Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. (April 29, 1951 – February 18, 2001)

One of the best NASCAR drivers of all time, with a total of 76 races
over the course of his career, he earned 7 NASCAR Winston Cup
Championships. He died of head injuries when his car crashed 
into the outside retaining wall during the final lap of the 2001 
Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona
Beach, Florida.

Dale Earnhardt died in a last-lap crash of “the Super Bowl of NASCAR”,
the Daytona 500. Hours later, at a press conference, NASCAR President
Mike Hilton made the formal announcement to the world saying, "This is
undoubtedly one of the toughest announcements that I’ve ever personally
had to make. But…after the accident in Turn 4 at the end of the Daytona
500, we’ve lost Dale Earnhardt”.

Earnhardt had notable success in the Winston Cup Series, now called 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. Dale Earnhardt as been inducted in numerous halls of
fame, including the inaugural class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010.