Dale
Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr.(April 29, 1951 – February 18, 2001), known professionally as Dale Earnhardt, was an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR. The third child of racing driver Ralph Earnhardt, he began his career in 1975 in the World 600 as part of the Winston Cup Series.
Regarded as one of the most significant NASCAR drivers, Earnhardt won a total of 76 Winston Cup races over the course of his career, including the 1998 Daytona 500. He also earned seven NASCAR Winston Cup championships, tying for the most all-time with Richard Petty. His aggressive driving style earned him the nickname "The Intimidator".
In February 2001, Earnhardt died instantly of injuries sustained, after he collided with Ken Schrader and crashed his car in the final lap of the Daytona 500 – an unexpected event that was widely lamented in the racing industry. Earnhardt has been inducted into numerous halls of fame, including the NASCAR Hall of Fame inaugural class in 2010.
During the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 18, 2001, Earnhardt was involved in a three-car accident on the final lap of the race, in which he collided with Ken Schrader after making small contact with Sterling Marlin and hit the outside wall head-on. Earnhardt and Schrader's cars both slid off the track's asphalt banking into the infield grass just inside of turn 4. Seconds later, his driver Michael Waltrip won the race, with his teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. finishing second. Earnhardt's death was officially pronounced at the Halifax Medical Center at 5:16 PM Eastern Standard Time (22:16 UTC). Nearly two hours later, NASCAR president Mike Helton announced Earnhardt's death. Earnhardt was 49 years old at the time of his death. An autopsy conducted on February 19, 2001 concluded that Earnhardt died instantly of blunt force trauma to his head due to the accident. It also reported that Earnhardt sustained a fatal basilar skull fracture. Days later, on February 22, public funeral services were held at the Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
He was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine by North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt in 1994.
He was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.
Earnhardt was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998.
Earnhardt was posthumously named "NASCAR's Most Popular Driver" in 2001. This was the only time he received the award.
He was posthumously inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2002, a year after his death.
He was inducted in the Oceanside Rotary Club Stock Car Racing Hall of Fame at Daytona Beach in 2004.
He was inducted in the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2006.
Earnhardt was named first on ESPN's list of "NASCAR's 20 Greatest Drivers" in 2007 in front of Richard Petty.
He was inducted in the Inaugural Class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame on May 23, 2010.
He was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2006.
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