The Daytona 500: 1959-2009 Trivia Quiz

Answer: 24

Jeff Gordon and crew chief Ray Evernham formed a dynamic duo which catapulted the young Gordon to NASCAR fame and fortune in the late 1990s. Gordon drove the rainbow-colored number 24 Chevrolet to three Daytona 500 victories in a ten-year span: 1997, 1999 and 2005. Gordon's pit crew was known as the "Rainbow Warriors".

Answer: Dave Marcis

Dave Marcis, a driver from Wausau, Wisconsin, started 33 Daytona 500 races between 1968 and 2002, although he managed only three top ten finishes in the Great American Race. Marcis became famous for wearing wing-tip shoes while racing on the NASCAR circuit. Buddy Baker (South Carolina) and Darrell Waltrip (Kentucky) started 28 Daytona 500 contests, while Kyle Petty (North Carolina) took the green flag in 27 Daytona 500 races.

Answer: Richard Petty

Richard Petty was indeed the King of the Daytona 500 between 1959 and 2009: he won the Great American Race an amazing 7 times in 32 career starts. Petty took the checkered flag in his famous #43 during the following years: 1964, 1966, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979 and 1981. Cale Yarborough won four Daytona 500s, Bill Elliott won twice, and David Pearson captured the 1976 Daytona 500.

Answer: Bobby / Davey Allison

In the 1988 Daytona 500, the Allison duo of Bobby and Davey combined to give "Dad" his third career triumph in the Great American Race. Davey's number 28 Ford helped to propel his father's #12 Buick across Victory Lane. Bobby thus became the oldest driver (50) to win the Daytona 500.

In 1988, restrictor plates were put in engines for the first time in order to reduce the speed of the cars. Davey Allison won the 1992 Daytona 500.

Answer: Lee Petty

The 1959 Daytona 500 featured a wild scramble at the finish line. At first, Johnny Beauchamp, driving the number 73 T-Bird, was declared the winner of the race and received the checkered flag. However, Lee Petty in the #42 Oldsmobile immediately claimed that he had edged out Beauchamp for the victory.

It took NASCAR officials about three days to sort out the controversy, but in the end Petty was declared the winner by virtue of photographic evidence taken at the finish line. Junior Johnson won the 1960 Daytona 500, and Marvin Panch was the winner of the 1961 Great American Race. Veteran Tim Flock finished ninth in the inaugural Daytona 500.

Answer: Michael Waltrip

For Michael Waltrip, his triumph in the 2001 Daytona 500 was the ultimate "bittersweet" experience. At first, Waltrip felt the joy of winning his first NASCAR Cup race after more than 400 career starts. However, his tears of joy quickly changed to tears of bitter sadness just moments later when he received news that Dale Earnhardt, his teammate and friend, had perished in a last-lap crash at the Daytona race.

It was truly a poignant and devastating moment which was captured by television cameras. Waltrip also won the 2003 Daytona 500. Earnhardt Jr. finished second in the 2001 Daytona 500, Wallace was third, and Marlin ended up in seventh place.

Answer: Fred Lorenzen

Fred Lorenzen, the "Golden Boy" from Illinois, was one of the first NASCAR stars from the early television days in the 1960s with his good looks and winning driving style were naturals for the TV screen. He drove his #28 Ford to victory in the 1965 Daytona 500. Lorenzen had an impressive record in the Great American Race: he compiled seven top-ten finishes in just nine career starts. A.J. Foyt won the 1972 Daytona 500 in a Mercury; Paschal and Zervakis never won the Daytona 500.

Answer: Derrike Cope

Derrike Cope became perhaps the most unlikely racer ever to win the Daytona 500. Dale Earnhardt had dominated the 1990 Great American Race, leading 155 of the first 199 laps. However, when Earnhardt cut down a tire in the final lap, Cope drove his Chevrolet to Victory Lane; Earnhardt ended up in fifth place. Cope led only five laps, but as Earnhardt said later, "He led the most important lap". Between 1987 and 2004, Cope participated in 14 Daytona 500s, but only had one top ten finish in 1990.

Answer: Edward Glenn

Edward Glenn "Fireball" Roberts was one of NASCAR's first superstar drivers. A native of Florida, the charismatic Roberts was talented in both auto racing and in baseball. He dominated the 1962 Daytona 500, starting in the first position and then leading 144 of the race's 200 laps.

Unfortunately, Roberts died in 1964 due to complications arising from severe burns following a crash in the Charlotte 600 race. DeWayne "Tiny" Lund won the 1963 Daytona 500, and LeeRoy Yarbrough captured the 1969 Daytona 500 title.

Answer: Jimmie Johnson

Jimmie Johnson drove his number 48 Chevrolet to a victory in the 2006 Daytona 500. Johnson's regular crew chief, Chad Knaus, was serving a four-race suspension at the beginning of the 2006 season due to a NASCAR rules violation; therefore, assistant Darian Grubb sat atop the pit box for the Daytona race. Grubb helped to guide the 48 team to the checkered flag in the Great American Race.