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1980 - First Championship
Driving the No.2 Rod Osterlund Chevrolet, Dale took on- and started down- the biggest names in NASCAR history, and perhaps in the racing world. Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough, Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip all took whacks at the young driver sitting atop the Winston Cup point standings. Each was turned away. Dale assumed the points lead with a fourth-place finish in the season's second race at Daytona and never relinquished his advantage. For nin month, he maintained s sometimes-tenuous lead. After the May race at Talladega, Dale held a plush 148-point lead over Cale Yarborough. By the
June Michigan race, Petty had trimmed the edge to a mere 13 points. By
August, Dale Earnhardt rebuilt his lead
to 150 points over Cale Y., only to see his cushion deflate to 23 points
two races
The turning point- and another indication of his steely determination- came when Dale won back-to-back fall races at Martinsville and Charlotte. Those wins opened the lead back to 115 points and enabled Dale to hold off a furious comeback attempt by Cale Yarborough. At season's end, Dale won by 19 points, the fifth-closest points race in Winston Cup history. In addition to winning the title, Dale began developing his prowess on short tracks, with wins at Bristol, Nashville and Martinsville, and on high-banked speedways, winning at Atlanta and Charlotte.
He was the first and only driver to accomplish winning Rookie of the Year and a championship in succesive years.
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Though
he arrieved on the scene with a winning reputation and then exceeded
expectations with a tremendously succesful rookie season, nothing
prepared the NACSAR world for Dale Earnhardt's championship run in 1980.
In just his second full season, the 29-year-old driver constructed a
dominant season that saw him lead the championship points battle for all
but one race. In NASCAR history, since the circuit matured in the
mid-1950s, no driver has won a championship title as quickly as Dale
Earnhardt.
later.