replace the late Steve Park in the #1 car in 2003.
==== DEI lineup ====
* #1 - Steve Park (Pennzoil)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #15 - Michael Waltrip (NAPA)
*#29 - Ron Fellows (Kraft) (PT)
==== RCR lineup ====
* #3 - Dale Earnhardt (GM Goodwrench)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (PT) (America Online)
* #31 - Mike Skinner, Robby Gordon (Lowe's)
=== 2002 ===
*2002 saw Earnhardt win his second Daytona 500 and the July Pocono race, but Steve Park was tragically killed that same race, and Kenny Wallace, who had also subbed for Park the previous season after he was injured, replaced him for the remainder of 2002 winning one pole and nailing down two top tens, including a second-place finish at Rockingham Speedway, tying a career best. Ron Fellows took over driving duties for the #1 car in 2003.
*Earnhardt was just 38 points away from becoming an unimaginable nine-time champion, having won ten races throughout the season but being inconsistent, allowing his friend and fellow driver Tony Stewart to win the championship.
==== DEI lineup: ====
* #1 - Steve Park (☠) - (Pennzoil)
* #1 - Kenny Wallace (Pennzoil)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #15 - Michael Waltrip (NAPA)
*#29 - Ron Fellows (Kraft) (PT)
==== RCR lineup: ====
* #3 - Dale Earnhardt (GM Goodwrench)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (R) (America Online)
* #31 - Robby Gordon (Cingular)
=== 2003 ===
*This was the beginning of Earnhardt's final career slump, as he got only three wins and noticeably lower finishes then the latest resurgence in his career; many attribute this slump to his age and past injuries finally starting to catch up to Earnhardt. Earnhardt has mentioned in his post retirement, self-supervised documentary "3: The Dale Earnhardt Story" that the pain in his neck from his 1996 Talladega wreck began resurfacing despite calming down after a nerve repair surgery, for three years previously.
*DEI dropped the number 29 as a fourth part-time car and RCR picked it up for new driver Jeff Green as RCR had a history with the number 29, RCR expanded in 2003. DEI dropped the number in favour of a full-time number 83 for Dale's oldest son Kerry Earnhardt. Kerry would win three races throughout the season and finish eighth in points, but going into 2004 the funding at DEI suddenly wasn't there for a permanent fourth car, with Aaron's not renewing with DEI at the end of the 2003 season and moving in 2004 to the number 00 car of Kenny Wallace, Dale Sr. had no choice but to reduce Kerry to a part time schedule for the 2004 season, but according to Kerry there were no hard feelings about the whole ordeal.
*Jeff Green would be hired to drive the new #29 car for RCR, with sponsorship from Oreo.
==== DEI lineup: ====
* #1 - Ron Fellows (R) (Pennzoil/Kraft)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #15 - Michael Waltrip (NAPA)
*#83 - Kerry Earnhardt (Aaron's, Inc./Hot Tamales)
==== RCR lineup: ====
* #3 - Dale Earnhardt (GM Goodwrench)
* #29 - Jeff Green (R) (Oreo)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (America Online)
* #31 - Robby Gordon (Cingular) 
=== 2004 ===
Before the beginning of the season, a new points format dubbed "The Chase" was to take effect. However, Earnhardt was able to dissuade Brian France from actually going through with this idea, saying "we are NOT the NFL!". Earnhardt surpassed Harry Gant as the oldest driver to win a NASCAR race when he won the Subway 400 at Rockingham Speedway at the age of 52 years, 10 months, and 13 days (a record that would be broken by future ECR driver Mark Martin in 2012). This was his only win that year.
* For two races when his driver and son Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was seriously burned in a sports car race that year, the elder Earnhardt got behind the wheel of the #8 car to keep his driver and son in the top points standings, having his friend and ex-crew chief Kirk Shelmerdine sub in the #3 car. Earnhardt finished 20th in both starts, while Shelmerdine almost won in Earnhardt's ride at New Hampshire (Ted Christopher ran Shelmerdine’s #72 at Loudon while Derrike Cope filled in at Indianapolis). Earnhardt was quoted as saying in the 3: The Dale Earnhardt Story documentary that his lack of success was due to Dale Jr.'s different setups.
* For the 2004 season DEI's number 83 car became a part-time ride, with Kerry Earnhardt still driving the car in it's first two races, but finding no success with sponsorship, and eventually dropping his driving duties by the midway point of the season. Taking his place in the car's last three scheduled races in the late season would be a 24 year old DEI developmental driver by the name of Martin Truex Jr. who would switch to the number 81 in 2005 and run his own prescheduled part-time season that year.
* Dale gave an interview on Totally NASCAR on the SPEED channel the Monday night after the 2004 Daytona 500 and surprised many people with an answer to a question asked by Steve Byrnes. Byrnes asked, "Dale, people still ask you about the 2001 Daytona wreck where your seat belt snapped. What was different about this wreck?" Dale replied, "You see, I had some dreams about the 2001 Daytona 500 after it happened. The worst of them was, it was the final lap, but Mikey was leading the race with Jr. in second. Coming into the last turn, Sterling bumped into my left rear, and I overcorrected, which sent me into the wall at full speed. The hood flew up and I couldn't see nothing, but my belts broke at that moment anyways and my chin smashed off the steering wheel. About half a second after I hit the wall Schrader hit my right side and my head hit the driver's side rollcage bar as we both started to slide down the banking onto the infield. Mikey went on to win the race, but my car had stopped in the Turn 4 grass. I couldn't move anything and was just stuck sitting there as I saw Kenny Schrader come over to the car and scream for help. The dream then faded with Mike Helton saying 'we lost Dale Earnhardt in turn 4 of the final lap", I woke up at that moment screaming."
==== DEI lineup ====
* #1 - Ron Fellows (Pennzoil/Kraft)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #15 - Michael Waltrip (NAPA)
*#83 - Kerry Earnhardt, Martin Truex Jr. (PT) (Unsponsored, DEI Developmental Program self-sponsored)
==== RCR lineup ====
* #3 - Dale Earnhardt (GM Goodwrench)
* #29 - Jeff Green (Oreo)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (America Online)
* #31 - Dave Blaney (Cingular)
=== 2005 ===
2005 was Earnhardt's final season before his retirement, in a joint retirement tour with Rusty Wallace and Ricky Rudd. He would drive the Lemans Corvettes for 2006 up until 2008. 
*At the Daytona 500, Earnhardt passed Rusty Wallace to win his fourth and final Daytona 500. He won two more races that year: the Aaron's 499, and the Allstate 400 at The Brickyard, which was his final career win.
*For the Nextel All-Star Challenge, Dale drove a special paint scheme, which was a collage of his most well-known moments throughout his driving history. He finished 13th. He also drove various paint schemes based on cars he ran in his history throughout the season as well.
*At his 835th and final consecutive start, as well as his 863rd overall Cup Series race in Homestead, Earnhardt drove another special car, a white-to-black gradient version of his iconic black paint scheme; before the race, there was a card stunt in the stands in which thousands fans held up cards saying "Thank You Dale!" with his trademark #3 next to it. He started 25th, but led the pace laps as the pace car. His final race had him leading for 30 laps, but finished 29th, five laps down, after a wreck with 15 laps to go. Dale was racing for fifth place, when Kurt Busch bumped into his right rear corner, and sent him spinning. At the last moment, his car went airborne, and flipped over several times, with damage. His crew was able to get his car back onto the track for the final lap, but he finished 25th, five laps down. After this finish, the grandstand went wild, when the damaged car took its final lap around Homestead, much like Richard Petty's final race. In his post-race interview with NBC's Marty Snider, Dale said, visibly choked up with tears, "All these years, driving for the same sponsor and team. I want to thank Richard (Childress) for the opportunity he gave me, as well as Humpy Wheeler, and everyone else at RCR and Chevrolet. I wanna thank Goodwrench for sticking with me even through the bad years, and want to say to Jeff Gordon, that you are the face of the sport now. Don't let me down, boy". Earnhardt finished the year 10th in points and was honored at the Banquet in New York for his illustrious NASCAR career, and won Driver of the Year.
*After the season, Earnhardt took full control of Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and was actively involved in its management. He went on to drive for Corvette Racing in the Le Mans Series from 2006 until his final retirement in 2008.
*Martin Truex Jr. announced pre-season that he would be returning to and running a schedule for DEI part-time in 2005, on route to a fulltime contract and rookie season in 2006. His car number was changed from Kerry's old number 83, to his own number 81. The number 83 would be picked up by FitzBradshaw Racing who already used the number in the Nationwide series, as they tried to find their way into Nascar Nextel Cup competition, supported by a partnership with Hendrick Motorsports, with Jarit Johnson, brother of Hendrick Motorsports driver Jimmie Johnson.
*Sterling Marlin announced pre-season that he would move into the DEI #14 car part-time in 2005, and full-time in 2006, as his contract with Chip Ganassi Racing was confirmed to be expiring at the end of the season, with rookie David Stremme making his first part-time starts in the 2005 season well Marlin drove for DEI in those races.
*Jeff Green would gain sponsor AOL from Kevin Harvick for just this season, alongside his normal sponsor Oreo, until AOL left Nascar in 2006. Kevin Harvick got a new sponsor in Reese's.
*This season and the following 2006 season are regarded as the "Golden Age" of DEI, expanding from 3 cars to 4 fulltime cars and 1 part-time car and seeing unparalleled success, for example Dale Jr. won his first championship this season.
==== DEI lineup: ====
* #1 - Ron Fellows (Pennzoil/Kraft)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
*#14 - Sterling Marlin (Waste Management/Kraft) (PT)
* #15 - Michael Waltrip (NAPA)
* #81 - Martin Truex Jr. (PT) (Bass Pro Shops)
==== RCR lineup ====
* #3 - Dale Earnhardt (GM Goodwrench)
* #29 - Jeff Green (Oreo/America Online)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (Reese's)
* #31 - Dave Blaney (Cingular)
* #33 - Clint Bowyer (PT) (Sylvania)
=== 2006 ===
* With Earnhardt’s retirement, Jeff Burton, who had driven the #99 Ford for Roush Racing since 1996, was selected to replace him in the #3 for 2006, as Carl Edwards ran for Rookie of the Year. Because DEI had a full stable, Busch Series driver Paul Menard did several races for RCR in the #33, before moving up full-time in 2007.
*Ron Fellows would move from the #1 car fulltime to DEI's part time #81 team, swapping seats with rookie Martin Truex Jr. Fellows hoped he could find success in a fresh car with a different pitcrew, but found very little success in 2006.
* Ron Fellows was announced to be leaving DEI at the end of the season due to poor performance, under mutual understanding between him and Earnhardt Sr., and would move to Michael Waltrip Racing in 2007. Fellows would make it clear that he had no hard feelings towards Earnhardt Sr. or DEI and his departure was mutually beneficial as both he and Earnhardt agreed he could use a new team. Going to Michael Waltrip Racing with him would be long standing DEI sponsor Pennzoil.
==== DEI lineup: ====
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (R) (Bass Pro Shops)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #14 - Sterling Marlin (Waste Management/Kraft)
* #15 - Michael Waltrip (NAPA)
*#81 - Ron Fellows (Pennzoil) (PT)
==== RCR lineup: ====
* #3 - Jeff Burton (GM Goodwrench)
* #29 - Jeff Green (Oreo)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (Reese's)
* #31 - Clint Bowyer (R) (Cingular)
* #33 - Paul Menard (PT) (Menard's)
=== 2007 ===
* Michael Waltrip, who left to move his team (Michael Waltrip Racing) to the Cup Series and lead Toyota's entry into the sport, was given Dale's blessing to use the #15, and as a result, his replacement, Mark Martin, switched to the #81. Earnhardt announced he had no plans of readding a fifth car to the DEI lineup for this season, as there was no one to fill the seat and the team's fifth car was always part time prior to 2007 anyways. Martin won the Daytona 500 that year in his 23rd attempt.
* Jeff Green announced pre-season he had moved to Michael Waltrip Racing taking the #29, and sponsor Oreo, with him from the RCR stable. Jeff Green said he "saw more potential in a new upstart team."
==== DEI lineup: ====
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (Bass Pro Shops)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #14 - Sterling Marlin (Waste Management)
* #81 - Mark Martin (Kraft)
==== RCR lineup: ====
* #3 - Jeff Burton (Reese's)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (Shell)
* #31 - Clint Bowyer (Cingular)
* #33 - Paul Menard (R) (Menard's)
=== 2008 ===
* 2008 saw Dale Earnhardt, Jr. inherit a 25% stake in the team. That same year, Dale Earnhardt made the decision to divorce his wife Teresa Earnhardt after 26 years. In an interview, Earnhardt said about her, "Teresa has no consideration about me or my legacy", while Teresa countered with, "I've always cared about him. If anything, he was the one who used me". This war of words continued to 2010, and Teresa was forced to resign from DEI after the scandal.
*Dale Sr. stepped in his old ride one last time for the 50th Daytona 500. In the last race that he would ever participate in, Earnhardt qualified 31st for the race. After being notified of the idea, GM Goodwrench, very supportive of the idea, came back to sponsor the car again for this one race, and Earnhardt's iconic black paint scheme was used. RCR driver Jeff Burton, just for this race, moved to a fifth car (#83) so Earnhardt could race the #3.
*Ron Fellows retired at the end of the 2008 season, and sponsor Pennzoil would move to Harvick's car alongside current sponsor Shell in 2009, returning to it's roots at ECR.
*Sterling Marlin announced 2008 to be his final season at the end of 2007, and called retirement at the end of the 2008 season.
==== DEI lineup: ====
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (Bass Pro Shops)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #14 - Sterling Marlin (Waste Management)
* #81 - Mark Martin (Kraft)
==== RCR lineup: ====
* #3 - Dale Earnhardt (Daytona 500) (GM Goodwrench)/Jeff Burton (rest of the season) (Reese's)
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (Shell)
* #31 - Clint Bowyer (Cingular)
* #33 - Paul Menard (Menard's)
* #83 - Jeff Burton (Daytona 500) (Reese's)
=== 2009 ===
Before the 2009 season, due to the Great Recession, DEI and RCR merged to form Earnhardt-Childress Racing (ECR), with Childress owning 50%, and the Earnhardts (Dale Sr. and Dale Jr.) owning 25% each. The cars used were:
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (Bass Pro Shops) - same as 2008
* #3 - Jeff Burton (Reese's) - same as 2008
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser) - same as 2008
*#14 - Matt Kenseth/Sterling Marlin (Waste Management) - Part-time, limited schedule
* #30 - Kevin Harvick (Shell/Pennzoil) - same as 2008
* #31 - Mark Martin (Cheerios/Kraft) - Clint Bowyer moved to Michael Waltrip Racing to replace Ron Fellows, in the #51 Toyota, now sponsored by 5-Hour Energy.
The teams that were jettisoned from fulltime competition were:
* #14 - Sterling Marlin (Waste Management) - Marlin retired at the end of 2008. He would drive the car one last time in the 2009 Daytona 500, before the #14 car would be used in a few select events for Matt Kenseth before he moved over to the #30 fulltime next season to replace Kevin Harvick. The #14 would be dropped from ECR prior to the 2010 season and picked up by Michael Waltrip Racing in 2010 for Brian Vickers, as Waltrip had acquired the fledgling Team Redbull who had used the number 82 for the car previously.
* #81 - Mark Martin (Kraft) - Martin moved over to the #31, #81 dropped by DEI after the 2008 season and picked up by BK Racing for the 2009 season.
A new car known as the “Car of Tomorrow” debuted, which Earnhardt had a huge hand in developing. It looks exactly like the Nationwide/Xfinity Series CoT from OTL; this means Ford switched from the Fusion to the Mustang, and Dodge from the Charger to the Challenger.
=== 2010 ===
For the 2010 season, Matt Kenseth moved from Roush-Fenway Racing to replace Kevin Harvick, who moved over to Stewart-Haas Racing to drive the #4 Jimmy John's Chevrolet.
==== ECR lineup: ====
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (Bass Pro Shops)
* #3 - Jeff Burton (Reese's)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #30 - Matt Kenseth (Shell/Pennzoil)
* #31 - Mark Martin (Cheerios)
=== 2011 ===
At Earnhardt's request, North Wilkesboro Speedway was revived, replacing the second Las Vegas and Kansas races, respectively; the track used the Wells Fargo 400 and Tyson Holly Farms 500 names, respectively. The ECR lineup is unchanged, aside from DeWalt replacing Shell as Kenseth's sponsor in the #1.
=== 2012 ===
=== 2013 ===
2013 started out with Earnhardt making his opinion known about newcomer Danica Patrick, saying, "She has no business behind the wheel of a race car. I got nothing against women in the sport. Well, ones who earn their seat, that is".
Rumors that Team Penske would be switching from Dodge to Ford were quashed by Roger Penske in May 2012. It was also announced that Richard Petty Motorsports and Chip Ganassi Racing would be switching back to Dodge in 2013, securing the manufacturers' presence in NASCAR. On a minor note, Chevrolet switched from the Impala to the Camaro this year.
=== 2014 ===
With Martin's retirement, Jeffrey Earnhardt replaced him in the #31. This was also Jeff Burton's final season, with rookie Austin Dillon replacing him from 2015 onward.
==== ECR lineup ====
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (Bass Pro Shops)
* #3 - Jeff Burton (Coca-Cola)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #30 - Matt Kenseth (DeWalt)
* #31 - Jeffrey Earnhardt (R) (Cheerios)
* #33 - Austin Dillon (PT) (Dow)
=== 2015 ===
==== ECR lineup ====
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (Bass Pro Shops)
* #3 - Austin Dillon (R) (Dow)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #30 - Matt Kenseth (DeWalt)
* #31 - Jeffrey Earnhardt (Monster Energy)
=== 2016 ===
*Due to gaining confidence, Tony Stewart got much better, and never had his 2013 sprint car injury, the 2014 Kevin Ward Jr. controversy, or the 2016 dune buggy accident. He still competes in the Cup Series to this day.
* Due to not getting concussions, Dale Jr. is still racing full-time in the Cup Series.
=== 2017 ===
=== 2018 ===
=== 2019 ===
Toyota switched from the Camry to the newly-revived Supra.
=== 2020 ===
Kenseth retired at the conclusion of the 2020 season. Rookie Tyler Reddick replaced him. 
===2021===
The season began with
==== ECR lineup: ====
* #1 - Martin Truex Jr. (Bass Pro Shops)
* #3 - Austin Dillon (Dow)
* #8 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Budweiser)
* #30 - Tyler Reddick (DeWalt)
* #31 - Jeffrey Earnhardt (Monster Energy)
== Daytona 500 Winners ==
* 2001: #15-Michael Waltrip, NAPA, Dale Earnhardt Inc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo
* 2002: #3-Dale Earnhardt, GM Goodwrench, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet Monte Carlo
* 2003: #3-Dale Earnhardt, GM Goodwrench, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet Monte Carlo
* 2004: #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr., Budweiser, Dale Earnhardt Inc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo
* 2005: #3-Dale Earnhardt, GM Goodwrench, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet Monte Carlo
* 2006: #48-Jimmie Johnson, Lowe's, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
* 2007: #81-Mark Martin, Kraft, Dale Earnhardt Inc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
* 2008: #30-Kevin Harvick, Shell, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
* 2009: #24-Jeff Gordon, DuPont, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Impala
* 2010: #3-Jeff Burton, Reese’s, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Impala
* 2011: #6-David Ragan, UPS, Roush-Fenway Racing, Ford Mustang
* 2012: #30-Matt Kenseth, DeWalt Power Tools, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Impala
* 2013: #48-Jimmie Johnson, Lowe’s, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro
* 2014: #14-Tony Stewart, Bass Pro Shops, Stewart-Haas Racing, Chevrolet Camaro
* 2015: #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr., Budweiser, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Camaro 
*2016: #11-Denny Hamlin, FedEx, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry
*2017: #31-Jeffrey Earnhardt, Monster Energy, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Camaro
*2018: #3-Austin Dillon, Dow, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Camaro
*2019: #9-Chase Elliott, NAPA, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro
*2020: #14-Tony Stewart, Home Depot, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford Mustang
*2021: #34-Michael McDowell, Love's, Front Row Motorsports, Ford Mustang
*2022: #2-Austin Cindric, Discount Tires, Team Penske, Dodge Challenger
==Champions==
*2001: #3-Dale Earnhardt, GM Goodwrench, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet Monte Carlo
*2002: #20-Tony Stewart, Home Depot, Joe Gibbs Racing, Pontiac Grand Prix
*2003: #17-Matt Kenseth, DeWalt, Roush Racing, Ford Taurus
*2004: #24-Jeff Gordon, DuPont, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Monte Carlo
*2005: #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr., Budweiser, Dale Earnhardt Inc., Chevrolet Monte Carlo
*2006: #48-Jimmie Johnson, Lowe's, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
*2007: #24-Jeff Gordon, DuPont, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
*2008: #3-Jeff Burton, Reese's, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
*2009: #14-Tony Stewart, Office Depot, Stewart-Haas Racing, Chevrolet Impala
*2010: #11-Denny Hamlin, FedEx, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry
*2011: #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr., Budweiser, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Impala
*2012: #31-Mark Martin, Caterpillar, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Impala
*2013: #30-Matt Kenseth, DeWalt, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Camaro
*2014: #24-Jeff Gordon, DuPont, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro
*2015: #14-Tony Stewart, Office Depot, Stewart-Haas Racing, Chevrolet Camaro
*2016: #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr., Budweiser, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Camaro
*2017: #24-Chase Elliott, NAPA, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro
*2018: #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr., Budweiser, Earnhardt-Childress Racing, Chevrolet Camaro
*2019: #18-Kyle Busch, M&M's, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry
*2020: #4-Kevin Harvick, Jimmy John's, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford Mustang
*2021: #5-Kyle Larson, HendrickCars.com, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro
*2022: #42-Ross Chastain, Advent Health, Chip Ganassi Racing, Dodge Challenger
== Points Standings ==
=== 2001 ===
 	DRIVER 	MAKE 	RACES	WIN	T5	T10	POLE	LAPS 	LED 	EARNINGS 	AVST	AVFN	RAF	MILES 	LLF	POINTS	DIFF
1 	  Dale Earnhardt Sr. 	Chevrolet	36 	10 	21	35 	9 	10638	2320	10,879,757	9.5 	11.0	34 	14,029.73	27 	5197 	
2 	Jeff Gordon 	Chevrolet	36 	6 	18	24 	6 	10429	465 	4,941,463 	17.0	12.6	32 	13,981.38	29 	5112 	-85
3 	  Tony Stewart 	Pontiac 	36 	3 	15	22 	0 	10429	465 	4,941,463 	17.0	12.6	32 	13,981.38	29 	4763 	-434
4 	Sterling Marlin 	Dodge 	36 	2 	12	20 	1 	10723	535 	4,517,634 	15.4	13.0	34 	14,105.58	30 	4741 	-456
5 	  Ricky Rudd 	Ford 	36 	2 	14	22 	1 	10536	569 	4,878,027 	13.1	13.2	32 	13,847.10	26 	4706 	-406
6 	  Dale Jarrett 	Ford 	36 	4 	12	19 	4 	10744	511 	5,377,742 	14.8	13.9	32 	14,051.25	27 	4612 	-500
7 	  Bobby Labonte 	Pontiac 	36 	2 	9 	20 	1 	10361	229 	4,786,779 	17.8	14.1	30 	13,582.70	27 	4561 	-551
8 	  Rusty Wallace 	Ford 	36 	1 	8 	14 	0 	10138	1104	4,788,652 	15.1	14.4	33 	13,223.36	26 	4481 	-631
9 	  Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 	Chevrolet	36 	3 	9 	15 	2 	10302	767 	5,827,542 	16.7	15.2	32 	13,688.97	23 	4460 	-652
10	  Jeff Burton 	Ford 	36 	2 	8 	16 	0 	10463	400 	4,230,737 	21.5	15.3	35 	13,941.39	22 	4394 	-718
11	  Johnny Benson, Jr. 	Pontiac 	36 	0 	6 	14 	0 	10049	101 	2,894,903 	17.7	17.1	29 	13,417.44	21 	4152 	-960
12	  Mark Martin 	Ford 	36 	0 	3 	15 	2 	10138	190 	3,797,006 	15.6	17.9	32 	13,684.67	22 	4095 	-1,017
13	  Matt Kenseth 	Ford 	36 	0 	4 	9 	0 	10341	100 	2,565,579 	27.8	18.6	31 	13,571.81	19 	3982 	-1,130
14	  Ward Burton 	Dodge 	36 	1 	6 	10 	0 	10158	178 	3,583,692 	20.4	19.8	27 	13,169.82	17 	3846 	-1,266
15	  Bill Elliott 	Dodge 	36 	1 	5 	9 	2 	9915 	171 	3,618,017 	13.7	19.9	34 	13,461.62	18 	3824 	-1,288
16	  Jimmy Spencer 	Ford 	36 	0 	3 	8 	2 	10259	214 	2,669,638 	19.7	20.2	29 	13,333.62	19 	3782 	-1,330
17	  Jerry Nadeau 	Chevrolet	36 	0 	4 	10 	0 	10238	180 	2,507,827 	22.3	21.2	28 	13,515.14	16 	3675 	-1,437
18	  Bobby Hamilton 	Chevrolet	36 	1 	3 	7 	0 	10750	239 	2,527,310 	22.3	21.8	36 	14,104.40	13 	3575 	-1,537
19	  Ken Schrader 	Pontiac 	36 	0 	0 	5 	0 	10534	10 	2,418,181 	22.8	22.3	34 	14,000.95	12 	3480 	-1,632
20	  Elliott Sadler 	Ford 	36 	1 	2 	2 	0 	10392	125 	2,683,225 	28.4	22.8	34 	13,544.52	12 	3471 	-1,641
21	  Ricky Craven 	Ford 	36 	1 	4 	7 	1 	9670 	170 	1,996,981 	20.6	24.0	27 	12,790.60	12 	3379 	-1,733
22	  Dave Blaney 	Dodge 	36 	0 	0 	6 	0 	10053	87 	1,827,896 	23.2	24.1	30 	13,103.52	15 	3303 	-1,809
23	  Terry Labonte 	Chevrolet	36 	0 	1 	3 	0 	10517	0 	3,011,901 	30.8	24.1	28 	13,913.09	11 	3280 	-1,832
24	  Michael Waltrip 	Chevrolet	36 	1 	3 	3 	0 	9527 	88 	3,411,644 	21.6	25.8	30 	12,827.29	10 	3159 	-1,953
25	  Robert Pressley 	Ford 	34 	0 	1 	5 	0 	9154 	5 	2,171,520 	25.9	23.8	25 	12,462.20	13 	3156 	-1,956
26	  Casey Atwood 	Dodge 	35 	0 	1 	3 	1 	9473 	137 	1,797,111 	20.1	24.8	29 	11,904.84	9 	3132 	-1,980
27	  Kurt Busch 	Ford 	35 	0 	3 	6 	1 	8932 	160 	2,170,629 	29.4	25.5	28 	11,980.41	13 	3081 	-2,031
28	  Joe Nemechek 	Chevrolet	31 	1 	1 	4 	0 	8706 	229 	2,510,723 	21.5	22.8	25 	11,367.16	10 	2994 	-2,118
29	  Todd Bodine 	Ford 	35 	0 	2 	2 	3 	9161 	110 	1,740,315 	16.7	26.8	23 	11,984.73	8 	2960 	-2,152
30	  Brett Bodine 	Ford 	36 	0 	0 	2 	0 	9968 	3 	1,740,526 	27.9	27.2	34 	13,472.72	9 	2948 	-2,164
31	  John Andretti 	Dodge 	35 	0 	1 	2 	0 	9994 	53 	2,873,184 	22.5	26.6	31 	13,000.73	7 	2943 	-2,169
32	  Steve Park 	Chevrolet	24 	1 	5 	12 	0 	6368 	508 	2,385,971 	21.3	16.5	22 	8,781.95 	15 	2859 	-2,253
33	  Stacy Compton 	Dodge 	34 	0 	0 	1 	2 	9424 	13 	1,704,962 	23.8	27.6	27 	12,535.54	9 	2752 	-2,360
34	  Mike Wallace 	Ford 	29 	0 	1 	6 	0 	8684 	61 	2,075,044 	31.2	23.9	25 	10,899.21	10 	2693 	-2,419
35	  Jeremy Mayfield 	Ford 	28 	0 	5 	7 	0 	7286 	60 	2,682,603 	22.9	23.6	24 	9,911.30 	12 	2651 	-2,461
36	  Kevin Lepage 	Chevrolet	29 	0 	0 	1 	0 	8557 	13 	1,424,852 	28.5	26.2	26 	10,550.63	6 	2461 	-2,651
37	  Jason Leffler 	Chevrolet	30 	0 	0 	1 	1 	7983 	15 	1,724,692 	28.7	27.7	22 	11,047.18	7 	2413 	-2,699
38	  Ron Hornaday, Jr. 	Pontiac 	32 	0 	0 	1 	0 	8659 	29 	1,435,857 	27.5	30.5	24 	11,108.34	6 	2305 	-2,807
39	  Kenny Wallace 	Chevrolet	24 	0 	1 	2 	1 	7334 	104 	1,507,922 	25.3	26.3	18 	8,861.76 	4 	2054 	-3,058
40	  Mike Skinner 	Chevrolet	23 	0 	0 	1 	0 	6717 	46 	1,921,186 	20.9	25.2	19 	8,631.99 	6 	2029 	-3,083
41	  Buckshot Jones 	Dodge 	30 	0 	0 	0 	0 	7819 	2 	1,631,488 	31.6	32.9	20 	10,355.60	2 	1939 	-3,173
42	  Hut Stricklin 	Ford 	22 	0 	0 	1 	0 	6215 	0 	1,006,021 	29.1	27.6	19 	9,123.16 	4 	1770 	-3,342
43	  Kyle Petty 	Dodge 	24 	0 	0 	0 	0 	5026 	1 	1,008,919 	27.5	31.2	16 	7,571.89 	2 	1673 	-3,439
44	  Robby Gordon 	Chevrolet
Ford	17 	1 	2 	3 	0 	4401 	50 	1,371,900 	32.4	24.8	15 	6,207.97 	5 	1552 	-3,560
45	  Rick Mast 	Chevrolet
Ford
Pontiac	17 	0 	0 	0 	0 	4543 	0 	680,321 	31.8	31.1	14 	5,648.39 	3 	1187 	-3,925
46	  Andy Houston 	Ford 	17 	0 	0 	0 	0 	3612 	1 	865,263 	24.0	32.4	8 	4,812.94 	3 	1123 	-3,989
47	  Bobby Hamilton, Jr. 	Chevrolet	10 	0 	0 	0 	0 	2577 	0 	546,847 	28.7	29.4	6 	3,698.28 	2 	748 	-4,364
48	  Jeff Green 	Chevrolet	8 	0 	0 	1 	1 	1758 	71 	441,449 	18.8	27.5	5 	2,775.82 	3 	539 	-4,573
49	  Ryan Newman 	Ford 	7 	0 	2 	2 	1 	1478 	13 	465,276 	14.1	24.7	5 	2,349.50 	2 	497 	-4,700
50	Kevin Harvick 	Chevrolet	3 	1 	1 	2 	0 	597 	23 	375,023 	11.7	12.3	4 	1,128.32 	2 	495 	-4,702
50	  Boris Said 	Ford 	2 	0 	0 	1 	0 	202 	0 	124,340 	31.0	9.5 	2 	444.50 	2 	272 	-4,840
51	  Scott Pruett 	Chevrolet
Dodge	2 	0 	0 	0 	0 	202 	3 	134,045 	9.5 	11.5	2 	444.50 	2 	262 	-4,850
52	  Jimmie Johnson 	Chevrolet	3 	0 	0 	0 	0 	781 	0 	122,320 	22.0	31.0	2 	1,184.38 	1 	210 	-4,902
53	  Dave Marcis 	Chevrolet	3 	0 	0 	0 	0 	837 	0 	153,196 	18.7	35.3	3 	1,149.08 	0 	171 	-4,941
54	  Jeff Purvis 	Ford 	4 	0 	0 	0 	0 	409 	0 	238,985 	18.5	40.3	1 	1,066.18 	0 	169 	-4,943
55	  Carl Long 	Dodge
Ford	3 	0 	0 	0 	0 	513 	0 	152,376 	28.3	38.0	1 	687.99 	0 	147 	-4,965
56	  Rich Bickle 	Chevrolet	2 	0 	0 	0 	0 	653 	0 	114,910 	17.5	31.5	2 	657.34 	0 	137 	-4,975
58	  Hermie Sadler 	Chevrolet	3 	0 	0 	0 	0 	1206 	0 	121,865 	26.7	30.7	3 	1,141.54 	0 	131 	-4,981
59	  Ron Fellows 	Chevrolet	2 	0 	0 	0 	0 	137 	23 	72,055 	9.5 	40.0	0 	290.20 	0 	96 	-5,016
60	  Derrike Cope 	Ford
Pontiac	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	263 	0 	81,871 	30.0	24.0	1 	394.50 	0 	91 	-5,021
61	  Brian Simo 	Ford 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0 	113 	0 	72,175 	28.5	39.5	0 	263.35 	0 	89 	-5,023
62	  Dorsey Schroeder 	Dodge 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	112 	0 	52,805 	36.0	25.0	1 	224.00 	1 	88 	-5,024
63	  Wally Dallenbach, Jr.	Chevrolet
Dodge	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	198 	0 	64,410 	43.0	26.0	1 	495.00 	0 	85 	-5,027
64	  Ted Musgrave 	Ford 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	198 	0 	73,287 	15.0	29.0	1 	495.00 	0 	76 	-5,036
65	  Dick Trickle 	Chevrolet	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	389 	0 	33,850 	7.0 	33.0	1 	395.61 	0 	64 	-5,048
66	  Anthony Lazzaro 	Chevrolet	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	88 	0 	32,265 	31.0	34.0	1 	215.60 	0 	61 	-5,051
66	  Shawna Robinson 	Ford 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	197 	0 	35,190 	32.0	34.0	1 	394.00 	0 	61 	-5,051
68	  Geoffrey Bodine 	Ford 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0 	750 	0 	80,855 	24.0	32.0	2 	655.04 	0 	52 	-5,060
69	  Lance Hooper 	Chevrolet
Ford	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	104 	0 	47,700 	36.0	42.0	0 	160.16 	0 	37 	-5,075
69	  Stuart Kirby 	Ford 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	46 	0 	32,605 	22.0	42.0	0 	69.00 	0 	37 	-5,075
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