meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
ESPN Daily

20 Years Later: How Dale Earnhardt's Death Changed NASCAR Forever

ESPN Daily

ESPN

Sports

4.63.9K Ratings

🗓️ 12 February 2021

⏱️ 36 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

NASCAR is back this weekend, with the 63rd running of The Great American Race...The Daytona 500. But the excitement this year is tempered by the sobering reminder that it’s the 20th anniversary of the death of Dale Earnhardt. When Earnhardt died in an accident on the final lap of Daytona in 2001, the tragedy finally prompted a change in NASCAR that many thought was long overdue. Safety standards and equipment designed to prevent the type of injury that killed Earnhardt became widely adopted. There may not be a bigger example of how far the sport has come than last year’s Daytona 500, when Ryan Newman’s car flipped, was driven through, and landed upside down in a fiery collision during the final lap. Many first believed that Newman had died, but he walked out of the hospital two days later, largely due to the additional safety measures put in place in the wake of Earnhardt’s death. ESPN’s Ryan McGee joins us to talk about the latest E:60 film, “Intimidator,” examining Earnhardt’s legacy and how his death changed NASCAR forever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

It'll be lap 207, the longest Daytona 500 ever.

0:09.3

So it's the last lap for the 2020 Daytona 500, and I'm standing in Victor Lane.

0:13.6

You can't really see the racetrack.

0:16.4

Ryan McGee covers NASCAR for ESPN.

0:20.1

So I'm actually watching on the television barren.

0:21.6

White flag under green, next flag will end the race, and Newman is there.

0:26.6

Here comes Ryan Newman. He's in the lead.

0:28.6

He's got a chance to win, you know, another Daytona 500.

0:32.6

Blaine to the outside, to the inside.

0:35.6

Here comes Hamlin up the outside. Crash into the wall, into the air, goes Newman.

0:43.3

Next thing I know when I look out onto the racetrack,

0:47.3

I don't see the checker flag flying in the air.

0:49.3

I see Ryan Newman's car flying in the air.

0:51.3

In a shower of sparks on his roof,

0:55.7

Ryan Newman comes across the line for it.

1:01.3

And comes to rest.

1:05.8

And for a guy like me that's been around for a real long time,

1:09.8

your muscle memory kicks in.

1:11.2

All right, we're not just covering the Daytona 500.

1:13.8

We're covering maybe a death of the Daytona 500.

1:17.3

The AMR safety team is there quickly to attend to Ryan Newman.

1:26.2

It was a moment I never wanted to relive.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from ESPN, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of ESPN and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.