The1997 Daytona 500,the 39th running of theevent,was held on February 16 atDaytona International SpeedwayinDaytona Beach, Florida.Consisted of 200 laps and 500 miles, it was the first race of the1997 Winston Cup season.Mike Skinner,driving the #31 car forRichard Childress Racing,won the pole andJeff Gordon,driving the #24 Chevrolet forHendrick Motorsports,won the race. The race was broadcast on television byCBS.This would be the last Daytona 500 attempt forDelma Cowart.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 32 in the1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Seriesseason | |||
 1997 Daytona 500 logo | |||
| Date | February 16, 1997 | ||
| Location |
Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, Florida,U.S. | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.02336 km) | ||
| Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Weather | Temperatures hovering around 63 °F (17 °C); wind speeds reaching up to 23 miles per hour (37 km/h)[1] | ||
| Average speed | 148.295 miles per hour (238.658 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Richard Childress Racing | ||
| Qualifying race winners | |||
| Duel 1 Winner | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Duel 2 Winner | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | |
| Laps | 52 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | CBS | ||
| Announcers | Ken Squier,Buddy Baker,andNed Jarrett | ||
| Nielsen Ratings |
8.6/23 (12.8 million viewers) | ||
Background
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Daytona International Speedway is arace trackinDaytona Beach, Floridathat is one of sixsuperspeedwaysto holdNASCARraces, the others beingMichigan International Speedway,Auto Club Speedway,Indianapolis Motor Speedway,Pocono RacewayandTalladega Superspeedway.[2]The standard track at Daytona is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. The track also features two other layouts that utilize portions of the primary high speedtri-oval,such as a 3.56-mile (5.73 km)sports carcourse and a 2.95-mile (4.75 km) motorcycle course.[3]The track's 180-acre (73 ha) infield includes the 29-acre (12 ha) Lake Lloyd, which has hostedpowerboatracing. The speedway is owned and operated byInternational Speedway Corporation.
The track was built by NASCAR founderBill France, Sr.to host racing that was being held at the formerDaytona Beach Road Courseand opened with thefirst Daytona 500 in 1959.[4]The speedway has been renovated three times, with the infield renovated in 2004,[5]and the track repaved in 1978 and 2010.[6]
The Daytona 500 is regarded as the most important and prestigious race on the NASCAR calendar.[7]It is also the series' first race of the year; this phenomenon is virtually unique in sports, which tend to have championships or other major events at the end of the season rather than the start. Since1995,U.S.television ratingsfor the Daytona 500 have been the highest for any auto race of the year, surpassing the traditional leader, theIndianapolis 500which in turn greatly surpasses the Daytona 500 in in-track attendance and international viewing. The2006 Daytona 500attracted the sixth largest average live global TV audience of any sporting event that year with 20 million viewers.[8]
Race recap
editNotes
edit- Joe Nemechek'scar ownerFelix Sabatesbought the #73 entry ofPhil Barkdoll,who had qualified 38th. Nemechek went to the #73 for the 500.
- Remington Armsplaced their sponsor logos on the #19Forddriven byLoy Allen Jr.forTri-Star MotorsportsafterRick Mastfailed to qualify theRahMoccar.
- Robert Pressley's car caught air after he spun on lap 10. The rear of the car lifted so much, the car was temporarily sliding across the track on its nose. The landing was quite hard, so afterthe crewrepaired the car, thenBusch Seriescompetitor and future 2-timeCamping World Truck SeriesChampionTodd Bodinehopped in to complete more laps.
- Dale Earnhardtwas involved in a crash in a six-way battle for the lead with 12 laps to go, in which his #3Chevroletscraped the backstretch wall by itself, then made contact with Dale Jarrett causing Earnhardt's car to roll over. While his car was on its roof, Earnhardt was contacted byErnie Irvanin the #28Ford.The hood of Irvan's car detached and sailed into the backstretch grandstand, injuring a few spectators. Earnhardt famously noticed that his tires were still on the car after the crash, had his car taken off the hook, and drove it back to pit road. The car was repaired and Earnhardt was able to return to the race, 5 laps down in 31st.
- The race ended under caution after the Big One occurred on lap 196, involving 13 cars.
- Hendrick Motorsportsposted a 1-2-3 finish with Gordon winning the race,Terry Labontefinishing second, andRicky Cravenfinishing third. The team used aformation finishas the race ended under thesafety car,which was possible at the time.
- At age 25,Jeff Gordonbecame the youngestDaytona 500winner ever.Richard Pettyhad previously been the youngest winner in1964,when he won the 500 at age 26. Gordon's record was surpassed whenTrevor Baynewon the2011 Daytona 500at age 20.
Results
editMedia
editTelevision
editThe Daytona 500 was covered byCBSfor the nineteenth time in the United States.Ken Squier,two-timeNASCAR Cup SerieschampionNed Jarrettand1980race winnerBuddy Bakercalled the race from the broadcast booth.Mike Joy,Dick BerggrenandRalph Sheheenhandled pit road for the television side.
| CBS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | ||
| Lap-by-lap | Color-commentators | ||
| Ken Squier | Ned Jarrett Buddy Baker |
Mike Joy Dick Berggren Ralph Sheheen | |
References
edit- ^Weather information for the1997 Daytona 500at Old Farmers Almanac
- ^"Race Tracks".NASCAR.Turner Sports. Archived fromthe originalon June 28, 2011.RetrievedNovember 23,2015.
- ^"Track facts".DaytonaInternationalSpeedway.Daytona International Speedway. Archived fromthe originalon September 23, 2015.RetrievedNovember 23,2015.
- ^"The History of ISC".InternationalSpeedwayCorporation.International Speedway Corporation. June 14, 2015. Archived fromthe originalon December 1, 2017.RetrievedNovember 23,2015.
- ^"Daytona Announces Facility Renovation Plans, No Track Alterations".Roadracing World.Lake Elsinore, California:Roadracing World Publishing, Inc. March 24, 2004.RetrievedNovember 23,2015.
- ^"Daytona International Speedway set to repave following the Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola".DaytonaInternationalSpeedway.Daytona Beach, Florida:Daytona International Speedway. April 24, 2010. Archived fromthe originalon September 23, 2015.RetrievedNovember 24,2015.
- ^What Makes Daytona Special.Daytona International Speedway.May 10, 2012. 2:51 minutes in.YouTube.Archivedfrom the original on December 21, 2021.
- ^"World's most watched TV sports events: 2006 Rank & Trends report".Initiative. January 19, 2007. Archived fromthe originalon February 8, 2007.RetrievedNovember 24,2015.