| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 11 of 36 in the2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 2001 Pontiac Excitement 400 program cover, with artwork by Garry Hill. | |||
| Date | May 5, 2001 | ||
| Official name | 47th Annual Pontiac Excitement 400 | ||
| Location | Richmond, Virginia,Richmond International Raceway | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 0.75 miles (1.21 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 300 mi (482.803 km) | ||
| Scheduled distance | 400 laps, 300 mi (482.803 km) | ||
| Average speed | 95.872 miles per hour (154.291 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Roush Racing | ||
| Time | 21.667 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | |
| Laps | 276 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | FX | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy,Larry McReynolds,Darrell Waltrip | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
The2001 Pontiac Excitement 400 was the 11thstock car race of the2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 47th iteration of theevent. The race was held on Saturday, May 5, 2001, inRichmond, Virginia, atRichmond International Raceway, a 0.75 miles (1.21 km) D-shaped oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. At race's end,Tony Stewart, driving forJoe Gibbs Racing, would hold off the field on the final restart with two to go to win his 10th careerNASCAR Winston Cup Series win and his first of the season.[1][2] To fill out the podium,Jeff Gordon, driving forHendrick Motorsports, andRusty Wallace, driving forPenske Racing South, would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
Richmond International Raceway (RIR) is a 3/4-mile (1.2 km),D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outsideRichmond, Virginia inHenrico County. It hosts theMonster Energy NASCAR Cup Series andXfinity Series. Known as "America's premier short track", it formerly hosted a NASCARCamping World Truck Series race, anIndyCar Series race, and twoUSAC sprint car races.
The first practice session was held on Friday, May 4, at 12:00 PMEST. The session would last for two hours.[3]Steve Park, driving forDale Earnhardt, Inc., would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 21.580 and an average speed of 125.116 miles per hour (201.355 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 21.580 | 125.116 |
| 2 | 33 | Joe Nemechek | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 21.593 | 125.041 |
| 3 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing | Ford | 21.638 | 124.780 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Friday, May 4, at 5:50 PMEST. The session would last for one hour and 30 minutes.[3]Jeff Gordon, driving forHendrick Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 22.114 and an average speed of 122.095 miles per hour (196.493 km/h).[5]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 22.114 | 122.095 |
| 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 22.145 | 121.924 |
| 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 22.169 | 121.792 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | ||||||
Qualifying was held on Friday, May 4, at 3:30 PMEST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[3] 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.[6]
Mark Martin, driving forRoush Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 21.667 and an average speed of 124.613 miles per hour (200.545 km/h).[7]
Three drivers would fail to qualify:Buckshot Jones,Hermie Sadler, andHut Stricklin.
| Pos | Driver | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 1 | Dale Jarrett | 1,559 |
| 2 | Jeff Gordon | 1,545 (–14) |
 1 | 3 | Rusty Wallace | 1,497 (–62) |
 1 | 4 | Johnny Benson Jr. | 1,480 (–79) |
| 5 | Sterling Marlin | 1,421 (–138) |
| 6 | Ricky Rudd | 1,411 (–148) |
| 2 | 7 | Tony Stewart | 1,392 (–167) |
| 8 | Steve Park | 1,387 (–172) |
| 2 | 9 | Bobby Hamilton | 1,309 (–250) |
| 10 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 1,302 (–257) |
| Previous race: 2001 NAPA Auto Parts 500 | NASCAR Winston Cup Series 2001 season | Next race: 2001 Coca-Cola 600 |