| Type: | NASWINSTON |
| Location: | Fort Worth, Texas, Texas Motor Speedway |
| Distance Mi: | 501 |
| Pole Time: | 28.320 |
| Year: | 2001 |
| Course Mi: | 1.5 |
| Scheduled Km: | 806.281 |
| Course Km: | 2.41 |
| Distance Laps: | 334 |
| Scheduled Laps: | 334 |
| Distance Km: | 806.281 |
| Scheduled Mi: | 501 |
| Race Name: | Harrah's 500 |
| Official Name: | 5th Annual Harrah's 500 |
| Race No: | 7 |
| Season No: | 36 |
| Date: | April 1 |
| Radio: | Performance Racing Network |
| Booth Ann: | Doug Rice, Mark Garrow |
| Turn Ann: | Chuck Carland, Rob Albright |
| Car: | 88 |
| Most Laps: | 122 |
| Most Team: | Robert Yates Racing |
| Most Driver: | Dale Jarrett |
| First Driver: | Dale Jarrett |
| First Team: | Robert Yates Racing |
| Pole Team: | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |
| Pole Driver: | Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
| Avg: | 141.804mph |
| Caption: | The 2001 Harrah's 500 program cover, with artwork from Sam Bass. The cover celebrates Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s first ever win at the 2000 DirecTV 500. The painting is called "A Texas Sized Win!" |
| Network: | FOX |
| Announcers: | Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds, Darrell Waltrip |
| Attendance: | 211,000 |
The 2001 Harrah's 500 was the seventh stock car race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the fifth iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, April 1, 2001, in Fort Worth, Texas at Texas Motor Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) permanent tri-oval shaped racetrack. The race took the scheduled 334 laps to complete. A call for four tires for Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett would prove to be instrumental as he would slice his way through the field on the final restart with 18 to go to win the race.[1] [2] The win was Jarrett's 27th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second of the season. To fill out the podium, Steve Park, driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and Johnny Benson Jr., driving for MBV Motorsports, would finish second and third, respectively.
Texas Motor Speedway is a speedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas – the portion located in Denton County, Texas. The track measures 1.5 miles (2.4 km) around and is banked 24 degrees in the turns, and is of the oval design, where the front straightaway juts outward slightly. The track layout is similar to Atlanta Motor Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway (formerly Lowe's Motor Speedway). The track is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., the same company that owns Atlanta and Charlotte Motor Speedway, as well as the short-track Bristol Motor Speedway.
The first practice session was held on Friday, March 30, at 11:45 AM CST. The session would last for two hours.[3] Steve Park, driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.266 and an average speed of 191.042mph.[4]
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 28.266 | 191.042 | |
| 2 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 28.302 | 190.799 | |
| 3 | 55 | Bobby Hamilton | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 28.334 | 190.584 | |
| Full first practice results | |||||||
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, March 31, at 10:00 AM CST. The session would last for one hour and 30 minutes. Johnny Benson Jr., driving for MBV Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.927 and an average speed of 186.677mph.[5]
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | Johnny Benson Jr. | MBV Motorsports | Pontiac | 28.927 | 186.677 | |
| 2 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 29.014 | 186.117 | |
| 3 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.020 | 186.079 | |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | |||||||
Qualifying was held on Friday, March 30, at 3:00 PM CST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap. Positions 1-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champ needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[6]
Dale Earnhardt Jr., driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., would win the pole, setting a time of 28.320 and an average speed of 190.678mph.[7]
Two drivers would fail to qualify: Kyle Petty and Rick Mast.
| Fin[8] | St | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 334 | 122 | running | 185 | $444,527 | |
| 2 | 5 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 334 | 79 | running | 175 | $270,443 | |
| 3 | 17 | 10 | Johnny Benson Jr. | MBV Motorsports | Pontiac | 334 | 18 | running | 170 | $193,050 | |
| 4 | 16 | 97 | Kurt Busch (R) | Roush Racing | Ford | 334 | 0 | running | 160 | $162,150 | |
| 5 | 9 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 334 | 0 | running | 155 | $165,502 | |
| 6 | 43 | 93 | Dave Blaney | Bill Davis Racing | Dodge | 334 | 0 | running | 150 | $102,050 | |
| 7 | 33 | 29 | Kevin Harvick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 334 | 0 | running | 146 | $137,777 | |
| 8 | 1 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 334 | 107 | running | 147 | $135,573 | |
| 9 | 8 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 334 | 1 | running | 143 | $127,176 | |
| 10 | 13 | 36 | Ken Schrader | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 334 | 0 | running | 134 | $108,685 | |
| 11 | 34 | 4 | Kevin Lepage | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 334 | 0 | running | 130 | $92,645 | |
| 12 | 38 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 334 | 0 | running | 127 | $121,665 | |
| 13 | 42 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 334 | 0 | running | 124 | $111,355 | |
| 14 | 39 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 333 | 0 | running | 121 | $101,248 | |
| 15 | 26 | 92 | Stacy Compton | Melling Racing | Dodge | 333 | 0 | running | 118 | $84,611 | |
| 16 | 11 | 21 | Elliott Sadler | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 333 | 0 | running | 115 | $96,590 | |
| 17 | 29 | 01 | Jason Leffler (R) | Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates | Dodge | 332 | 0 | running | 112 | $84,375 | |
| 18 | 4 | 55 | Bobby Hamilton | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 332 | 0 | running | 109 | $79,600 | |
| 19 | 31 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 332 | 0 | running | 106 | $112,746 | |
| 20 | 27 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Racing | Ford | 332 | 0 | running | 103 | $80,700 | |
| 21 | 28 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Dodge | 331 | 0 | running | 100 | $102,235 | |
| 22 | 14 | 12 | Jeremy Mayfield | Penske Racing South | Ford | 331 | 0 | running | 97 | $106,184 | |
| 23 | 41 | 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 331 | 0 | running | 94 | $82,400 | |
| 24 | 22 | 7 | Mike Wallace | Ultra Motorsports | Ford | 330 | 0 | running | 91 | $71,800 | |
| 25 | 35 | 27 | Kenny Wallace | Eel River Racing | Pontiac | 330 | 0 | running | 88 | $62,350 | |
| 26 | 21 | 90 | Hut Stricklin | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 330 | 0 | running | 85 | $58,200 | |
| 27 | 32 | 32 | Ricky Craven | PPI Motorsports | Ford | 330 | 0 | running | 82 | $55,700 | |
| 28 | 25 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 329 | 0 | running | 79 | $56,700 | |
| 29 | 36 | 25 | Jerry Nadeau | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 327 | 0 | running | 76 | $62,700 | |
| 30 | 19 | 31 | Mike Skinner | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 326 | 0 | running | 73 | $83,774 | |
| 31 | 40 | 43 | John Andretti | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 322 | 0 | running | 70 | $84,077 | |
| 32 | 12 | 96 | Andy Houston (R) | PPI Motorsports | Ford | 317 | 0 | running | 67 | $47,975 | |
| 33 | 24 | 44 | Buckshot Jones | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 316 | 0 | running | 64 | $54,950 | |
| 34 | 37 | 40 | Sterling Marlin | Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates | Dodge | 298 | 5 | crash | 66 | $53,925 | |
| 35 | 15 | 66 | Todd Bodine | Haas-Carter Motorsports | Ford | 297 | 0 | engine | 58 | $44,900 | |
| 36 | 10 | 19 | Casey Atwood (R) | Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 269 | 0 | running | 55 | $43,850 | |
| 37 | 6 | 28 | Ricky Rudd | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 264 | 0 | engine | 52 | $73,097 | |
| 38 | 23 | 26 | Jimmy Spencer | Haas-Carter Motorsports | Ford | 257 | 0 | crash | 49 | $49,725 | |
| 39 | 7 | 15 | Michael Waltrip | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 227 | 0 | running | 46 | $51,675 | |
| 40 | 20 | 14 | Ron Hornaday Jr. (R) | A. J. Foyt Enterprises | Pontiac | 226 | 0 | running | 43 | $41,625 | |
| 41 | 30 | 33 | Joe Nemechek | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 204 | 0 | crash | 40 | $69,845 | |
| 42 | 2 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 149 | 2 | engine | 42 | $94,552 | |
| 43 | 18 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 33 | 0 | crash | 34 | $49,722 | |
| Failed to qualify | |||||||||||
| 44 | 45 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | |||||||
| 45 | 50 | Rick Mast | Midwest Transit Racing | Chevrolet | |||||||
| Official race results | |||||||||||
| Pos | Driver | Points | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dale Jarrett | 1,056 | ||
| 2 | Jeff Gordon | 981 (–75) | ||
| 1 | 3 | Johnny Benson Jr. | 946 (–110) | |
| 1 | 4 | Steve Park | 933 (–123) | |
| 2 | 5 | Sterling Marlin | 889 (–167) | |
| 6 | Rusty Wallace | 879 (–177) | ||
| 1 | 7 | Bobby Hamilton | 825 (–231) | |
| 1 | 8 | Elliott Sadler | 824 (–232) | |
| 1 | 9 | Bill Elliott | 822 (–234) | |
| 3 | 10 | Kevin Harvick | 811 (–245) |