Earnhardt Jr. to finish in the Top 2 spots, as both were members of his team. Waltrip was not aware of the severity of Earnhardt's crash until over 30 minutes after the end of the race when he was celebrating in victory lane. Ken Schrader, after having been treated and released from the infield care center following the crash (his car hit Earnhardt's car during the crash), informed Waltrip that Earnhardt had been taken to Halifax Medical Center, from the speedway, where Earnhardt was pronounced dead at 5:16 PM EST. Waltrip would later say in his book, and a 2019 podcast episode with Earnhardt Jr., that in the aftermath of the tragedy, he and the No. 15 team pushed forward to continue Earnhardt's legacy, "Because we knew we had to." However, his results slumped in the aftermath of the disaster, and he realized after 6 races that he was "not in a good place." By June 2001, his crew chief, Scott Eggleston, departed the team and was replaced by longtime DEI director Steve Hmiel. Waltrip did not have another Top 10 finish that season until returning to Daytona in July in the Pepsi 400, where he finished 2nd while holding off the field as teammate Earnhardt Jr. won his first plate race. Earnhardt Jr.'s Pepsi 400 finish was emotional to the entire DEI team and when Earnhardt Jr. did his burnout on the infield grass, Waltrip pulled up alongside him. Waltrip would later say to Kenny Wallace on his podcast in 2021, that the moment with Earnhardt Jr. in the infield was "even bigger than any races I've won, and I didn't even win." Waltrip would also have a second-place finish at Homestead with Bill Elliott winning and finished 24th in the standings. The next season, Waltrip won the second Gatorade Duel. His next top ten finish would be a second-place finish at Talladega, where he and Earnhardt Jr. combined to lead more than two-thirds of the race, with Earnhardt Jr. taking home his second of four straight wins at Talladega. The following week, Waltrip finished tenth at Auto Club. He had eighth-place finishes in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte and the first Pocono race, and fourth place in the first Michigan race. He picked up his second career win at the Pepsi 400 at Daytona. After a ninth-place finish at Watkins Glen, and eighth-place finishes at New Hampshire and