Dale Earnhardt was an American stock car racing driver and team owner who died on February 18, 2001, at the age of 49. He was killed instantly due to a basilar skull fracture in a final-lap collision in the 2001 Daytona 500, in which he crashed into a retaining wall after making contact with Sterling Marlin and Ken Schrader. Earnhardts death was officially pronounced at the nearby Halifax Medical Center at 5:16 p.m. EST (22:16 UTC) . His funeral was held four days later at the Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. Earnhardt was the fourth NASCAR driver killed by a basilar skull fracture during an eight-month span, following Adam Petty in May 2000, Kenny Irwin Jr. in July 2000, and Tony Roper in October 2000.

There are varying opinions on the exact cause of Earnhardts death, but ultimately it was the basilar skull fracture that killed him. NASCARs crash report, published in August 2001, stated that Earnhardts death was most likely caused by a blow to the back of the head not from one single cause but from a combination of unusual factors. These included the uncommon severity and trajectory of the cars impact with the wall, an immediately prior collision with Schraders car that put him out of position, and a separation of the left lap belt under load that allowed greater motion within the car.

Earnhardts death launched a NASCAR safety evolution that continues 20 years later. Since that day, not a single driver has died in NASCAR in an on-track incident, which was 21 years ago next month.