PROFILPELAJAR.COM

2001 Pennsylvania 500 presented by Pep Boys
Race details
Race 20 of 36 in the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
	The 2001 Pennsylvania 500 program cover.
Date	July 29, 2001
Official name	29th Annual Pennsylvania 500 presented by Pep Boys
Location	Long Pond, Pennsylvania, Pocono Raceway
Course	Permanent racing facility; 2.5 mi (4.0 km)
Distance	200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Scheduled Distance	200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Average speed	134.59 miles per hour (216.60 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Todd Bodine;
Time	52.840
Most laps led
Driver	Jeff Gordon
Laps	121
Winner
No. 18	Bobby Labonte
Television in the United States
Network	TNT
Announcers	Allen Bestwick, Benny Parsons, Wally Dallenbach Jr.
Radio in the United States
Radio	Motor Racing Network

The 2001 Pennsylvania 500 presented by Pep Boys was the 20th stock car race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 29th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, July 29, 2001, in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, at Pocono Raceway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) triangular permanent course. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Bobby Labonte, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would pass eventual second-place driver, Dale Earnhardt, Inc. driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. to win his 17th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series win and his first of the season.^[1]^[2]^[3] To fill out the podium, Tony Stewart, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would finish third.

Background

The race was held at Pocono Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Until 2019, the track also hosted an IndyCar Series race.

Pocono Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.

Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.

Entry list

(R) denotes rookie driver.

#	Driver	Team	Make	Sponsor
1	Steve Park	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	Pennzoil
01	Jason Leffler (R)	Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates	Dodge	Cingular Wireless, Special Olympics
2	Rusty Wallace	Penske Racing South	Ford	Miller Lite
4	Kevin Lepage	Morgan–McClure Motorsports	Chevrolet	Kodak
5	Terry Labonte	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	Kellogg's
6	Mark Martin	Roush Racing	Ford	Viagra
7	Mike Wallace	Ultra Motorsports	Ford	NationsRent
8	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	Budweiser
9	Bill Elliott	Evernham Motorsports	Dodge	Dodge
10	Johnny Benson Jr.	MBV Motorsports	Pontiac	Valvoline
11	Brett Bodine	Brett Bodine Racing	Ford	RedCell, Ralphs
12	Jeremy Mayfield	Penske Racing South	Ford	Mobil 1
14	Ron Hornaday Jr. (R)	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Pontiac	Conseco
15	Michael Waltrip	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	NAPA Auto Parts
17	Matt Kenseth	Roush Racing	Ford	DeWalt
18	Bobby Labonte	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	Interstate Batteries, MBNA
19	Casey Atwood (R)	Evernham Motorsports	Dodge	Dodge
20	Tony Stewart	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	The Home Depot
21	Elliott Sadler	Wood Brothers Racing	Ford	Motorcraft
22	Ward Burton	Bill Davis Racing	Dodge	Caterpillar
24	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	DuPont
25	Jerry Nadeau	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	UAW, Delphi
26	Jimmy Spencer	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	Kmart
27	Rick Mast	Eel River Racing	Pontiac	Sauer's, Duke's Mayonnaise
28	Ricky Rudd	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	Texaco, Havoline
29	Kevin Harvick (R)	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	GM Goodwrench
31	Robby Gordon	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	Lowe's
32	Ricky Craven	PPI Motorsports	Ford	Tide
33	Joe Nemechek	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	Oakwood Homes
36	Ken Schrader	MBV Motorsports	Pontiac	M&M's
40	Sterling Marlin	Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates	Dodge	Original Coors
43	John Andretti	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	Cheerios
44	Buckshot Jones	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	Georgia-Pacific Sparkle
45	Kyle Petty	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	Sprint PCS
49	Andy Hillenburg	BAM Racing	Pontiac	BAM Racing
55	Bobby Hamilton	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	Square D
66	Todd Bodine	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	Kmart Blue Light Special
77	Robert Pressley	Jasper Motorsports	Ford	Jasper Engines & Transmissions
85	Carl Long	Mansion Motorsports	Ford	Mansion Motorsports
88	Dale Jarrett	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	UPS
90	Hut Stricklin	Donlavey Racing	Ford	Hills Bros. Coffee
92	Stacy Compton	Melling Racing	Dodge	Kodiak
93	Dave Blaney	Bill Davis Racing	Dodge	Amoco Ultimate
97	Kurt Busch (R)	Roush Racing	Ford	Rubbermaid, Sharpie
99	Jeff Burton	Roush Racing	Ford	Citgo Supergard
Official entry list

Practice

First practice

The first practice session was held on Friday, July 27, at 11:30 AM EST. The session would last for two hours and 30 minutes.^[4] Ricky Rudd, driving for Robert Yates Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 53.163 and an average speed of 169.291 miles per hour (272.447 km/h).^[5]

Pos.	#	Driver	Team	Make	Time	Speed
1	28	Ricky Rudd	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	53.163	169.291
2	6	Mark Martin	Roush Racing	Ford	53.213	169.068
3	26	Jimmy Spencer	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	53.318	168.799
Full first practice results

Second practice

The second practice session was held on Saturday, July 28, at 10:45 AM EST. The session would last for 45 minutes.^[4] Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 54.341 and an average speed of 165.621 miles per hour (266.541 km/h).^[6]

Pos.	#	Driver	Team	Make	Time	Speed
1	24	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	54.341	165.621
2	28	Ricky Rudd	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	54.454	165.277
3	18	Bobby Labonte	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	54.680	164.594
Full second practice results

Third and final practice

The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, June 16, at 12:15 AM EST. The session would last for 45 minutes.^[4] Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 54.859 and an average speed of 164.057 miles per hour (264.024 km/h).^[7]

Pos.	#	Driver	Team	Make	Time	Speed
1	24	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	54.859	164.057
2	28	Ricky Rudd	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	54.991	163.663
3	6	Mark Martin	Roush Racing	Ford	55.002	163.630
Full Happy Hour practice results

Qualifying

Qualifying was held on Friday, July 27, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.^[4] 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.^[8]

Todd Bodine, driving for Haas-Carter Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 52.840 and an average speed of 170.325 miles per hour (274.112 km/h).^[9]

Two drivers would fail to qualify: Andy Hillenburg and Carl Long.

Full qualifying results

Pos.	#	Driver	Team	Make	Time	Speed
1	66	Todd Bodine	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	52.840	170.325
2	28	Ricky Rudd	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	52.856	170.274
3	6	Mark Martin	Roush Racing	Ford	53.059	169.622
4	36	Ken Schrader	MB2 Motorsports	Pontiac	53.100	162.492
5	19	Casey Atwood (R)	Evernham Motorsports	Dodge	53.101	169.488
6	29	Kevin Harvick (R)	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	53.163	169.291
7	26	Jimmy Spencer	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	53.200	169.173
8	24	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	53.203	169.163
9	10	Johnny Benson Jr.	MBV Motorsports	Pontiac	53.291	168.884
10	40	Sterling Marlin	Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates	Dodge	53.303	168.846
11	18	Bobby Labonte	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	53.327	168.770
12	8	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	53.329	168.764
13	20	Tony Stewart	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	53.429	168.448
14	9	Bill Elliott	Evernham Motorsports	Dodge	53.439	168.416
15	93	Dave Blaney	Bill Davis Racing	Dodge	53.466	168.331
16	77	Robert Pressley	Jasper Motorsports	Ford	53.483	168.278
17	92	Stacy Compton	Melling Racing	Dodge	53.488	168.262
18	99	Jeff Burton	Roush Racing	Ford	53.491	168.253
19	4	Kevin Lepage	Morgan–McClure Motorsports	Chevrolet	53.536	168.111
20	32	Ricky Craven	PPI Motorsports	Ford	53.567	168.014
21	01	Jason Leffler (R)	Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates	Dodge	53.579	167.976
22	2	Rusty Wallace	Penske Racing South	Ford	53.586	167.954
23	15	Michael Waltrip	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	53.593	167.932
24	17	Matt Kenseth	Roush Racing	Ford	53.602	167.904
25	12	Jeremy Mayfield	Penske Racing South	Ford	53.699	167.601
26	33	Joe Nemechek	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	53.757	167.420
27	11	Brett Bodine	Brett Bodine Racing	Ford	53.758	167.417
28	43	John Andretti	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	53.892	167.001
29	55	Bobby Hamilton	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	53.896	166.988
30	90	Hut Stricklin	Donlavey Racing	Ford	53.946	166.833
31	14	Ron Hornaday Jr. (R)	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Pontiac	53.965	166.775
32	7	Mike Wallace	Ultra Motorsports	Ford	53.979	166.731
33	21	Elliott Sadler	Wood Brothers Racing	Ford	54.021	166.602
34	22	Ward Burton	Bill Davis Racing	Dodge	54.041	166.540
35	97	Kurt Busch (R)	Roush Racing	Ford	54.200	166.052
36	31	Robby Gordon	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	54.273	165.828
Provisionals
37	88	Dale Jarrett	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	54.754	164.372
38	1	Steve Park	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	54.308	165.721
39	25	Jerry Nadeau	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	54.366	165.545
40	5	Terry Labonte	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	54.613	164.796
41	44	Buckshot Jones	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	54.476	165.210
42	45	Kyle Petty	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	54.452	165.283
43	27	Rick Mast	Eel River Racing	Pontiac	54.433	165.341
Failed to qualify
44	49	Andy Hillenburg	BAM Racing	Pontiac	54.877	164.003
45	85	Carl Long	Mansion Motorsports	Ford	55.640	161.754
Official qualifying results

Race results

Fin^[10]	St	#	Driver	Team	Make	Laps	Led	Status	Pts	Winnings
1	11	18	Bobby Labonte	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	200	4	running	180	$189,427
2	12	8	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	200	31	running	175	$119,923
3	13	20	Tony Stewart	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	200	0	running	165	$91,800
4	14	9	Bill Elliott	Evernham Motorsports	Dodge	200	1	running	165	$90,948
5	9	10	Johnny Benson Jr.	MBV Motorsports	Pontiac	200	8	running	160	$68,895
6	22	2	Rusty Wallace	Penske Racing South	Ford	200	0	running	150	$88,555
7	3	6	Mark Martin	Roush Racing	Ford	200	4	running	151	$86,116
8	8	24	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	200	121	running	152	$96,992
9	16	77	Robert Pressley	Jasper Motorsports	Ford	200	0	running	138	$63,025
10	20	32	Ricky Craven	PPI Motorsports	Ford	200	0	running	134	$50,465
11	2	28	Ricky Rudd	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	200	23	running	135	$73,612
12	7	26	Jimmy Spencer	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	200	1	running	132	$58,435
13	38	1	Steve Park	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	200	0	running	124	$65,908
14	24	17	Matt Kenseth	Roush Racing	Ford	200	3	running	126	$46,840
15	5	19	Casey Atwood (R)	Evernham Motorsports	Dodge	200	0	running	118	$41,915
16	10	40	Sterling Marlin	Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates	Dodge	200	0	running	115	$54,776
17	4	36	Ken Schrader	MB2 Motorsports	Pontiac	200	0	running	112	$50,405
18	25	12	Jeremy Mayfield	Penske Racing South	Ford	200	0	running	109	$76,799
19	23	15	Michael Waltrip	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	200	0	running	106	$43,765
20	6	29	Kevin Harvick (R)	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	200	0	running	103	$83,667
21	21	01	Jason Leffler (R)	Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates	Dodge	200	0	running	100	$48,090
22	15	93	Dave Blaney	Bill Davis Racing	Dodge	200	0	running	97	$36,415
23	26	33	Joe Nemechek	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	199	0	running	94	$64,360
24	39	25	Jerry Nadeau	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	199	0	running	91	$43,765
25	32	7	Mike Wallace	Ultra Motorsports	Ford	198	0	running	88	$43,940
26	33	21	Elliott Sadler	Wood Brothers Racing	Ford	198	0	running	85	$53,390
27	28	43	John Andretti	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	198	0	running	82	$70,267
28	36	31	Robby Gordon	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	198	0	running	79	$64,414
29	29	55	Bobby Hamilton	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	197	0	running	76	$39,915
30	31	14	Ron Hornaday Jr. (R)	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Pontiac	197	0	running	73	$31,765
31	42	45	Kyle Petty	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	196	0	running	70	$32,115
32	17	92	Stacy Compton	Melling Racing	Dodge	195	0	running	67	$31,465
33	27	11	Brett Bodine	Brett Bodine Racing	Ford	194	0	running	64	$31,265
34	40	5	Terry Labonte	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	192	0	running	61	$63,770
35	43	27	Rick Mast	Eel River Racing	Pontiac	192	0	running	58	$30,440
36	18	99	Jeff Burton	Roush Racing	Ford	188	1	running	60	$76,061
37	35	97	Kurt Busch (R)	Roush Racing	Ford	187	0	running	52	$38,225
38	34	22	Ward Burton	Bill Davis Racing	Dodge	184	0	crash	49	$63,310
39	41	44	Buckshot Jones	Petty Enterprises	Dodge	183	0	running	46	$38,125
40	30	90	Hut Stricklin	Donlavey Racing	Ford	177	0	running	43	$30,050
41	37	88	Dale Jarrett	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	152	1	crash	45	$75,027
42	19	4	Kevin Lepage	Morgan–McClure Motorsports	Chevrolet	148	0	crash	37	$29,950
43	1	66	Todd Bodine	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	128	2	handling	39	$37,876
Failed to qualify
44		49	Andy Hillenburg	BAM Racing	Pontiac
45		85	Carl Long	Mansion Motorsports	Ford
Official race results

References

^ Utter, Jim (July 29, 2001). "Labonte liked chances toward end of 500". ThatsRacin. Archived from the original on December 5, 2001. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
^ Fleischman, Bill (July 30, 2001). "'Tunnelvision' helps Labonte win at Pocono". Lancaster New Era. p. 17. Retrieved July 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Rodman, Dave (July 30, 2001). "Labonte takes first win of 2001". NASCAR. Turner Sports Interactive. Archived from the original on December 22, 2001. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Jayski's Silly Season Site - 2001 Pocono 2 Race Info Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on February 13, 2002. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
^ "Winston Cup practice speeds". ThatsRacin. July 27, 2001. Archived from the original on December 5, 2001. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
^ "Winston Cup practice speeds (first session)". ThatsRacin. July 28, 2001. Archived from the original on November 6, 2001. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
^ "Happy Hour practice speeds". ThatsRacin. July 28, 2001. Archived from the original on December 5, 2001. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
^ "Jayski's Silly Season Site - 2002 Provisional/Owners Points Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on February 5, 2005. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
^ "Todd Bodine wins NASCAR pole". UPI. July 27, 2001. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
^ "2002 Pocono 500 - The Third Turn". www.thethirdturn.com. Retrieved 2022-03-04.