By Mark Aumann, Turner Sports Interactive
March 19, 2003
10:41 AM EST (1541 GMT)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- For Dale Earnhardt, it was deja vu all over again.
Just like three years earlier, Earnhardt was locked on the back bumper of Dale Jarrett as the laps dwindled. And once more, Earnhardt was unable to find a way past as Jarrett won the rematch of the Dales, earning his second victory in the Daytona 500.
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| Dale Jarrett in Victory Lane. Credit: ISC Publications, Inc. Archives |
"The last lap was close to 500 miles itself," a relieved Jarrett said. "I'd rather look in the mirror and see anybody but that 3 car back there.
"On that last lap, I decided I was going to the middle of the track and that would give me room to maneuver to either side. I think he started high and then dove back low and I was able to block both of those.
"I just tried to make my Thunderbird as wide as I possibly could."
So make it 0-for-18 for Earnhardt in Daytona 500s, including four second-place finishes. Earnhardt was the fastest qualifier and riding a seven-year winning streak in qualifying races, but couldn't make it to Victory Lane in the race he most desperately wanted to win.
"It's Daytona. We just didn't have enough," Earnhardt said. "Our car was super all day, but those Fords were super, too."
Eight Fords finished in the top 10, but the other Chevrolet was Ken Schrader, directly behind Earnhardt on the final lap.
Schrader's quandary was this: Either go with Earnhardt and try to pass Jarrett -- or get of line and possibly lose several positions. Schrader decided the risk wasn't worth it.
"It ain't my responsibility to worry about where (Earnhardt) finishes," Schrader said. "We weren't going to get it done together. If I had tucked up tight with Dale, Michael Waltrip and Mark Martin and those guys were going around on the top of me. I wasn't going to throw third away."
Schrader was followed across the line by Martin and Jeff Burton.
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| 1996 Daytona 500 Top 10 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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A number of other contenders were in street clothes by the finish, including Jeff Gordon, Sterling Marlin and Darrell Waltrip.
Gordon's day ended on lap 13, four laps after his Chevy clipped the wall.
"Jeremy Mayfield and I were side-by-side and we just touched," Gordon said. "I got real loose went into the wall. It was real tight out there."
Marlin, gunning to become the first driver to win three consecutive 500s, was out by lap 81, courtesy of engine problems.
"We had just taken the lead and we were ready to go," Marlin said. "It felt like we had 'em where we wanted 'em."
Waltrip's engine gave out on lap 180, leaving him 29th.
Ernie Irvan and Terry Labonte finished well back after strong early runs. Irvan, who started on the front row, damaged his car in an incident with Wally Dallenbach and lost 47 laps in the garage. Labonte led 44 laps before carburetor problems slowed him. He ended up 24th, four laps down.
Johnny Benson finished 23rd in his Daytona 500 debut.
NOTE: This is one in a series of articles counting down to the 2003 Daytona 500.
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