The 2002 Pepsi 400 was the 17th stock car race of the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 44th iteration of the event.

[4] The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long.

[6] Michael Waltrip of Dale Earnhardt, Inc. would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 48.876 and an average speed of 184.139 miles per hour (296.343 km/h).

[6] Dale Jarrett of Robert Yates Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 48.598 and an average speed of 185.193 miles per hour (298.039 km/h).

[11] Kevin Harvick of Richard Childress Racing would win the pole, setting a time of 48.638 and an average speed of 185.040 miles per hour (297.793 km/h).

The second caution flew on lap 9 when Johnny Benson crashed in turn 3 after contact from Ken Schrader.

The cars involved were Dale Jarrett, Jeff Burton, Brett Bodine, Jeremy Mayfield, Mike Skinner, Bobby Labonte, Joe Nemechek, Steve Park, Matt Kenseth, Terry Labonte, Ricky Rudd, Jimmie Johnson, Geoff Bodine, and Kyle Petty.

With 4 laps to go, the 9th and final caution flew for a 3 car crash on the backstretch involving Ryan Newman, Jeff Green, and Dave Blaney.

The fans thought it could happen again and wanted NASCAR to red flag the race so they could get back going again.

Rusty Wallace, Sterling Marlin, Jimmy Spencer, and Mark Martin rounded out the top 5 while Dale Earnhardt Jr., Todd Bodine, Jimmie Johnson, Ward Burton, and Geoff Bodine rounded out the top 10.

Frustrated with NASCAR's decision, fans on the backstretch threw lawn chairs, beer bottles, and a bunch of garbage onto the racetrack after Waltrip took the checkered flag.