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The 1961 Daytona 500, was a NASCAR Grand National Series (now Sprint Cup Series) event that was held on February 26, 1961 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Marvin Panch won the race in year old 1960 Pontiac built and owned by Smokey Yunick after taking the lead on lap 187. Panch was not originally scheduled to drive, and was only added to Yunick's team after Fireball Roberts suggested adding him. Panch drove the number 20 to victory in three hours and 20 minutes. The race was run in its entirety without a single caution flag. Panch took the lead with 13 laps remaining when race leader Fireball Roberts' car suffered a blown engine. The win was Panch's first, and only, victory of the season. == Background == Tragedy struck during the preliminaries of Daytona Speedweeks when a driver from Phoenix Arizona crashed in turn 3 of the 2.5-mile track. Harold Haberling was killed when his 1955 modified Chevy flipped in the 31 degree banking. This was the first fatality at the facility since 1959.〔 One week prior to the Daytona 500 drivers competed in a first-ever 150 mile "compact car" race. Lee Petty won the race contested on the 3.1 mile infield track in a 1960 Valiant with an average speed of 83.546 miles per hour. Joe Weatherly would flip his 1960 Falcon upside down during the race, but no other cars were involved in the accident, and Weatherly was not injured. Weatherly then went on to win a 10-lap, 25 mile event dubbed a "Race of Champions" on the 2.5 mile banked tri-oval. Drivers competed in the same cars that they would run in the Daytona 500. The race proved to be a tough loss for Fireball Roberts, who had started at the rear of the field, but managed to charge to the lead in only 4 laps. On the last lap Weatherly overtook Roberts at the finish line, winning by only 2 feet.〔 A total of 70 drivers registered to run in the 1961 Daytona 500, but only the top 60 would be scheduled to start the race.〔 A total of 13 teams came to Daytona with the new, more aerodynamically designed 1961 Pontiacs contributed by the manufacturer. Smokey Yunick brought Fireball Roberts as his primary driver for the new model vehicle, and it was Roberts who suggested that Yunick add teammate Marvin Panch. Panch was a 'last minute' addition to Yunick's team, and given the year old 1960 Pontiac rather than one of the newer models. When approached, Yunick relented to allowing Panch to drive Roberts' Pontiac Catalina from the previous year, saying: "If you think that much about ('60 Pontiac ), take it outside." (shop ), where the mechanics prepared the car for the 500.〔 During the initial 2-lap qualifying trials Fireball Roberts set a new track record of 155.700 miles per hour average speed over the 5 mile run. The second fastest average belonged to Joe Weatherly in his 1961 Pontiac, with Cotton Owens, Curtis Turner, and Marvin Panch rounding out the top 5. Roberts broke the previous track record speed of 152.129 m.p.h set by Jack Smith the previous July.〔 Roberts' effort was the first of three consecutive pole positions that he captured from 1961 through 1963. The 3 "consecutive" poles was a first, and a record which Roberts still shares with Bill Elliott (1985–87) and Ken Schrader (1988–90).〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「1961 Daytona 500」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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