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2007 Daytona 500
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The 2007 Daytona 500 was the first race of the 2007 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series season, taking place on February 18, 2007 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Kevin Harvick won the race by .02 second over Mark Martin in the closest finish since the first race at Daytona International Speedway when it took three days to declare Lee Petty the winner in 1959. Jeff Burton finished third, the first survivor of the massive wreck (commonly known as "The Big One").
s the custom, qualifying for the race is unique.
The qualifying only places the fastest two cars in the front row for the race the following week.
Discussion
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Encyclopedia
The 2007 Daytona 500 was the first race of the 2007 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series season, taking place on February 18, 2007 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Kevin Harvick won the race by .02 second over Mark Martin in the closest finish since the first race at Daytona International Speedway when it took three days to declare Lee Petty the winner in 1959. Jeff Burton finished third, the first survivor of the massive wreck (commonly known as "The Big One").
Pole Qualifying
As is the custom, qualifying for the race is unique.
The qualifying only places the fastest two cars in the front row for the race the following week. The rest of the field (based on the 2006 owners' points top 35 teams, not drivers) is already locked in, then followed by two races called the Gatorade Duel. From those, the top two cars not locked in by either owners points or the front row positions automatically qualify, then the next four fastest cars based on the pole qualifying speed, followed by the past champions' provisional, used by Dale Jarrett, who was the most recent past champion. Had Jarrett locked into a spot during the first Duel race, Bill Elliott would have made the field.
When all was said and done, Robert Yates Racing swept the top two positions, with David Gilliland driving the #38 M&Ms Ford Fusion to the pole at , with his teammate, Ricky Rudd in the #88 Snickers Fusion alongside a mere 0.185 seconds behind.
Tony Stewart, driving the Home Depot #20 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS for Joe Gibbs Racing, won the first Duel race, while Jeff Gordon drove the Hendrick Motorsports DuPont Chevrolet to the checker flag in the nightcap. Elliott wasn't the only past Daytona 500 champion to miss the race, as 35 other cars attempted to battle for those seven spots. Ward Burton (who won in 2002) and Derrike Cope (the 1990 winner) did not qualify from their respective races.
Qualifying Scandal
The week that led up to the annual "Super Bowl of Stock Car Racing" saw widespread rules infractions that affected five teams - the #17 Roush Fenway Racing DeWalt Tools Ford Fusion team of Matt Kenseth, the three Evernham Motorsports Dodge Charger teams of Kasey Kahne (#9 UAW/Dodge), Scott Riggs (#10 Valvoline) and Elliott Sadler (#19 UAW/Dodge) - during the Pole Qualifying on February 11. But, a sixth team - the #55 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry from Michael Waltrip Racing driven by the teams' owner - suffered the most severe punishment handed out by the motorsports sanctioning body since 2000, as it was docked 100 driver and owner points, causing it to leave Daytona with negative owner and championship points (-27 points). In addition, Jeff Gordon was penalized with the loss of his starting position after the #24 DuPont Chevrolet failed a post-race inspection because of an improper spoiler height. His starting position was changed from fourth to 42nd. There were no other penalties assessed against himself or the team and he is still listed as the winner of the second duel race.
The Pre-Race
Kelly Clarkson, the first winner of American Idol and spokesperson for the 2007 edition of "NASCAR Day", performed in the pre-race "Salute to America" concert, with her set consisting of Since U Been Gone, One Minute (from her upcoming album) and Miss Independent. Big and Rich sang the National Anthem, while Academy Award winning actor Nicolas Cage served as the grand marshall of the event, giving the command to have the drivers start their engines in a low key manner. Baseball ironman and 2007 inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame Cal Ripken, Jr. drove the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 pace car for the pre-race laps, and Phil Parsons, the brother of Benny Parsons, who had died of complications from lung cancer prior to the season, was given the honor of dropping the green flag for the race.
Results
Cars that completed the final lap, despite being involved in the last-lap wreck, were scored as running. The race went 202 laps/505 miles due to the green-white-checker finish rule.
| Pos | Start | Car # | Laps | Status | Driver | Sponsor / Car Make | Money won
(in US Dollars) |
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| 1 | 34 | 29 | 202 | Running | Kevin Harvick* | Shell / Pennzoil Chevrolet | $1,510,469 |
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| 2 | 26 | 01 | 202 | Running | Mark Martin* | U.S. Army Chevrolet | $1,102,250 |
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| 3 | 7 | 31 | 202 | Running | Jeff Burton | Cingular Wireless Chevrolet | $ 819,216 |
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| 4 | 22 | 09 | 202 | Running | Mike Wallace | Miccosukee Gaming and Resorts Chevrolet | $ 615,658 |
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| 5 | 35 | 6 | 202 | Running | David Ragan† | AAA Ford | $ 529,350 |
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| 6 | 30 | 19 | 202 | Running | Elliott Sadler | Dodge Dealers / UAW Dodge | $ 407,193 |
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| 7 | 29 | 9 | 202 | Running | Kasey Kahne | Dodge Dealers / UAW Dodge | $ 386,074 |
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| 8 | 1 | 38 | 202 | Running | David Gilliland* | M&Ms Ford | $ 374,376 |
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| 9 | 18 | 13 | 202 | Running | Joe Nemechek | Chevrolet | $ 302,088 |
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| 10 | 42 | 24 | 202 | Running | Jeff Gordon | DuPont Chevrolet | $ 371,679 |
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| 11 | 6 | 40 | 202 | Running | David Stremme | Coors Light Dodge | $ 294,758 |
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| 12 | 12 | 18 | 202 | Running | J.J. Yeley | Interstate Batteries Chevrolet | $ 308,541 |
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| 13 | 33 | 41 | 202 | Running | Reed Sorenson | Target Dodge | $ 280,657 |
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| 14 | 23 | 60 | 202 | Running | Boris Said | SoBe No Fear Ford | $ 265,385 |
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| 15 | 39 | 7 | 202 | Running | Robby Gordon | Jim Beam Ford | $ 268,475 |
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| 16 | 41 | 70 | 202 | Running | Johnny Sauter | Yellow Transportation Chevrolet | $ 262,675 |
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| 17 | 38 | 14 | 202 | Running | Sterling Marlin | Waste Management Chevrolet | $ 266,483 |
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| 18 | 11 | 07 | 202 | Running | Clint Bowyer | Jack Daniel's Chevrolet | $ 275,520 |
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| 19 | 36 | 42 | 202 | Running | Juan Pablo Montoya† | Texaco / Havoline Dodge | $ 299,483 |
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| 20 | 17 | 25 | 202 | Running | Casey Mears | National Guard / GMAC Chevrolet | $ 275,225 |
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| 21 | 27 | 43 | 202 | Running | Bobby Labonte | Cheerios Dodge | $ 300,436 |
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| 22 | 43 | 44 | 202 | Running | Dale Jarrett | UPS Toyota | $ 259,575 |
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| 23 | 14 | 99 | 202 | Running | Carl Edwards | Office Depot Ford | $ 273,383 |
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| 24 | 8 | 5 | 202 | Running | Kyle Busch* | Kellogg's / CARQUEST Chevrolet | $ 276,858 |
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| 25 | 25 | 16 | 202 | Running | Greg Biffle | Ameriquest Ford | $ 276,075 |
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| 26 | 2 | 88 | 202 | Running | Ricky Rudd | Snickers Ford | $ 293,031 |
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| 27 | 10 | 17 | 202 | Running | Matt Kenseth* | DeWalt Ford | $ 309,099 |
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| 28 | 9 | 11 | 201 | Running | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Express Chevrolet | $ 279,175 |
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| 29 | 13 | 1 | 201 | Running | Martin Truex Jr. | Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet | $ 290,820 |
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| 30 | 15 | 55 | 200 | Running | Michael Waltrip | NAPA Auto Parts Toyota | $ 258,050 |
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| 31 | 26 | 26 | 195 | Accident | Jamie McMurray | Crown Royal Ford | $ 265,058 |
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| 32 | 5 | 8 | 195 | Accident | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Budweiser Chevrolet | $ 315,773 |
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| 33 | 20 | 96 | 195 | Running | Tony Raines | Texas Instruments DLP HDTV Chevrolet | $ 262, 583 |
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| 34 | 37 | 22 | 186 | Parked | Dave Blaney | Caterpillar Toyota | $ 259,900 |
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| 35 | 19 | 21 | 185 | Accident | Ken Schrader | Little Debbie Ford | $ 271,189 |
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| 36 | 31 | 66 | 181 | Running | Jeff Green | Best Buy Chevrolet | $ 259,025 |
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| 37 | 32 | 10 | 179 | Running | Scott Riggs | Valvoline / Stanley Tools Dodge | $ 259,158 |
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| 38 | 12 | 12 | 175 | Engine | Ryan Newman* | Alltel Dodge | $ 283,233 |
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| 39 | 21 | 48 | 173 | Accident | Jimmie Johnson | Lowe's Chevrolet | $ 298,886 |
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| 40 | 40 | 00 | 173 | Accident | David Reutimann† | Domino's Pizza Toyota | $ 249,583 |
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| 41 | 4 | 2 | 166 | Running | Kurt Busch** | Miller Lite Dodge | $ 300,816 |
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| 42 | 29 | 45 | 160 | Running | Kyle Petty | Wells Fargo Dodge | $ 248,050 |
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| 43 | 3 | 20 | 153 | Accident | Tony Stewart* | Home Depot Chevrolet | $ 334,931 |
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Time of Race: 3 hours, 22 minutes, 54 seconds.
Average Speed: .
Margin of Victory: 0.020 seconds.
Lead Changes: 13 among nine drivers.
Cautions: 6 for 26 laps.
Attendance: 185,000 (not including infield, where the actual total would be boosted to 250,000.)
Key
* Led one lap
** Led most laps
† Rookie of the Year Candidate
Finish
On the final lap of the race, Mark Martin was leading going into the backstretch when Matt Kenseth bump drafted Kevin Harvick to the front of the pack. Kyle Busch could not hold off Harvick, and almost squeezed him into the wall. Busch messed up his entry into turn 4, and hit the banking and got loose. Spinning, he tags Matt Kenseth, who hits Greg Biffle who forces David Gilliland down the track. Elliott Sadler causes a stack-up and hits the wall. Casey Mears gets loose and hits the side of Sterling Marlin and pushes him into Clint Bowyer. Bowyer flips onto his roof. Robby Gordon and Kasey Kahne hit Gilliland as he went high, and spin out. Numerous other cars either hit the wall or spun out. Harvick and Martin drag race to the checkered flag with Harvick claiming victory by .02 seconds.
Failed to qualify
The following 18 drivers did not make the Daytona 500: 36-Jeremy Mayfield, 23-Mike Skinner, 39-Regan Smith, 4-Ward Burton, 15-Paul Menard, 84-A.J. Allmendinger, 34-Kevin Lepage, 37-Bill Elliott, 83-Brian Vickers, 78-Kenny Wallace, 71-Frank Kimmel, 49-Mike Bliss, 04-Eric McClure, 30-Stanton Barrett, 27-Kirk Shelmerdine, 72-Brandon Whitt, 74-Derrike Cope, and 58-James Hylton.
Race Recap
To the Back
Before the green flag the following drivers dropped to the rear of the field for the reasons indicated: #00 - David Reutimann (transmission change), #18 - J.J. Yeley (transmission change), #41 - Reed Sorenson (transmission change).
Cautions
| Caution | Laps of caution | Cars causing the caution | Description |
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| 18 | 3 | 00, 60 | Boris Said slaps side of David Reutimann and spins on the backstretch. He does not hit anything. All cars are on the lead lap. | | 80 | 4 | 45 | Kyle Petty hits the wall after rear tire blew. He goes behind the wall for repairs. David Reutimann obtains the free pass to return to the lead lap. | | 154 | 6 | 2, 20 | Tony Stewart loses control while leading and slams into Kurt Busch in Turn 4. Stewart finished 43rd and Busch goes behind the wall for repairs. The crash was similar to one that claimed the life of Dale Earnhardt exactly six years to the day on the final lap of the 2001 race. David Gilliland receives the free pass, returning to the lead lap. | | 175 | 5 | 00, 11, 48, 66, 96 | Jimmie Johnson hits the wall on the backstretch, and Denny Hamlin, Jeff Green, Tony Raines, and Reutimann are collected. Hamlin falls a lap down, Raines falls seven laps down, Green goes behind the wall, and Johnson and Reutimann are done, finish 39th and 40th, respectively. Clint Bowyer receives the free pass to return to the lead lap. | | 187 | 4 | 07, 09, 21, 22, 25, 26, 41, 99 | Carl Edwards and Reed Sorenson make contact with the wall. Dave Blaney cuts a tire after being hit by Mike Wallace, and is forced down pit road. Going into Turn 1 at full speed, he hit Ken Schrader. Casey Mears and Jamie McMurray are also involved. For not slowing down on pit road after using it as an escape route to dodge the wreck, Blaney is black-flagged and ordered disqualified, finishing 34th. Schrader's day is done and he finishes 35th. The other cars only suffered minor damage. Juan Pablo Montoya received the free pass, returning to the lead lap. | | 197 | 4 | 1, 8, 17, 26, 88 | Matt Kenseth runs into his teammate McMurray, who hits the wall and collects Dale Earnhardt, Jr. with him. Ricky Rudd and Martin Truex Jr. are also collected. Rudd remains on the lead lap, but Truex falls a lap down. McMurray and Earnhardt, Jr. are done, finishing 31st and 32nd, respectively. The race is delayed for approximately 12 minutes for cleanup under the red flag. This sets up a green-white-checkered finish. No free pass available when fewer than ten laps remain in a race. | | 202 | End of race | 5, 7, 9, 07, 13, 14, 16, 17, 19, 24, 25, 38, 40, 42, 60,88, 99 | At the finish, Kyle Busch spins out coming out of Turn 4, as Mark Martin and Kevin Harvick race to the checkers, collecting Robby Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Clint Bowyer, Joe Nemechek, Sterling Marlin, Greg Biffle, Kenseth, Elliott Sadler, Jeff Gordon, Casey Mears, David Gilliland, David Stremme, Juan Pablo Montoya, Boris Said,Ricky Rudd, and Carl Edwards. Bowyer's car is flipped upside down and then catches fire before flipping back right side up past the start-finish line. All cars were scored as finishing on the lead lap, as all cars crossed the start-finish line either on the track or on pit road. The race remained under green until after the leaders crossed the line. |
Controversy over finish
Because of an incident between Casey Mears and Dale Jarrett at the 2003 Sylvania 300 in New Hampshire International Speedway, NASCAR has ordered the "freezing of the field" whenever a caution flag is thrown. Such a flag did not fly after the last-lap crash. There is some disputed visual evidence that suggests that, if the caution had flown strictly according to NASCAR rules, Martin may have won.
The issue was especially passionate because Martin was in his 23rd Daytona 500 start; he has never won. Such a win, arguably, would have been as popular with fans as Dale Earnhardt's 1998 victory (in his 20th start) or Darrell Waltrip's 1989 triumph (in his 17th). With Martin no longer competing for the season-long NEXTEL Cup championship due to a reduction in his schedule, the Daytona 500 is one of the few honors he can still win as a driver (the #01 team is racing for the owners (team) championship, with Regan Smith driving the other 14 races). To add further irony, Martin and his family have chosen to live full-time in the Daytona Beach area, whereas most drivers live in the Lake Norman area north of Charlotte, North Carolina.
However, it should be noted in some races, NASCAR has permitted the cars to run to the finish in case of more "minor" spins on the last lap. However many speculate that this crash was far too large and too dangerous not to throw the yellow and give Martin the win. However, Kevin Harvick fans were happy that NASCAR did not throw the yellow.
Trivia
- The win was symbolic for Richard Childress Racing. The number 29 car was originally the fabled number 3 driven by Dale Earnhardt, who was killed six years to the exact day in a crash during the final lap of the 2001 race, won by Michael Waltrip in a car that Earnhardt owned. His son, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. finished second in that race, also in a car owned by his father. The car's longtime sponsor, GM Goodwrench, was replaced by Shell Oil at the start of the 2007 season.
- NASCAR fuel supplier Sunoco was outraged by the size of the Shell logos on the car and uniform that the car design and uniform were banned shortly afterwards. This race was also the last to run on leaded fuel as beginning with the Auto Club 500, the Sunoco fuel was changed to an unleaded blend.
- It was the first NASCAR Nextel Cup race to utilise the new 17¾-gallon fuel cell. Previously, NASCAR had used a 22-gallon fuel cell.
- It was the first Daytona 500 to finish in prime-time television, with the race finishing at 7:12 p.m. EST. The last 30 minutes of coverage (7 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.) finished eighth for the week ending February 18 in the Nielsen ratings.
- It was the closest finish in the Daytona 500 since the inaugural race in 1959, which took three days to determine the winner.
- Harvick's win came from the 34th position, the second deepest a Daytona 500 winner has come from; second to Matt Kenseth's win in 2009 from the 43rd starting position.
- The 2007 race was the last to use the 1986 specification cars (NASCAR standardised roof heights at the present height in 1986). Starting with the 2008 race, NASCAR will use the next-generation car, known as the Car of Tomorrow.
- The race was televised in 99 countries.
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