| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 29 in the 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1991 Daytona 500 program cover, featuring Richard Petty. | |||
| Date | February 17, 1991 | ||
| Official name | 33rd Annual Daytona 500 By STP | ||
| Location | Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona International Speedway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.0 km) | ||
| Distance | 500 laps, 400 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Average speed | 148.148 miles per hour (238.421 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 145,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Robert Yates Racing | ||
| Time | 45.929 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | |
| Laps | 51 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | CBS | ||
| Announcers | Ken Squier, David Hobbs, Ned Jarrett | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
The 1991 Daytona 500 By STP was the first stock car race of the 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 33rd iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, February 17, 1991, before an audience of 145,000 in Daytona Beach, Florida at Daytona International Speedway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) permanent triangular-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. Following a period of three late-race cautions, Morgan–McClure Motorsports driver Ernie Irvan took the lead from Dale Earnhardt with six laps left in the race. With three laps to go, Earnhardt spun and collected Davey Allison and Kyle Petty, bringing out the final caution with two laps left. Coasting to the finish on fumes, Irvan was able to take his second career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory, his first victory of the season, and his only Daytona 500 victory.[1][2][3] To fill out the top three, Junior Johnson & Associates driver Sterling Marlin and RahMoc Enterprises driver Joe Ruttman finished second and third, respectively.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (February 18, 1991). "Irvan's Victory A Gas". The Charlotte Observer. p. 25. Retrieved June 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Zeller, Bob (February 18, 1991). "Irvan's win simply smashing (Part 1)". The Roanoke Times. p. 11. Retrieved June 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Zeller, Bob (February 18, 1991). "Irvan's win simply smashing (Part 2)". The Roanoke Times. p. 14. Retrieved June 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
