| Official Race Results | |||||||||
| Daytona 500 | Daytona International Speedway | |||||||||
| February 16, 1997 | Race 1 of 32 | |||||||||
| Average Speed: 148.295 mph | |||||||||
| Margin of Victory: Under caution | Time of Race: 3 hrs, 22 mins, 18 seconds | ||||||||
| Lead Changes: 12 | |||||||||
| Cautions: | |||||||||
| Fin | St | Car | Driver | Make | Sponsor | Pts / Bonus | Laps | Status | Winnings |
| 1 | 6 | #24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | DuPont | 180/5 | 200 | Running | $377,410 |
| 2 | 18 | #5 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | Kellogg's Corn Flakes | 170/0 | 200 | Running | $194,925 |
| 3 | 40 | #25 | Ricky Craven * | Chevrolet | Budweiser | 165/0 | 200 | Running | $155,625 |
| 4 | 8 | #94 | Bill Elliott | Ford | McDonald's | 165/5 | 200 | Running | $133,200 |
| 5 | 9 | #4 | Sterling Marlin | Chevrolet | Kodak Films | 160/5 | 200 | Running | $121,080 |
| 6 | 21 | #37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Ford | Kmart/RC Cola | 150/0 | 200 | Running | $100,355 |
| 7 | 11 | #6 | Mark Martin | Ford | Valvoline | 156/10 | 200 | Running | $105,515 |
| 8 | 17 | #22 | Ward Burton | Pontiac | MBNA America | 142/0 | 200 | Running | $82,390 |
| 9 | 13 | #10 | Ricky Rudd | Ford | Tide | 138/0 | 200 | Running | $88,590 |
| 10 | 22 | #17 | Darrell Waltrip | Ford | Western Auto | 134/0 | 200 | Running | $78,840 |
| 11 | 23 | #99 | Jeff Burton | Ford | Exide Batteries | 130/0 | 200 | Running | $79,040 |
| 12 | 1 | #31 | Mike Skinner * | Chevrolet | Lowe's | 132/5 | 200 | Running | $77,615 |
| 13 | 41 | #16 | Ted Musgrave | Ford | The Family Channel/PRIMESTAR | 124/0 | 200 | Running | $76,570 |
| 14 | 30 | #44 | Kyle Petty | Pontiac | Hot Wheels | 121/0 | 200 | Running | $62,080 |
| 15 | 39 | #43 | Bobby Hamilton | Pontiac | STP | 118/0 | 200 | Running | $77,415 |
| 16 | 20 | #40 | Robby Gordon * | Chevrolet | Coors Light | 115/0 | 200 | Running | $69,545 |
| 17 | 24 | #71 | Dave Marcis | Chevrolet | Team Realtree | 112/0 | 200 | Running | $61,225 |
| 18 | 37 | #11 | Brett Bodine | Ford | Close Call Phone Card | 109/0 | 200 | Running | $67,155 |
| 19 | 28 | #8 | Hut Stricklin | Ford | Circuit City | 106/0 | 200 | Running | $65,935 |
| 20 | 5 | #28 | Ernie Irvan | Ford | Texaco/Havoline | 108/5 | 200 | Running | $72,325 |
| 21 | 15 | #18 | Bobby Labonte | Pontiac | Interstate Batteries | 100/0 | 200 | Running | $69,445 |
| 22 | 36 | #81 | Kenny Wallace | Chevrolet | Square D | 97/0 | 200 | Running | $65,465 |
| 23 | 3 | #88 | Dale Jarrett | Ford | Quality Care/ Ford Credit | 94/0 | 200 | Running | $70,510 |
| 24 | 35 | #9 | Lake Speed | Ford | Melling Auto Parts | 91/0 | 199 | Running | $64,405 |
| 25 | 32 | #98 | John Andretti | Ford | RCA | 88/0 | 198 | Running | $63,325 |
| 26 | 33 | #19 | Loy Allen | Ford | Child Support Recovery International | 85/0 | 198 | Running | $55,570 |
| 27 | 38 | #73 | Joe Nemechek | Chevrolet | BellSouth | 82/0 | 196 | Accident | $52,240 |
| 28 | 16 | #30 | Johnny Benson | Pontiac | Pennzoil | 79/0 | 195 | Accident | $61,935 |
| 29 | 42 | #1 | Morgan Shepherd | Pontiac | Delco Remy America | 76/0 | 195 | Accident | $61,655 |
| 30 | 27 | #90 | Dick Trickle | Chevrolet | Heilig-Meyers | 73/0 | 195 | Accident | $53,900 |
| 31 | 4 | #3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | GM Goodwrench | 75/5 | 195 | Running | $72,945 |
| 32 | 12 | #21 | Michael Waltrip | Chevrolet | CITGO | 72/5 | 188 | Running | $57,990 |
| 33 | 10 | #33 | Ken Schrader | Chevrolet | Skoal | 64/0 | 173 | Running | $57,790 |
| 34 | 25 | #7 | Geoffrey Bodine | Chevrolet | QVC | 61/0 | 148 | Accident | $57,605 |
| 35 | 7 | #23 | Jimmy Spencer | Ford | Camel Cigarettes | 58/0 | 146 | Running | $57,300 |
| 36 | 29 | #36 | Derrike Cope | Ford | Skittles | 55/0 | 124 | Handling | $50,145 |
| 37 | 34 | #20 | Greg Sacks | Chevrolet | Hardee's | 57/0 | 120 | Accident | $50,040 |
| 38 | 31 | #77 | Bobby Hillin | Ford | Jasper Engines & Transmissions | 49/0 | 111 | Engine | $49,605 |
| 39 | 19 | #29 | Robert Pressley | Ford | Cartoon Network | 46/0 | 91 | Accident | $49,605 |
| 40 | 2 | #41 | Steve Grissom | Pontiac | Kodiak | 43/0 | 88 | Accident | $57,565 |
| 41 | 14 | #2 | Rusty Wallace | Ford | Miller Lite | 40/0 | 47 | Engine | $66,605 |
| 42 | 26 | #46 | Wally Dallenbach | Ford | First Union | 37/0 | 32 | Engine | $49,065 |
| * Denotes Rookie | |||||||||