Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. (April 29, 1951 – February 18, 2001) was an American race car driver, best known for his career driving stock cars in NASCAR's top division.
Dale Earnhardt is notable for his success in the Winston Cup Series, now known as the Sprint Cup Series, winning seventy-six races (including one Daytona 500 victory in 1998). Earnhardt's seven championships are tied for most all-time with Richard Petty. His aggressive driving style led to a high profile, and often controversial career; and, earned him the nicknames "Ironhead," "Mr. Restrictor Plate," "The Man in Black" and most famously, "The Intimidator."
Earnhardt died in a last-lap crash during the 2001 Daytona 500, after 6 deaths in less than two years NASCAR began an intensive focus on safety that has seen the organization begin to require the use of head-and-neck restraints such as the HANS device, oversee the installation of SAFER barriers at all oval tracks, set rigorous new rules for seat-belt and seat inspection, and develop a next-generation race car built with extra driver safety in mind, dubbed the Car of Tomorrow.
|
