| Official Race Results | |||||||||
| Daytona 500 | Daytona International Speedway | |||||||||
| February 15, 1981 | Race 2 of 31 | |||||||||
| Average Speed: 169.624 mph | |||||||||
| Margin of Victory: 3.5 seconds | Time of Race: 02:56:52 | ||||||||
| Lead Changes: 49 | |||||||||
| Cautions: 4 for 18 laps. | |||||||||
| Fin | St | Car | Driver | Make | Sponsor | Pts / Bonus | Laps | Status | Winnings |
| 1 | 8 | #43 | Richard Petty | Buick | STP | 180/5 | 200 | Running | $90,575 |
| 2 | 1 | #28 | Bobby Allison | Pontiac | Tuf-Lon | 180/10 | 200 | Running | $84,050 |
| 3 | 5 | #88 | Ricky Rudd | Oldsmobile | Gatorade | 170/5 | 200 | Running | $53,115 |
| 4 | 6 | #1 | Buddy Baker | Oldsmobile | Uno | 165/5 | 200 | Running | $35,740 |
| 5 | 7 | #2 | Dale Earnhardt | Pontiac | Wrangler Jeans | 160/5 | 200 | Running | $37,365 |
| 6 | 16 | #9 | Bill Elliott | Ford | Mell-Gear Tuning Components | 155/5 | 199 | Running | $30,615 |
| 7 | 27 | #90 | Jody Ridley | Ford | Truxmore/Sunny King | 146/0 | 198 | Running | $29,665 |
| 8 | 29 | #27 | Cale Yarborough | Oldsmobile | Valvoline | 142/0 | 197 | Running | $20,325 |
| 9 | 34 | #75 | Joe Millikan | Buick | Rahmoc Racing | 138/0 | 197 | Running | $21,500 |
| 10 | 35 | #98 | Johnny Rutherford | Pontiac | Levi Garrett | 134/0 | 195 | Running | $17,285 |
| 11 | 21 | #57 | Bill Elswick | Oldsmobile | Performer Boats | PE | 195 | Running | $14,365 |
| 12 | 33 | #12 | Donnie Allison | Oldsmobile | 5 Racers Corp. | 127/0 | 195 | Running | $12,660 |
| 13 | 22 | #22 | Stan Barrett | Pontiac | Skoal Bandit | 124/0 | 195 | Running | $12,870 |
| 14 | 13 | #93 | Don Whittington | Oldsmobile | Smith Racing | 121/0 | 194 | Running | $11,585 |
| 15 | 15 | #71 | Dave Marcis | Oldsmobile | Buck Stove/Hudson Chev. | 118/0 | 194 | Running | $13,225 |
| 16 | 38 | #41 | Dick Brooks | Buick | Mathews Racing | PE | 193 | Running | $7,920 |
| 17 | 28 | #64 | Tommy Gale | Ford | Sunny King Ford & Honda | 112/0 | 192 | Running | $11,835 |
| 18 | 17 | #19 | Ronnie Sanders | Buick | Home Trend Realty | 109/0 | 191 | Running | $7,635 |
| 19 | 23 | #17 | Glenn Jarrett | Buick | Tuf-Lon Of Florida | 106/0 | 186 | Running | $9,830 |
| 20 | 39 | #37 | Don Sprouse | Oldsmobile | Rogers Auto Leasing | 103/0 | 181 | Running | $5,900 |
| 21 | 26 | #52 | Jimmy Means | Pontiac | Broadway Motors | 100/0 | 179 | Running | $7,425 |
| 22 | 14 | #23 | Geoffrey Bodine | Pontiac | Bahre Racing | 97/0 | 178 | Running | $5,260 |
| 23 | 31 | #47 | Harry Gant | Buick | Race Hill Farm | 94/0 | 175 | Running | $6,375 |
| 24 | 41 | #70 | J.D. McDuffie | Pontiac | Bailey Excavating | 91/0 | 169 | Running | $6,205 |
| 25 | 37 | #86 | Elliott Forbes-Robinson | Buick | Howard & Egerton Racing | 88/0 | 167 | Rear Axle Bearing | $3,835 |
| 26 | 20 | #67 | Buddy Arrington | Dodge | Hills Racing | 85/0 | 159 | Running | $10,655 |
| 27 | 32 | #68 | Lennie Pond | Buick | Burger King | 82/0 | 155 | Oil Pump | $4,600 |
| 28 | 19 | #25 | Ronnie Thomas | Pontiac | Thomas Racing | 79/0 | 151 | Clutch | $5,125 |
| 29 | 9 | #16 | David Pearson | Chevrolet | Halpern Enterprises | 81/5 | 144 | Engine Failure | $4,350 |
| 30 | 40 | #99 | Tim Richmond | Buick | Uno | 73/0 | 144 | Transmission | $4,690 |
| 31 | 4 | #15 | Benny Parsons | Ford | Melling Tool Company | 70/0 | 135 | Overheating | $13,750 |
| 32 | 11 | #42 | Kyle Petty | Buick | STP | 67/0 | 128 | Engine Failure | $3,775 |
| 33 | 3 | #21 | Neil Bonnett | Ford | Purolator | 69/5 | 123 | Clutch | $10,625 |
| 34 | 25 | #48 | James Hylton | Pontiac | Palatine Automotive | 61/0 | 123 | Piston | $4,530 |
| 35 | 10 | #51 | AJ Foyt | Oldsmobile | Gilmore/Valvoline | 58/0 | 120 | Valve Spring | $3,750 |
| 36 | 2 | #11 | Darrell Waltrip | Buick | Mountain Dew | 55/0 | 117 | Engine Failure | $20,475 |
| 37 | 42 | #24 | Cecil Gordon | Buick | Home Craft Homes | 52/0 | 116 | Running | $3,955 |
| 38 | 18 | #3 | Richard Childress | Pontiac | Wachovia Carpet | 49/0 | 110 | Broken Valve | $3,825 |
| 39 | 24 | #7 | Bruce Hill | Buick | Native Tan | 46/0 | 54 | Accident | $3,450 |
| 40 | 12 | #44 | Terry Labonte | Buick | Stratagraph/Apache Stove | 43/0 | 47 | Running | $8,775 |
| 41 | 36 | #31 | Billie Harvey | Pontiac | Graf Lear Jets | 40/0 | 45 | Engine Failure | $2,915 |
| 42 | 30 | #39 | Blackie Wangerin | Ford | Wangerin/Clements Auto | 37/0 | 17 | Accident | $2,750 |
| * Denotes Rookie | |||||||||