Top Ten Race Finishes in NASCAR

There are so many great reasons why we all watch NASCAR racing. Every fan has their own favorite race finish, whether it was their favorite driver winning a race by a mile, or a win so close that it had to be determined by a high speed camera. Some involved sentimental favorites and some were epic battles between old rivals. My top ten favorites incorporate a little of each.

I want to start with Daytona 500 wins. The Daytona 500 is the most prestigious and highest paying race on the NASCAR schedule, not to mention the fact that it's the first points race of the season. There have been some incredible finishes in this race that will never be forgotten. I'll start with the very first Daytona 500.

1959- The France family had completed their greatest racetrack...the Daytona International Speedway. A mammoth 2.5 mile high banked oval, this track was one of a kind. Cars could travel almost 200 mph here, and the track was wide which allowed for a lot of passing. The first race there was a much anticipated spectacle. And so, as it turned out, was the finish. After a grueling afternoon of racing, the last lap came down to a tight contest between Lee Petty and Johnny Beauchamp. Both drivers, Petty in an Oldsmobile and Beauchamp in a Ford, came barreling across the finish line three wide with a lap down car. Light bulbs flashed... but the two were so close that no one knew for sure who had won! Of course, each driver thought he'd won...but it took three days and a close examination of reporter's photos to determine that Lee Petty would take home the trophy of the inaugural Daytona 500.

1979- This was the first NASCAR race that was shown flag to flag on national TV. And what a show it turned out to be! The race was rain delayed at the beginning of the day and when the green flag finally flew, Cale Yarborough and brothers Donnie and Bobby Allison tangled early and wound up spinning into the infield mud. They repaired their cars and raced on, but they wound up tangling again on the final lap. As Yarborough and the Allisons crashed and spun into the infield again, Richard Petty inherited the lead and drove on to victory. The real excitement, however, was taking place in the infield as Donnie and Cale wound up in a fist fight with Bobby Allison joining the fray. To this day, the drivers involved each still think the other ones caused the wreck and Cale insists that he got out of his car, and next thing he knew was that "Donnie Allison was beating on my fist with his nose." What a way to introduce NASCAR to the television world!

1998- Dale Earnhardt started racing in the Sprint cup series in 1979. He won rookie of the year that year, and went on to win his first of seven championships the next year. He'd won at every kind of track, and Daytona was one of his best. But there was one race at Daytona that had eluded him...the Daytona 500. He'd come close so many times only to have his hopes dashed by a blown tire or an expired engine. But in 1998, his luck turned around, and on his 20^th try, he finally won the great American race. Crewmembers from every race team lined up to congratulate him and fans around the country cheered. This was an emotional victory that will be remembered forever, and one of my personal favorites.

Sometimes, the most emotional race finishes involve two rivals battling for a win. Here are two rivalries that involve great race finish stories.

1995, August & 1999, August- Bristol- Who can forget these two race finishes on hot August nights at the Bristol Motor Speedway. Both involve NASCAR champs Terry Labonte and Dale Earnhardt. In August of '95, Labonte was steaming towards the finish when he was bumped from behind by Earnhardt. Labonte slammed hard into the wall but still managed to cross the finish line first. This was the most wrecked racecar that had ever been in victory lane. Labonte got his trophy, but tempers were hot that night. Then, in August of '99, Labonte was again leading the race when with 5 laps to go was spun out by Darrell Waltrip. Dale Earnhardt inherited the race lead when Labonte limped into the pits to get fresh tires. Labonte's new tires enabled him to catch and pass Earnhardt while coming to the white flag. Earnhardt poured on the gas and caught up to Labonte, again spinning him out coming to the checkered flag. This time, Earnhardt crossed the finish line first, and in victory lane, gave the excuse that he 'Didn't mean to spin him out, but only wanted to rattle his cage a little bit'. When Labonte was asked about Earnhardt's excuse, he replied "Does he ever say he means to spin anyone out?" Labonte then threatened to spin Earnhardt out at the next race.

1989- The Winston - Lowe's Motor Speedway, Charlotte. (Now known as the All-Star race.) Rivals Rusty Wallace and Darrell Waltrip were racing for money and glory at this non points event...the prize was $250,000. Coming to the finish, Waltrip looked like he had the race won until Wallace caught him and spun him out. Wallace won the race and the money, leaving Waltrip steaming mad! Waltrip told Wallace 'I hope you choke on that $200,000' to which Wallace replied that he 'wouldn't, and it was $250,000'. Waltrip, luckily, did not hear Rusty's retort until much later. To this day, the two still are at odds over this race finish!

Three of my top ten race finishes revolve around the tragic loss of Dale Earnhardt on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. While that particular race is one I wish never happened, three subsequent race finishes stand out, for me, to be some of the best ever.

Rockingham, 2001- Just one week after NASCAR lost one of its biggest stars in a horrible crash, the season resumed at the North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham. The fans, the drivers and the officials knew that the show must go on. Dale Earnhardt Inc. fielded three cars; the no. 1 of Steve Park, the no. 8 of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the no. 15 of Michael Waltrip. Earnhardt Jr. crashed out of the race early in a wreck that was eerily similar to his fathers wreck just one week before. Junior, luckily, was unhurt. Waltrip and Park raced on. Park assumed the lead on lap 339 and drove on to score a victory for his late friend and boss. There wasn't a dry eye in my house, and most likely not in Rockingham that day.

Atlanta Motor Speedway, 2001- Kevin Harvick had been called up from the then Busch series to replace Dale Earnhardt in the Sprint Cup division for Richard Childress Racing. The car had been renumbered from 3 to 29, and painted with a white Goodwrench paint scheme instead of its usual black paint scheme. The race was 500 miles long. The finish came down to a fierce battle between Harvick and Jeff Gordon. The two traded paint right down to the finish line with Harvick just barely beating Gordon at the line by a margin of victory of just .006 seconds! The Goodwrench team was back in victory lane a month after losing its long time pilot.

Daytona, July 2001- NASCAR returns to the place where they'd lost one of their greatest drivers earlier that year. This was a particularly emotional day for the drivers of Dale Earnhardt Inc., especially Dale Jr. The race was a typical restrictor plate race, with its share of drafting and wrecks. Dale Jr. led several times during the race including coming to the finish line. With teammate Michael Waltrip following in second, Earnhardt Jr. won the race at the track that had taken his father's life just five months prior. On his cool down lap, Junior carefully rubbed the right side of his car against the wall in turn four where his father had died, leaving a large black stripe across the car's number. Drivers, crew and reporters flocked to congratulate Dale Jr. in the infield after that emotional win.

The final two of my top ten memorable wins involve good ole rough and tumble, paint swappin', fender rubbin' racing. These two finishes are for me, the reason stock car racing is the best in the world.

Darlington, March 2003- Darlington is known as the Track Too Tough to Tame, and it lives up to its nickname. This oddly shaped super speedway will chew you up and spit you out if you do not pay 100% attention and race the racetrack rather than your opponents. Until the last lap, that is...which is how Ricky Craven and Kurt Busch played out the scenario as they raced each other hard in the waning laps of the race. It came down to the last lap, with the two cars leaning, scraping, rubbing and pushing each other through each corner and each straightaway. Barreling towards the checkers, neither driver was willing to budge an inch. Everyone in the grandstands (and in my house) was on their feet holding their breath as the two drivers crossed the finish line...seemingly at the exact same time! After examining the timing and scoring records, Craven was declared the winner with a margin of victory of just .002 seconds! Racing just doesn't get any better than this. Until, that is...my final best race finish.

Talladega, April 2009- A slightly larger twin to Daytona, this track is also a restrictor plate track. This equates to tight packs of thirty cars or more traveling at speeds above 180 mph. Everyone was focused on the usual suspects...will Dale Jr. come out of his slump? Or will Tony Stewart win as an owner/driver? What about Carl Edwards... he hasn't won yet this year. No one paid attention to the rookies and part time drivers. Enter Brad Keselowski...a regular driver in the Nationwide series who is running a select number of Sprint Cup races this year to gain experience. His goal that day was mostly to practice drafting and stay out of trouble. No one expected him to wind up at the front of the pack with a half a lap to go, but that's where he was. He had teamed up with veteran star Carl Edwards and the two drafted their way up through the pack, overtaking leaders Earnhardt Jr. and Ryan Newman. Coming out of the tri-oval and heading towards the checkered flag, Keselowski pulled out from behind Edwards and tried to pass to Edwards' left. Earnhardt Jr was to Edwards' right, with Newman close behind him. Edwards attempted to block Brad and to force him below the yellow out-of-bounds line...but Keselowski would have none of that. He would not be bullied. He held his line, and Edwards wrecked across his front bumper. Edwards' Ford then became airborne, bounced off of Newman's windshield and flew up into the catch fence that separated the crowd from the track. Keselowski steamed across the finish line to win the race! This was an ending no one could have predicted, least of all Keselowski! Earnhardt Jr. finished second and Newman third with a smashed racecar. Edwards' car flipped, spun and came to rest on the infield. He then climbed out of the car and sprinted across the finish line to make sure he was credited with finishing on the lead lap. (NASCAR later said that didn't count, but it was good for television.) The best sight of all was third generation racer Brad Keselowski proudly hoisting the winner's trophy over his head in victory lane in only his fifth start in the Sprint Cup Series.

Racing just doesn't get any better than this. I know there are many, many other great race finishes in the history of NASCAR. I hope these ten evoked some good memories or inspired someone to watch a race and become a fan. There are some good races coming up this season such as Daytona and Talladega, Atlanta and another hot August night in Bristol. Who will win those? Tune in to find out and maybe witness another fantastic finish.

Sources:

www.nascar.com/nascar 101/Daytona 500 finishes.

www.wikipedia.org/ Dale Earnhardt ;

www.racing.reference.info; www.geocities.com/nascarspeedway/facts.