@@sadikurrahman4833 I'm not even gonna bother arguing I'm just gonna ask why do we even care about ab21 still, max and lewis dont so can we just move on
It’s not just the fact we had 19 winners It’s the fact that one race a small team like Andy Petree and the Wood Brothers can get the set up right and absolutely smoke everybody
@@JackCallSports but you have to admit they are small teams. Wood Brothers also got a win. They are still small teams being able to smoke the competition.
I was six years old in 2001 and wasn’t really a diehard NASCAR fan yet. I knew a couple of the drivers (mostly the Roush drivers, because my Uncle worked for Roush) plus Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart, but that was about it. I consider that my NASCAR fandom started in 2002, when I actually remember saying to my dad “I want to watch every race this year.” So during the lockdown in 2020, I had a lot of free time, and I watched a lot of races from 2000 and 2001 on UA-cam, and I gotta say…the racing those years was awesome. There’s a reason why Brock Beard is doing a video series covering every single little thing that happened in 2001…because so much DID happen, both on the track and off it. Any way you slice it, I was an amazing season. It’s too bad that nobody really remembers it except for the Daytona races and the spring Atlanta race.
The tragedy in the first race, and then the attacks in September left a shadow over the season. But 2001 was truly one of the greatest storylines being told week in and week out. I will say as a Jeff Gordon fan, I am biased. I started watching officially on February 14th 1999, so this was my first and only title I got to see Jeff win. But if there had to be one I'm glad I got to see. This would have been the one. If you have the time this Winter, Spring and Summer. Please set aside some time and watch the 2001 Playlist. Watch the practices, the qualifying, the Happy Hours, the pre and post race shows. 2001 was magical across the board. There was something so magical about it.
@kenzschueler my first race i ever saw was the Daytona 500 as well in 2010. I've seen a lot of fans in comments on social media say the Daytona 500 was their first ever race, and it's cool to see another one. 👍
Dales death, Bonds HR record, DBacks World Series walkoff, Brady’s first Super Bowl, Ray Borques first cup, AI finals run, the 2001 sports world was pure cinema
Can I just add something that I just thought of Yesterday night? If it wasn’t for that February day at Daytona in 2001, “Strip Weathers” probably would’ve been more inspired by the Intimidator (even being voiced by him). Ya know keeping the parallels in check and Junior in Cal’s place in the third film could’ve been poetry in a way that art and life act alike
Interesting, but I do think they still would’ve gone with the King cause it be a crime not to include him after 200 wins and what not Earnhardt Sr. could’ve appeared as a replacement for Hicks (Get it 😂) or a cameo like Jr. or his own role entirely (Which is more likely)
@ but Dale Sr makes more parallel-wise That movie is set 2006 Petty retired from NASCAR in 1992 whilst if Dale Sr lived to see the checkered flag, he probably would’ve called it time sometime between 2003 and 2006. It wouldn’t make sense for King Richard to extend his career by 14 or so years (he was pushing 70 in ‘06! Whilst Dale would’ve only been 55) So in a “Dale survives Daytona” scenario, I highly think that the Intimidator would’ve competed for the Piston Cup with Hicks and that red racecar noone cares about whilst Richard Petty takes Mario Andretti’s cameo (which makes more sense because the “All-round Motorsport GOAT” (that epithet can also easily be applied to JMP and SVG) is more known for his success in what is now IndyCar)
This was my first season watching NASCAR at 7 years old and I was hooked ever since. Moment after moment, in a way the impact of losing Dale drew me in even more because I got the sense how significant it was and how everyone poured their heart and soul into the sport
Not even just them. I know a few people, especially in new England, whose only knowledge of the sport was seeing this clip on the news afterwards. Which is really too bad, cause if you only hear about the crashes you just assume its a bunch of suicidal hillbillies and it would be awful to watch, like who wants to sit there and maybe see someone die horribly? It just bums me out how bad a job nascar did marketing itself during its big boom in popularity. Its maybe the sport best suited for being universally popular. Its the biggest co-ed sport, its on almost year round, its a good mix of intellectual stuff like engineering and outdoorsy/physical activity...hell some people just like the artistic aspect. Some of those paint schemes are pretty amazing, in fairness. There should be something for almost everyone there, its also pretty easy to follow so you can just have it on and the background and not be too lost when you look back over unless a wreck happened. Instead its relegated to something a couple million southerners watch, at most. They really need to go back to the format they had in the 2000s when people actually watched. It may be too late but it cant hurt to try. At least the fans would like it. Seriously though, I went to an elementary school with nearly 350 kids in the mid 2000s, and me and my brothers were literally the only fans we met there. Wed actively get made fun of for watching cars go left and thinking its cool lol. So hey, I guess they knew vaguely what nascar was if they know its oval racing 😆
It can be argued that 2002 was an even better season. You had a title fight near the end of the season between Marlin, a rookie Jimmie, Smoke, & Mark Martin. Who knows what would've happen if Dale was still alive in 2002.
With how chaotic I hear it was for the title, I don’t think Earnhardt would just sit back, that man would likely just send it in and go for #8 (Possibly #9)
Smoke is smoke at Auto Club instead of Jr, Marlin would bounce back after having a heart-to-heart with Dale regarding 2001, Martin ends up a bridesmaid once again to a rookie that would make his mark and flinch old legends in the process
Idk if he ever would have contended for another title, honestly. There is an aging curve for drivers too, Petty didn't win a single race for like the last half decade of his career, and never really sniffed the title after #7. I would never count Dale Sr out of anything racing related, of course, but Id be very surprised if he actually beat people like Stewart, Johnson, or even Gordon at that point
I think if Sterling hadn't gotten hurt the championship was his that year. But then that leads to...would Jamie McMurray have shocked the world at Charlotte in his second start?
2001- Gordon wins 2002-2003- DEI wins 2004- Gordon wins 2005- Waltrip wins 2006-2010-Johnson wins 2011-Gordon wins 2013-Johnson wins 2015-Gordon wins (7x no. 3) 2016-Johnson wins (7x no. 4) 2018-19 (Dale Jr wins) Dodge would have been forced out by 2009, Toyota would only have 1 championship in 2017. 20 years worth of racing before the current roster ruined it
1979, 1992, 1996, and 1997 are the best NASCAR seasons ever. 2001 was 50-50, it was great, except for the death of Dale Earnhardt. Great video, by the way, a masterpiece. :)
I don't know if this was ever brought up but Kevin's First Goodwrench scheme at Rockingham was actually supposed to race at the Winston, not sure what the significance was but it would have looked awesome under the lights.
As an F1 fan, I might say I quite like NASCAR mostly cuz of some movies (COUGH COUGH- HERBIE FULLY LOADED AND CARS- COUGH) and the way this guy tells this stories makes me love the way NASCAR is. I already asked this under a video I think... But will Kimi Raikkonen's short NASCAR story ever be told on this channel? (If It hasnt been told yet)
as a fellow f1 fan, it was emp lemons videon on earnhardt that got me interested, honestly its a shame nascar and oval racing in general is so overlooked by most people
8:44 as a Jimmie fan I really wish this had happened cause the idea of every 7 time champ passing the torch to the next seems perfect for the sport. I still remember what jr said to Jimmie in 2016, “wish dad were here, he’d think you’re a bada$$” it would’ve been nice for both dales to congratulate him that night This is of course assuming the domino effect of history doesn’t change the championship breakdown of the mid 2000s to 2010s
This was my first season of being a fan, when I was 10-years old. I ironically enough became a fan after the Daytona 500, although I remember distinctly where I was when I learned of Dale Earnhardt's death. My first driver I cheered for was Dale Jarrett and it was a season of high highs and low lows for his team as the season progressed. You perfectly incapsulate what it was like to be a fan, or how I felt as a new fan of the sport on how great of a season was that was understandably overshadowed from what happened at the Daytona 500.
That was REALLY well done, and as you said, so many hypotheticals. I never want to see anyone get caught up in the "big one" but what if....Dale had just missed Tony Stewart flipping. What if he HAD been caught up in that wreck???
Thanks for another great video EllyProductions, you make high-quality content my man. Also, happy to see NASCAR UA-cam legend Griffdawg get a shoutout.
Living in 2001 was a fog after Daytona, nothing seemed real anymore. Another what could also be What if Tony Stewart never hit Kevin Ward? Would he have stayed in the cup series longer and how would that rippled into SHR or SRX series futures?
In an alternate timeline, it would have been a 2003 Darlington scenario. Jr beats Waltrip and Sr to the line by LESS THAN AN INCH, starting a new legacy of his own. Then he wins the 9/11 race unopposed and the crowd sees the 3 cars in a Red 8, White 3 (unusual but appropriate given the circumstances), and blue 15, when mashed together, form the American flag and the crowd would have erupted into cheers
That's really an indictment of the car's safety rating. I've seen Gen 4 cars hit SOLID walls like that and the drivers were not as injured as Kurk was.
1:40 I didn't even know some of those guys had ever one. My only knowledge of Park is highlights of the pocono crash, and I only knew Joe Nemechek as "that car who finishes dead last in every nascar sim racing race I did as a child" lol.
@seannolan9857 In fairness, I would often turn black flags off so i could see if I could be the only car to make it to the checkered flag... I made it once in Indianapolis...20 lap race, I finished 1st, and 2nd place didn't even complete 10 laps lol.
Dale ran poorly after the Dega wreck in '96...through '97 and '98 (500 win was his only win). He ran good in '99 and '00 (2nd in points in '00). Finished 2nd in the last race of the year in '00. Harvick finished 9th in points in '01, as a rookie who wasn't expecting to be in that car... And he missed Daytona. And he was running Busch full-time ('01 Champ, btw). So, I think it would have been a great battle with Gordon. Still, he had one of the coolest stats ever. Finished 12th in the Daytona 500... and he was dead. Great video.
Also, became the most popular driver after Bill Elliott (who unlike his son, is awesome in personality) bowed out as a sign of respect. Harvick would be the Rookie of 2001 regardless of the crash's outcome due to him stepping up when others stepped out and the Atlanta finish being one of a kind
0:10 Yes. A driver won the Championship with the third car in the constructors in f1 (didnt happen since 1983). A B team driver won the Moto GP (didnt happen since 2001) and Hyundai won its first world rally championship.
2001 to me was & still is my favorite season of NASCAR. Without the black cloud from February. It would have been the greatest season in NASCAR history. And atleast in my opinion topped the 1992 Winston Cup series. But yeah we'll truly never know what would happen if the Intimidator was still alive. R.I.P Dale earnhardt. (1951-2001) You will always live on in mines and other people's hearts as the greatest Stock car driver in history. Fly high #3!
it's fitting the 2 and 24 finished 1-2 on Dale's B-day. I'm convinced Dale caused the Winston rain just to mess with Gordon. I didn't start watching until Vegas and never got to see Dale race. I wish he didn't just fallow the 8 and 15. he had no issues moving the 31 out of the way SEVERAL times. Dale even hinted under the red flag someone might die.
2:19 the lap belt breaking was not the cause of his death. Medical reports revealed that the lap belt did break but did not significantly contribute. It was the basiliar skull fracture he suffered due to the impact force and the angle at which he hit the wall, similar to Neil Bonnett's fatal crash in 1994 and Stanley Smith's crash at Talladega in 1993.
I’ll be honest, if Dale did live after the 2001 Daytona 500, I don’t think he’d be in the seat long. More than likely, had he survived the crash, he be out for several months, and Harvick would still subbed in for Earnhardt in his car. From then, Either Earnhardt would go to a part time schedule or outright retire. But, if that happened, Harvick I think would have become an even better racer than ever, and with Dale as his mentor, I think Harvick would have way more championships to his name (probably 2 more championships to his name.)
Tbh, if Indy 1996 was any example, Earnhardt would rather have gone the way it was in our universe. He was in shambles in that race having to get out of his car and let someone substitute for him. My guess, he misses Vegas and NC, tries to race at Atlanta, comes close, but ultimately Harvick ends up winning it against Gordon with the car he was supposed to race in originally (30) after a mishap involving Earnhardt shot him up to the top. He'd end up back in the top spot in California against Gordon and Wallace. By July, he's back in his normal mood and races til 2004, at the latest. Mostly because the stigma of the crash and the media would keep hounding him, and the fact that there were significant safety improvements still made that he would feel would be detrimental in his POV
@ Yeah, in that case, NASCAR would still in this timeline would still implement HANS devices for all drivers, especially after the Adam Petty crash before February and Dale’s near-fatal crash at Daytona in this timeline. I think the only major difference would be the COT era and beyond. With Dale alive (but now out of the sport and probably retired between 2003-2004), the design of the COT would probably change, but to what extent I don’t know. Dale Jr would still find a way to finally get out of his father’s shadow and probably even become a champion or two-time by 2007. DEI would probably not be sold to Chip Ganassi and probably remain stable until the recession in 2008, but wouldn’t be in complete shambles compared to DEI in 2009 in our timeline. I think DEI would persist into the 2010s, but for how long is debatable. The possibilities that the “Dale doesn’t die in 2001 Daytona 500 but is seriously injured and retires later on after” timeline is endless. The fate of the COT, DEI, and the stories of Harvick, Dale Jr, Michael Waltrip and even Steve Park are all majorly changed. Possible alternate timeline video series maybe?
I always wonder what would have happened the years after. Not just in NASCAR, but there was an article a while ago saying that his 2001 Rolex 24 was actually supposed to be the start of a run at Le Mans. How would that have changed things?
Even if Earnhardt survived, the season would still be overshadowed by the 9/11 attacks that would happen later that year. It permanently ended any sign of improvement in the US as a whole, and begin a cycle of regression that is still happening today, and NASCAR is no exception to that
I think pretty confidently that if Sr didn’t pass Jr would’ve at least gotten 1 championship. Also most likely wouldn’t have gotten the concussion in 02 since it was Kevin Harvick that got into him in Fontana
0:54 you could say the same thing about F1 1994, a fantastic season with Oscar worthy drama in every single race that is sadly clouded by the death of one of the sport's greatest icons
3:10 and even in that interview he said that the car he won with was the car he had practiced all offseason with and Dale refused to drive because of the setup, so Harvick would have been in that car. What could have been.
For me I associate it the most with the monstercat podcast… did anyone else watch the podcast? And is it still happening? I remember looking forward to it each Tuesday
I love this channel, i truly believe is one of those love letters we (who don't know much about Nascar) need. But, it cames with a price, of course, the blind way of America to see the world, like entitled to be the only and true tragic history, is sad to say the least. Dale Earnhardt, a tragedy no doubt, but is barely know even in the motorsport lore, specially in lesser countrys (like Argentina, who got a GOOD level in motorsport, but not much in terms of outside knowledge). Claiming that it was the biggest tragedy in sports is too much. Look, i am not even a fan of the person i will talk here, but no, the biggest tragedy in action of motorsport history is Senna, there's no other way, everyone knows him, even if you don't know the sport. I'm not bashing, the video is awesome and i have the to do list to watch a Nascar race in person, even with being "the worst state it's even been", i don't care, is like a personal dream. But, as it stands, and being from a lesser motorsport at least (because in the sport you name soccer we have the biggest win ever), Earnhardt death is unknown, but i can take almost everyone in the street and ask about Senna and they know who he was, how the tragedy went, and etc. Will continue to watch the videos, just pointing out about the minority non american (again, not bashing, is just something in common that comes with culture, as a lot of that came from my country in soccer) way to see Dale end
If I reemeembeer right, 2001 or 2002 was Dale's final year, and Kevin was taking thee #3 in 2002. Jeff Greeeen was brought in to fill Harvicks #30 obligations, so Harvicee was gonna pilot thee #3, just not in 2001 or 2002.
I will say this had Dale Earnhardt escaped Daytona unharmed there was a chance that he could have gotten the 8th championship but rather or not he would have is something we'll never know. Let alone if he survived the crash but was injured either physically if that would impact the rest of the year and beyond. Let alone how long he would race if he was unharmed and was able to race. My guess that an unharmed Earnhardt would last for 4 to 5 years as a full time driver then part time for 3 years before moving on to owner. But if he couldn't race any longer due to injury but survived the crash then he probably would be a owner only during 2001. If he could race despite the injury then maybe til 2003 before being forced to retire as a driver because of lack of performance.
Two things about Nascar in 2001 i find absolutely shameful. The fact they did not make the HANS device mandatory after the the 2000 year where Adam Petty, Tony Roper and Kenny Irwin Jr. died was a disgrace to Nascar and their idea of safety, which should have been improved with making the HANS mandatory after J.D. McDuffie died in 91 with the same head injury as Dale Sr. The other shameful thing is how Nascar keeps repeating how the safety and especially HANS device was made mandatory after Earnhardt Sr, when it fact it became mandatory after Blaise Alexander died later the same year.
0:50 mayne already less than a minute in and you can't get a photo right... your screenshot for "2001" is so obviously from 2000... I'd sure be happy to be your editor/proofreader
Well if we were doing a realistic timeline. Those wins for Harvick would've actually been Dale's simce the 29 was the 3. Rather than the 30. Harvick would've finished wherever the 30 did.
Imo at least 1 good thing came from his passing Safety Just imagine how many more would’ve died without the new safety protocols they added? They only moved forward with it because someone like him passed
Earnhardt vs Gordon for the 2001 championship would’ve fed families
It would've been 2021 Hamilton vs Max 20 years earlier and would've gone down as one of the greatest championship battles.
@@Kuromori-v9z wonder if their fans wouldve shut up about a safety car after 3 years
@@qhu3878 wonder if max fans wouldve not initiated this toxicity in the first place
@@sadikurrahman4833 I'm not even gonna bother arguing I'm just gonna ask why do we even care about ab21 still, max and lewis dont so can we just move on
@@sadikurrahman4833nobody brought up being max or Lewis fans bruh
Harvick on both the 2001 and 2022 win lists. One of the best to ever do it.
was never a big Harvick fan, but he deserved more than one championship.
We haven't seen you in a year Connor
i havent showerd in 2 years 😂
@@SeanT009 now hold on
U mean last year not a year
Lol
GET OUT! 🗣️
It’s not just the fact we had 19 winners
It’s the fact that one race a small team like Andy Petree and the Wood Brothers can get the set up right and absolutely smoke everybody
Front Row Motorsports and Spire motorsports are still small teams and still also smoke everyone. JTG Daughtery is even weaker yet one a race
@ spire hasn’t at all yet but I think they will this year
Front row gotta get up to what they did in 2023
@@JackCallSports but you have to admit they are small teams. Wood Brothers also got a win. They are still small teams being able to smoke the competition.
@@VarishKasturi oh for sure
What I mean is small teams CAN absolutely win
It’s just that for that week they don’t just win
They DOMINATE the race
@@JackCallSports when did that happen
more evidence that a year can be awesome without an artificially close points battle, the storylines speak for themselves
1:24 "A couple years ago,, UA-camr Griffdawg"
Now that's a name I hadn't heard in a long long time.
I was six years old in 2001 and wasn’t really a diehard NASCAR fan yet. I knew a couple of the drivers (mostly the Roush drivers, because my Uncle worked for Roush) plus Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart, but that was about it. I consider that my NASCAR fandom started in 2002, when I actually remember saying to my dad “I want to watch every race this year.”
So during the lockdown in 2020, I had a lot of free time, and I watched a lot of races from 2000 and 2001 on UA-cam, and I gotta say…the racing those years was awesome. There’s a reason why Brock Beard is doing a video series covering every single little thing that happened in 2001…because so much DID happen, both on the track and off it. Any way you slice it, I was an amazing season. It’s too bad that nobody really remembers it except for the Daytona races and the spring Atlanta race.
Rest in peace to Dale Sr
RIP Dale Earnhardt Sr 🙏
This is a season that's on my watchlist, I've seen several people within the circle I've been in say 2001 was the best season in NASCAR
The tragedy in the first race, and then the attacks in September left a shadow over the season. But 2001 was truly one of the greatest storylines being told week in and week out.
I will say as a Jeff Gordon fan, I am biased. I started watching officially on February 14th 1999, so this was my first and only title I got to see Jeff win. But if there had to be one I'm glad I got to see. This would have been the one.
If you have the time this Winter, Spring and Summer. Please set aside some time and watch the 2001 Playlist. Watch the practices, the qualifying, the Happy Hours, the pre and post race shows.
2001 was magical across the board. There was something so magical about it.
@kenzschueler my first race i ever saw was the Daytona 500 as well in 2010. I've seen a lot of fans in comments on social media say the Daytona 500 was their first ever race, and it's cool to see another one. 👍
2003
Dales death, Bonds HR record, DBacks World Series walkoff, Brady’s first Super Bowl, Ray Borques first cup, AI finals run, the 2001 sports world was pure cinema
ya know, i wasnt expecting to spend 12 mins with tears in my eyes, i was 10 in 2001, lots of nostalgia through this video. Thank you.
Can I just add something that I just thought of Yesterday night? If it wasn’t for that February day at Daytona in 2001, “Strip Weathers” probably would’ve been more inspired by the Intimidator (even being voiced by him). Ya know keeping the parallels in check
and Junior in Cal’s place in the third film could’ve been poetry in a way that art and life act alike
Interesting, but I do think they still would’ve gone with the King cause it be a crime not to include him after 200 wins and what not
Earnhardt Sr. could’ve appeared as a replacement for Hicks (Get it 😂) or a cameo like Jr. or his own role entirely (Which is more likely)
@ but Dale Sr makes more parallel-wise
That movie is set 2006
Petty retired from NASCAR in 1992 whilst if Dale Sr lived to see the checkered flag, he probably would’ve called it time sometime between 2003 and 2006. It wouldn’t make sense for King Richard to extend his career by 14 or so years (he was pushing 70 in ‘06! Whilst Dale would’ve only been 55)
So in a “Dale survives Daytona” scenario, I highly think that the Intimidator would’ve competed for the Piston Cup with Hicks and that red racecar noone cares about whilst Richard Petty takes Mario Andretti’s cameo (which makes more sense because the “All-round Motorsport GOAT” (that epithet can also easily be applied to JMP and SVG) is more known for his success in what is now IndyCar)
This was my first season watching NASCAR at 7 years old and I was hooked ever since. Moment after moment, in a way the impact of losing Dale drew me in even more because I got the sense how significant it was and how everyone poured their heart and soul into the sport
1:59 - It’s crazy how many times I, and likely every “Winston Cup” fan, have seen this shot.
Not even just them. I know a few people, especially in new England, whose only knowledge of the sport was seeing this clip on the news afterwards.
Which is really too bad, cause if you only hear about the crashes you just assume its a bunch of suicidal hillbillies and it would be awful to watch, like who wants to sit there and maybe see someone die horribly?
It just bums me out how bad a job nascar did marketing itself during its big boom in popularity. Its maybe the sport best suited for being universally popular. Its the biggest co-ed sport, its on almost year round, its a good mix of intellectual stuff like engineering and outdoorsy/physical activity...hell some people just like the artistic aspect. Some of those paint schemes are pretty amazing, in fairness.
There should be something for almost everyone there, its also pretty easy to follow so you can just have it on and the background and not be too lost when you look back over unless a wreck happened.
Instead its relegated to something a couple million southerners watch, at most. They really need to go back to the format they had in the 2000s when people actually watched. It may be too late but it cant hurt to try. At least the fans would like it.
Seriously though, I went to an elementary school with nearly 350 kids in the mid 2000s, and me and my brothers were literally the only fans we met there. Wed actively get made fun of for watching cars go left and thinking its cool lol. So hey, I guess they knew vaguely what nascar was if they know its oval racing 😆
Didn't even need to click the timestamp to already picture it, hear it even 🥲
Babe, wake up, Elly productions posted a new video!
You can also check out the series 500 days of brock beard. Thats also elite storytelling
It can be argued that 2002 was an even better season. You had a title fight near the end of the season between Marlin, a rookie Jimmie, Smoke, & Mark Martin. Who knows what would've happen if Dale was still alive in 2002.
With how chaotic I hear it was for the title, I don’t think Earnhardt would just sit back, that man would likely just send it in and go for #8 (Possibly #9)
Smoke is smoke at Auto Club instead of Jr, Marlin would bounce back after having a heart-to-heart with Dale regarding 2001, Martin ends up a bridesmaid once again to a rookie that would make his mark and flinch old legends in the process
Idk if he ever would have contended for another title, honestly. There is an aging curve for drivers too, Petty didn't win a single race for like the last half decade of his career, and never really sniffed the title after #7.
I would never count Dale Sr out of anything racing related, of course, but Id be very surprised if he actually beat people like Stewart, Johnson, or even Gordon at that point
I think if Sterling hadn't gotten hurt the championship was his that year. But then that leads to...would Jamie McMurray have shocked the world at Charlotte in his second start?
DEI Vs HMS would have been cinema
2001- Gordon wins
2002-2003- DEI wins
2004- Gordon wins
2005- Waltrip wins
2006-2010-Johnson wins
2011-Gordon wins
2013-Johnson wins
2015-Gordon wins (7x no. 3)
2016-Johnson wins (7x no. 4)
2018-19 (Dale Jr wins)
Dodge would have been forced out by 2009, Toyota would only have 1 championship in 2017. 20 years worth of racing before the current roster ruined it
1979, 1992, 1996, and 1997 are the best NASCAR seasons ever.
2001 was 50-50, it was great, except for the death of Dale Earnhardt.
Great video, by the way,
a masterpiece.
:)
I don't know if this was ever brought up but Kevin's First Goodwrench scheme at Rockingham was actually supposed to race at the Winston, not sure what the significance was but it would have looked awesome under the lights.
It was planned to be a reverse paint scheme.
Richard Childress decided that he couldn't race a black #3 car anymore. Of course, that was before Austin asked PopPop . . .
I was lucky enough to meet kurt busch last christmas, him, amirola, harvick and Bowyer make up my fav 4-car team in the modern era. rip stewart-haas.
As an F1 fan, I might say I quite like NASCAR mostly cuz of some movies (COUGH COUGH- HERBIE FULLY LOADED AND CARS- COUGH) and the way this guy tells this stories makes me love the way NASCAR is.
I already asked this under a video I think... But will Kimi Raikkonen's short NASCAR story ever be told on this channel? (If It hasnt been told yet)
as a fellow f1 fan, it was emp lemons videon on earnhardt that got me interested, honestly its a shame nascar and oval racing in general is so overlooked by most people
I think that it has.
That 2001 JG flame car is unmatched. The best.
I absolutely love these season recaps definitely your best videos
8:44 as a Jimmie fan I really wish this had happened cause the idea of every 7 time champ passing the torch to the next seems perfect for the sport. I still remember what jr said to Jimmie in 2016, “wish dad were here, he’d think you’re a bada$$” it would’ve been nice for both dales to congratulate him that night
This is of course assuming the domino effect of history doesn’t change the championship breakdown of the mid 2000s to 2010s
I think the championship format change would’ve happened even if Dale had survived. At the very least, we would’ve still gotten the Chase.
I'm in the process of making a video about what would happen if Dale lived right now, so this is all very useful information.
This was my first season of being a fan, when I was 10-years old. I ironically enough became a fan after the Daytona 500, although I remember distinctly where I was when I learned of Dale Earnhardt's death. My first driver I cheered for was Dale Jarrett and it was a season of high highs and low lows for his team as the season progressed. You perfectly incapsulate what it was like to be a fan, or how I felt as a new fan of the sport on how great of a season was that was understandably overshadowed from what happened at the Daytona 500.
That was REALLY well done, and as you said, so many hypotheticals. I never want to see anyone get caught up in the "big one" but what if....Dale had just missed Tony Stewart flipping. What if he HAD been caught up in that wreck???
Hells yeah I'm early. Happy New Year Connor!
What if Sr. Still owned DEI? Terresa wouldnt have doug it into the dirt and destroyed an amazing team
1:23 Since when is 8 years a couple?
Kurts my favorite driver and go figure i was going to that Pocono race, it hurt, and signaled the end of an era
Thanks for another great video EllyProductions, you make high-quality content my man. Also, happy to see NASCAR UA-cam legend Griffdawg get a shoutout.
You did an incredible job at making me very sad RIP #3
Living in 2001 was a fog after Daytona, nothing seemed real anymore. Another what could also be What if Tony Stewart never hit Kevin Ward? Would he have stayed in the cup series longer and how would that rippled into SHR or SRX series futures?
8:18 - that fall looked painful
Spinal
Everytime I see stuff bout this season I cry can’t hold it in
Babe wake up, Connor just posted another banger
0:50 The image on the right is from 2000💀
Sloppy
That 2001 Daytona summer race was the greatest feel good nascar story of 2001. Maybe ever.
In an alternate timeline, it would have been a 2003 Darlington scenario. Jr beats Waltrip and Sr to the line by LESS THAN AN INCH, starting a new legacy of his own. Then he wins the 9/11 race unopposed and the crowd sees the 3 cars in a Red 8, White 3 (unusual but appropriate given the circumstances), and blue 15, when mashed together, form the American flag and the crowd would have erupted into cheers
YIPPPPEEWWE UPLOADDD
👋 Great Video Connor!
11:54
Another thing is that the upgraded barrier probably prevented the crash from being worse…
That's really an indictment of the car's safety rating. I've seen Gen 4 cars hit SOLID walls like that and the drivers were not as injured as Kurk was.
0:05 Peak comedy indeed, sir
respect for the Griffdawg shout out
1:40 I didn't even know some of those guys had ever one. My only knowledge of Park is highlights of the pocono crash, and I only knew Joe Nemechek as "that car who finishes dead last in every nascar sim racing race I did as a child" lol.
Joe always ran good in my games. He's won with seven different car numbers on my old computer.
@seannolan9857 In fairness, I would often turn black flags off so i could see if I could be the only car to make it to the checkered flag... I made it once in Indianapolis...20 lap race, I finished 1st, and 2nd place didn't even complete 10 laps lol.
Stars strips race cars and beer
I LIKE IT!
Dale Sr's proper retirement tour will be phenomenal
Dale ran poorly after the Dega wreck in '96...through '97 and '98 (500 win was his only win).
He ran good in '99 and '00 (2nd in points in '00). Finished 2nd in the last race of the year in '00.
Harvick finished 9th in points in '01, as a rookie who wasn't expecting to be in that car... And he missed Daytona. And he was running Busch full-time ('01 Champ, btw).
So, I think it would have been a great battle with Gordon.
Still, he had one of the coolest stats ever. Finished 12th in the Daytona 500... and he was dead.
Great video.
Also, became the most popular driver after Bill Elliott (who unlike his son, is awesome in personality) bowed out as a sign of respect. Harvick would be the Rookie of 2001 regardless of the crash's outcome due to him stepping up when others stepped out and the Atlanta finish being one of a kind
Imagine the playoff format for this season. That would have been epic.
Bobby Labonte would have won his third consecutive championship thanks to Gordon getting wrecked by Gordon.
Dude when that dude fell i busted out laughing,it followed terrorism,and beer.
bro we missed you!
0:10
Yes. A driver won the Championship with the third car in the constructors in f1 (didnt happen since 1983). A B team driver won the Moto GP (didnt happen since 2001) and Hyundai won its first world rally championship.
chef connor strikes again
Race hell praise dale
I'd also like to point out the 2024 F2 season - 18 winners in 28 races, and a late title charge from bortoleto
does connor ever miss? another amazing video
Cone back for 2025
2001 to me was & still is my favorite season of NASCAR. Without the black cloud from February. It would have been the greatest season in NASCAR history. And atleast in my opinion topped the 1992 Winston Cup series. But yeah we'll truly never know what would happen if the Intimidator was still alive.
R.I.P Dale earnhardt. (1951-2001)
You will always live on in mines and other people's hearts as the greatest Stock car driver in history. Fly high #3!
it's fitting the 2 and 24 finished 1-2 on Dale's B-day. I'm convinced Dale caused the Winston rain just to mess with Gordon. I didn't start watching until Vegas and never got to see Dale race. I wish he didn't just fallow the 8 and 15. he had no issues moving the 31 out of the way SEVERAL times. Dale even hinted under the red flag someone might die.
2:19 the lap belt breaking was not the cause of his death. Medical reports revealed that the lap belt did break but did not significantly contribute. It was the basiliar skull fracture he suffered due to the impact force and the angle at which he hit the wall, similar to Neil Bonnett's fatal crash in 1994 and Stanley Smith's crash at Talladega in 1993.
I’ll be honest, if Dale did live after the 2001 Daytona 500, I don’t think he’d be in the seat long. More than likely, had he survived the crash, he be out for several months, and Harvick would still subbed in for Earnhardt in his car. From then, Either Earnhardt would go to a part time schedule or outright retire. But, if that happened, Harvick I think would have become an even better racer than ever, and with Dale as his mentor, I think Harvick would have way more championships to his name (probably 2 more championships to his name.)
Tbh, if Indy 1996 was any example, Earnhardt would rather have gone the way it was in our universe. He was in shambles in that race having to get out of his car and let someone substitute for him. My guess, he misses Vegas and NC, tries to race at Atlanta, comes close, but ultimately Harvick ends up winning it against Gordon with the car he was supposed to race in originally (30) after a mishap involving Earnhardt shot him up to the top. He'd end up back in the top spot in California against Gordon and Wallace. By July, he's back in his normal mood and races til 2004, at the latest. Mostly because the stigma of the crash and the media would keep hounding him, and the fact that there were significant safety improvements still made that he would feel would be detrimental in his POV
@ Yeah, in that case, NASCAR would still in this timeline would still implement HANS devices for all drivers, especially after the Adam Petty crash before February and Dale’s near-fatal crash at Daytona in this timeline. I think the only major difference would be the COT era and beyond. With Dale alive (but now out of the sport and probably retired between 2003-2004), the design of the COT would probably change, but to what extent I don’t know. Dale Jr would still find a way to finally get out of his father’s shadow and probably even become a champion or two-time by 2007. DEI would probably not be sold to Chip Ganassi and probably remain stable until the recession in 2008, but wouldn’t be in complete shambles compared to DEI in 2009 in our timeline. I think DEI would persist into the 2010s, but for how long is debatable.
The possibilities that the “Dale doesn’t die in 2001 Daytona 500 but is seriously injured and retires later on after” timeline is endless. The fate of the COT, DEI, and the stories of Harvick, Dale Jr, Michael Waltrip and even Steve Park are all majorly changed. Possible alternate timeline video series maybe?
Nice!!! 3
I always wonder what would have happened the years after. Not just in NASCAR, but there was an article a while ago saying that his 2001 Rolex 24 was actually supposed to be the start of a run at Le Mans. How would that have changed things?
Even if Earnhardt survived, the season would still be overshadowed by the 9/11 attacks that would happen later that year. It permanently ended any sign of improvement in the US as a whole, and begin a cycle of regression that is still happening today, and NASCAR is no exception to that
I think pretty confidently that if Sr didn’t pass Jr would’ve at least gotten 1 championship. Also most likely wouldn’t have gotten the concussion in 02 since it was Kevin Harvick that got into him in Fontana
Woah, Mirror's Edge music? I love that game
Babe wake up Connor dropped a new video
0:54 you could say the same thing about F1 1994, a fantastic season with Oscar worthy drama in every single race that is sadly clouded by the death of one of the sport's greatest icons
3:10 and even in that interview he said that the car he won with was the car he had practiced all offseason with and Dale refused to drive because of the setup, so Harvick would have been in that car. What could have been.
Thank you god for this
I think the best what if scenerio is if he didnt die but was hospitalized still causing the safty stuff
For me I associate it the most with the monstercat podcast… did anyone else watch the podcast? And is it still happening? I remember looking forward to it each Tuesday
I love this channel, i truly believe is one of those love letters we (who don't know much about Nascar) need.
But, it cames with a price, of course, the blind way of America to see the world, like entitled to be the only and true tragic history, is sad to say the least.
Dale Earnhardt, a tragedy no doubt, but is barely know even in the motorsport lore, specially in lesser countrys (like Argentina, who got a GOOD level in motorsport, but not much in terms of outside knowledge). Claiming that it was the biggest tragedy in sports is too much.
Look, i am not even a fan of the person i will talk here, but no, the biggest tragedy in action of motorsport history is Senna, there's no other way, everyone knows him, even if you don't know the sport.
I'm not bashing, the video is awesome and i have the to do list to watch a Nascar race in person, even with being "the worst state it's even been", i don't care, is like a personal dream. But, as it stands, and being from a lesser motorsport at least (because in the sport you name soccer we have the biggest win ever), Earnhardt death is unknown, but i can take almost everyone in the street and ask about Senna and they know who he was, how the tragedy went, and etc.
Will continue to watch the videos, just pointing out about the minority non american (again, not bashing, is just something in common that comes with culture, as a lot of that came from my country in soccer) way to see Dale end
Junior taking two wins after two major American tragedies? In the same year?
Definitely channeling his inner Verstappen
No please don’t I already cant believe we live in the time, that Dale is gone 😞
god i wish we had NASCAR like this nowadays, can someone buy it and make it old school once more?
Babe wake up, a new ellyproductions video dropped
Great!
If I reemeembeer right, 2001 or 2002 was Dale's final year, and Kevin was taking thee #3 in 2002. Jeff Greeeen was brought in to fill Harvicks #30 obligations, so Harvicee was gonna pilot thee #3, just not in 2001 or 2002.
He was on that car at Daytona in July
I will say this had Dale Earnhardt escaped Daytona unharmed there was a chance that he could have gotten the 8th championship but rather or not he would have is something we'll never know. Let alone if he survived the crash but was injured either physically if that would impact the rest of the year and beyond. Let alone how long he would race if he was unharmed and was able to race. My guess that an unharmed Earnhardt would last for 4 to 5 years as a full time driver then part time for 3 years before moving on to owner. But if he couldn't race any longer due to injury but survived the crash then he probably would be a owner only during 2001. If he could race despite the injury then maybe til 2003 before being forced to retire as a driver because of lack of performance.
Two things about Nascar in 2001 i find absolutely shameful. The fact they did not make the HANS device mandatory after the the 2000 year where Adam Petty, Tony Roper and Kenny Irwin Jr. died was a disgrace to Nascar and their idea of safety, which should have been improved with making the HANS mandatory after J.D. McDuffie died in 91 with the same head injury as Dale Sr. The other shameful thing is how Nascar keeps repeating how the safety and especially HANS device was made mandatory after Earnhardt Sr, when it fact it became mandatory after Blaise Alexander died later the same year.
I was gonna go on a tangent abt how you kept saying “but what if” and then I saw the ending
Clever Connor…
0:50 mayne already less than a minute in and you can't get a photo right... your screenshot for "2001" is so obviously from 2000... I'd sure be happy to be your editor/proofreader
Yoo I just saw the Jonny Benson Car
Dang as this is on my birthday 🥳 ( I don’t think anyone cares 😬)
happy birthday!
@@Nascarman9thank you🙂
Happy Birthday 🎉
Happy birthday dude!
Thank you guys 🙂
Well if we were doing a realistic timeline. Those wins for Harvick would've actually been Dale's simce the 29 was the 3. Rather than the 30. Harvick would've finished wherever the 30 did.
5:32 "barely edging him... for the win" shows a clip of them nowhere near each other
Haven't seen him, only watch nascar sinse 2022.
The real question is "who did Kurt flip off last?"
Kurt Busch said he wants to come back to racing
Imo at least 1 good thing came from his passing
Safety
Just imagine how many more would’ve died without the new safety protocols they added? They only moved forward with it because someone like him passed
if we can learn anything from new years eve, it's that the graphic designers at times square really should be fired
i like how many winners we have in a season but i don't think these championships mean the same as the old ones
CHEESEBURGER WILLOW!!!
Bro it’s been a year
8:54 Roblox reference
MotoGP alsp had a pretty great championship go down to the last race.
This highlights (in my opinion) that Bill Elliot wasn't that fantastic of a driver, it was all car.
What race did Jimmie debut as a rookie in 2001?