2001 Protection One 400
Race details
Race 28 of 36 in the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Date September 30, 2001(2001-09-30)
Course Permanent racing facility
Course length 1.5 miles (2.4 km)
Distance 267 laps, 400 mi (644.542 km)
Weather Mild with temperatures of 73.9 °F (23.3 °C); wind speeds of 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)
Average speed 110.576 mph (177.955 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Jason Leffler Chip Ganassi Racing
Time 30.595
Most laps led
Driver Rusty Wallace Penske Racing
Laps 117
Winner
No. 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Nielsen ratings 4.7
The 2001 Protection One 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series stock car race held on September 30, 2001, at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas . The race was the 28th of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. The race was the inaugural Cup race held at the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) track. Jason Leffler from Chip Ganassi Racing won his first career pole position with a qualifying speed of 176.499 miles per hour (284.048 km/h). Penske Racing 's Rusty Wallace led the most laps with 117, while Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports won the race.
Due to the September 11 attacks happening earlier in the month, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered a no-fly zone , prohibiting aircraft from flying within three miles of any sporting event area, which also includes an altitude of 300 feet. To increase security, coolers and large bags were banned from the track, At the same time, other items like purses and binoculars were subject to inspection. Meanwhile, in the sense of patriotism after the attacks, Sterling Marlin ran a "God Bless America" paint scheme, which had not been prepared in time for the 2001 MBNA Cal Ripken Jr. 400 the week before. To support victims of the attacks, Marlin's sponsor Coors Brewing Company donated $ 10 for every lap completed at the race by Marlin.
Entry list Car Driver Team Manufacturer 1 Kenny Wallace Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 01 Jason Leffler Chip Ganassi Racing Dodge 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford 02 Ryan Newman Penske Racing South Ford 4 Kevin Lepage Morgan–McClure Motorsports Pontiac 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 7 Mike Wallace Ultra Motorsports Ford 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 9 Bill Elliott Evernham Motorsports Dodge 10 Johnny Benson Jr. MBV Motorsports Pontiac 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske Racing South Ford 14 Ron Hornaday Jr. A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet 15 Michael Waltrip Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Racing Ford 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 19 Casey Atwood Evernham Motorsports Dodge 20 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 21 Elliott Sadler Wood Brothers Racing Ford 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 27 Rick Mast Eel River Racing Pontiac 28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 31 Robby Gordon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 32 Ricky Craven PPI Motorsports Ford 33 Joe Nemechek Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 36 Ken Schrader MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 40 Sterling Marlin Chip Ganassi Racing Dodge 43 John Andretti Petty Enterprises Dodge 44 Buckshot Jones Petty Enterprises Dodge 45 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Ford 55 Bobby Hamilton Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 57 Derrike Cope Team CLR Ford 66 Todd Bodine Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 90 Hut Stricklin Donlavey Racing Ford 92 Stacy Compton Melling Racing Dodge 93 Dave Blaney Bill Davis Racing Dodge 96 Andy Houston PPI Motorsports Ford 97 Kurt Busch Roush Racing Ford 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford
Qualifying Pos. Car Driver Manufacturer Time Avg. Speed (mph) 1 01 Jason Leffler Dodge 30.595 176.499 2 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 30.629 176.304 3 9 Bill Elliott Dodge 30.638 176.252 4 92 Stacy Compton Dodge 30.656 176.148 5 19 Casey Atwood Dodge 30.684 175.987 6 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Pontiac 30.707 175.856 7 20 Tony Stewart Pontiac 30.753 175.593 8 28 Ricky Rudd Ford 30.757 175.570 9 32 Ricky Craven Ford 30.772 175.484 10 18 Bobby Labonte Pontiac 30.802 175.313 11 2 Rusty Wallace Ford 30.829 175.160 12 43 John Andretti Dodge 30.830 175.154 13 17 Matt Kenseth Ford 30.838 175.109 14 26 Jimmy Spencer Ford 30.854 175.018 15 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 30.862 174.972 16 96 Andy Houston Ford 30.884 174.848 17 02 Ryan Newman Ford 30.884 174.848 18 88 Dale Jarrett Ford 30.892 174.803 19 40 Sterling Marlin Dodge 30.892 174.803 20 5 Terry Labonte Chevrolet 30.908 174.712 21 93 Dave Blaney Dodge 30.943 174.514 22 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 30.950 174.475 23 6 Mark Martin Ford 30.950 174.475 24 55 Bobby Hamilton Chevrolet 30.985 174.278 25 25 Jerry Nadeau Chevrolet 30.990 174.250 26 99 Jeff Burton Ford 30.991 174.244 27 66 Todd Bodine Ford 31.000 174.194 28 36 Ken Schrader Pontiac 31.045 173.941 29 7 Mike Wallace Ford 31.048 173.924 30 57 Derrike Cope Ford 31.092 173.678 31 4 Kevin Lepage Chevrolet 31.099 173.639 32 21 Elliott Sadler Ford 31.100 173.633 33 44 Buckshot Jones Dodge 31.133 173.449 34 31 Robby Gordon Chevrolet 31.142 173.399 35 1 Kenny Wallace Chevrolet 31.156 173.321 36 22 Ward Burton Dodge 31.167 173.260 Provisionals 37 77 Robert Pressley Ford 0.000 0.000 38 12 Jeremy Mayfield Ford 0.000 0.000 39 33 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 0.000 0.000 40 97 Kurt Busch Ford 0.000 0.000 41 15 Michael Waltrip Chevrolet 0.000 0.000 42 11 Brett Bodine Ford 0.000 0.000 43 90 Hut Stricklin Ford 0.000 0.000 Failed to qualify 44 27 Rick Mast Pontiac 31.187 173.149 45 45 Kyle Petty Dodge 31.208 173.033 46 14 Ron Hornaday Jr. Pontiac 31.344 172.282
Race recap The race was filled with caution flags; the first caution flag flew on the first lap when Casey Atwood , John Andretti and Ricky Craven made contact in turn 2. A total of 13 caution flags were flown along with 70 laps were run under caution, both track highs, and a red flag stopped the race for eleven minutes. Meanwhile, Wallace dominated the race, leading a race-high 117 laps. However, he was eventually penalized for speeding on the pit road. Gordon then took the lead and held off Ryan Newman for his sixth win of the season, also giving him a 222-point advantage over Ricky Rudd in the championship standings. Rudd, Wallace, and Sterling Marlin closed out the top five.
Results Fin St # Driver Make Team Sponsor Laps Led Status Pts Winnings 1 2 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports DuPont Automotive267 53 running 180 254377 2 17 02 Ryan Newman Ford Penske Racing South Alltel 267 0 running 170 100100 3 8 28 Ricky Rudd Ford Robert Yates Racing Texaco , Havoline 267 20 running 170 138947 4 11 2 Rusty Wallace Ford Penske Racing South Miller Lite 267 117 running 170 130140 5 19 40 Sterling Marlin Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing Proud to be an American 267 1 running 160 98760 6 23 6 Mark Martin Ford Roush Racing Viagra , Pfizer 267 1 running 155 109551 7 37 77 Robert Pressley Ford Jasper Motorsports Jasper Engines & Transmissions 267 0 running 146 77820 8 7 20 Tony Stewart Pontiac Joe Gibbs Racing The Home Depot 267 0 running 142 76150 9 40 97 Kurt Busch Ford Roush Racing Sharpie , Rubbermaid 267 0 running 138 67700 10 21 93 Dave Blaney Dodge Bill Davis Racing Amoco 267 1 running 139 61580 11 26 99 Jeff Burton Ford Roush Racing Citgo Supergard267 0 running 130 100046 12 25 25 Jerry Nadeau Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports UAW -Delphi 267 15 running 132 63200 13 31 4 Kevin Lepage Chevrolet Morgan-McClure Motorsports Kodak 267 0 running 124 60111 14 34 31 Robby Gordon Chevrolet Richard Childress Racing Lowe's 267 0 running 121 86024 15 24 55 Bobby Hamilton Chevrolet Andy Petree Racing Square D 267 0 running 118 64300 16 15 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Richard Childress Racing GM Goodwrench 267 0 running 115 95727 17 35 1 Kenny Wallace Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Pennzoil 266 1 running 117 78843 18 16 96 Andy Houston Ford PPI Motorsports McDonald's 266 0 running 109 52300 19 29 7 Mike Wallace Ford Ultra Motorsports NationsRent 266 0 running 106 64590 20 39 33 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet Andy Petree Racing Oakwood Homes 266 0 running 103 83870 21 9 32 Ricky Craven Ford PPI Motorsports Tide 265 0 running 100 51900 22 14 26 Jimmy Spencer Ford Haas-Carter Motorsports Kmart 265 0 running 97 62175 23 32 21 Elliott Sadler Ford Wood Brothers Racing Motorcraft 265 0 running 94 68800 24 30 57 Derrike Cope Ford Team CLR CLR 263 0 running 91 47500 25 42 11 Brett Bodine Ford Brett Bodine Racing Ralphs 263 0 running 88 51200 26 28 36 Ken Schrader Pontiac MB2 Motorsports Pedigree 262 0 running 85 58100 27 20 5 Terry Labonte Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports Kellogg's 258 0 suspension 82 82130 28 1 01 Jason Leffler Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing Cingular Wireless 256 8 crash 84 59700 29 10 18 Bobby Labonte Pontiac Joe Gibbs Racing Interstate Batteries 246 0 crash 76 98527 30 18 88 Dale Jarrett Ford Robert Yates Racing UPS "We Want to Race the Truck"246 0 crash 73 91827 31 33 44 Buckshot Jones Dodge Petty Enterprises Georgia-Pacific 245 0 running 70 54100 32 13 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Roush Racing DeWalt 238 14 crash 72 53900 33 22 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Budweiser 228 3 crash 69 80423 34 4 92 Stacy Compton Dodge Melling Racing Kodiak 202 0 crash 61 45500 35 43 90 Hut Stricklin Ford Donlavey Racing Hills Brothers Coffee 198 0 running 58 45300 36 38 12 Jeremy Mayfield Ford Penske Racing South Mobil 1192 0 running 55 84384 37 6 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Pontiac MBV Motorsports Valvoline MaxLife184 0 engine 52 52900 38 41 15 Michael Waltrip Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt, Inc. NAPA Auto Parts "We Keep America Running"164 0 crash 49 54700 39 12 43 John Andretti Dodge Petty Enterprises Cheerios 146 0 running 46 79527 40 3 9 Bill Elliott Dodge Evernham Motorsports Dodge Dealers, UAW 134 33 engine 48 69023 41 36 22 Ward Burton Dodge Bill Davis Racing Caterpillar 67 0 crash 40 77235 42 27 66 Todd Bodine Ford Haas-Carter Motorsports Kmart Blue Light Special67 0 crash 37 43900 43 5 19 Casey Atwood Dodge Evernham Motorsports Dodge Dealers, UAW 0 0 crash 34 4390\50 Failed to qualify 44 27 Rick Mast Pontiac Eel River Racing Save-A-Lot 45 45 Kyle Petty Dodge Petty Enterprises Sprint 46 14 Ron Hornaday Jr. Pontiac A.J. Foyt Racing Conseco
Standings after the race Race winner Jeff Gordon led the points standings after the race. 