Dale Earnhardt finally won the Daytona 500 in 1998. All photos from wikipedia.com

One of NASCAR’s greatest Champions, Dale Earnhardt Sr., seemed to be snake-bit when it came to winning the series’ opening race at Daytona.

Earnhardt was only a rookie and far from intimidating anyone in his first start at Daytona in 1979. He did finish 8th, but people were talking more about the post-race fight between the Allison brothers and Cale Yarborough than the newcomer.

His second and third attempts at the great race, also for Rod Osterlund Racing, were equally impressive by finishing in the top five both years. It seemed like Earnhardt would notch his Daytona 500 win in short order.

Joining Bud Moore Engineering in 1982, Earnhardt drove Fords for the next two years at Daytona. Finishing 36th and 35th respectively, his luck at Daytona had changed for the worse. Having driven a Buick, an Oldsmobile, a Pontiac and two Fords in the Daytona 500, Earnhardt finally joined the Chevrolet team of Richard Childress in 1984.

Earnhardt appeared to be back on track in ’84 as he made a late move in the race to pass Darrell Waltrip for second place. After a few up and down years at Daytona with Childress, Earnhardt started to notch a string of top fives together.

The 1990 Daytona 500 finish is the stuff that legends are made of. Earnhardt dominated the race, leading three-quarters of the laps. On the last lap, Earnhardt ran over a piece of metal bell housing from Rick Wilson’s car after it had blown an engine. The piece of metal had tumbled to a stop on the backstretch it and shredded the right rear tire. Derrike Cope drove by Earnhardt to his first ever Winston Cup victory.

1993 seemed to be the year that Earnhardt would win the elusive title of Daytona 500 winner. Leading at the white flag, Dale Jarrett managed to get under Earnhardt at the tri-oval and take the lead and the win as his father Ned Jarrett called the end of the race.Earnhadt scored a top ten finish the following year and everyone knew that his number would come up soon.

Sterling Marlin passed Earnhardt with 20 laps to go in the 1995 running of the race. When Bobby Labonte crashed with 15 laps left, Earnhardt came in for four new tires. On the restart, Earnhardt quickly entered the top ten moving past Ricky Rudd for 9th with 10 laps to go. Moving through the field quickly, it looked as if Earnhardt would finally get his win as he passed Mark Martin with four laps left. Earnhardt had driven so hard to get back to the front that his tires were no better than the leaders at that point and Marlin cruised home for the win leaving Earnhardt with another second place finish at Daytona.

Although he had other sponsors during his career, his No. 3 is associated in fans’ minds with his last sponsor, GM Goodwrench.

Finishing a solid second in 1996 with a devastating 31st place finish in 1997 after rolling his car in a crash, Earnhardt appeared to be the best driver to never have won NASCAR’s biggest race.

Finally in 1998, on NASCAR’s 50th Anniversary Celebration, Earnhardt was battling Bobby Laborite and Jeremy Mayfield for the lead. With one-and-a-half laps left, the three racers came up on the lapped car of Rick Mast. Earnhardt easily passed Mast on the outside while Mayfield sped to the inside of Mast. Earnhardt led as a crash ensued behind the lead pack of cars. Earnhardt took the white and yellow flags in first as the race would end under the caution flag.