The Daytona 500: The Most Prestigious Win in Racing

No winner was declared for the first Daytona 500 for three days. After the February 22, 1959 race at Daytona International Speedway, the finish was to close to call. Johnny Beauchamp went into Victory Lane and claimed the glory and accolades, but it was later determined by a clip of newsreel that Lee Petty had won. For that first race, a crowd of 41,000 spectators was on hand for the 200-lap race. Today the number of spectators has more than tripled.

Dubbed "the Great American Race," the Daytona 500 is NASCAR's first race of the year. This is an unusual phenomenon in sports, because the "big" events are usually reserved for the end of the season. The Daytona 500 is also NASCAR's biggest and richest race. It has the largest total prize money payout of any United States motor sport event, greater even than that of the Indianapolis 500 or the Brickyard 400. The winning car is displayed in the Daytona 500 Experience museum for a year, and the winning driver is immortalized in cement (via his hand prints, right foot and autograph) on the Daytona 500 Champion's Walk of Fame. The winner is awarded the Harley J. Earl Trophy. Harley J. Earl was an automobile designer, is considered the "father of the Corvette," and was the second NASCAR commissioner.

Winners list from the first race to the 2008 race:

1959 - Lee Petty 1984 - Cale Yarborough

1960 - Junior Johnson 1985 - Bill Elliott

1961 - Marvin Panch 1986 - Geoff Bodine

1962 - Fireball Roberts 1987 - Bill Elliott

1963 - Tiny Lund 1988 - Bobby Allison

1964 - Richard Petty 1989 - Darrell Waltrip

1965 - Fred Lorenzen 1990 - Derrike Cope

1966 - Richard Petty 1991 - Ernie Irvan

1967 - Mario Andretti 1992 - Davey Allison

1968 - Cale Yarborough 1993 - Dale Jarrett

1969 - Lee Roy Yarborough 1994 - Sterling Marlin

1970 - Pete Hamilton 1995 - Sterling Marlin

1971 - Richard Petty 1996 - Dale Jarrett

1972 - A. J. Foyt 1997 - Jeff Gordon

1973 - Richard Petty 1998 - Dale Earnhardt

1974 - Richard Petty 1999 - Jeff Gordon

1975 - Benny Parsons 2000 - Dale Jarrett

1976 - David Pearson 2001 - Michael Waltrip

1977 - Cale Yarborough 2002 - Ward Burton

1978 - Bobby Allison 2003 - Michael Waltrip

1979 - Richard Petty 2004 - Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

1980 - Buddy Baker 2005 - Jeff Gordon

1981 - Richard Petty 2006 - Jimmie Johnson

1982 - Bobby Allison 2007 - Kevin Harvick

1983 - Cale Yarborough 2008 - Ryan Newman

NASCAR racing has become one of America's most popular sports today. Races are viewed by millions of fans from around 150 countries all over the earth. NASCAR ranks second only to the National Football League in television ratings in homes and viewing areas throughout the United States.

NASCAR is very big business. It is estimated that there are at least 75 million die hard NASCAR fans. These fans are extreme brand loyalists and are said to spend over $2 million a year on NASCAR brand merchandise.

With such a rich and varied history; it is no wonder that NASCAR has had such an enduring effect on sports fans all over the world.

Bibliography:
The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07
http://www.infoplease.com/ipsa/A0106782.html