- He won the NASCAR Dash Series championship in 1983.
- Waltrip already knew he wanted to become an established racecar driver like his older brother Darrell when he was eleven years old.
- He is one of eight drivers to win two or more Daytona 500s.
- His sponsor is NAPA Auto Parts.
- His crew chief is David Hyder.
- He's had 104 Top Tens in the Busch Series and 123 Top Tens in the Nextel Cup Series.
- He began racing in the Busch Series in 1988.
- He gained a new sponsorship from Pennzoil in 1991.
- His first win in the Nextel Cup Series was the 2001 Daytona 500. His first win in the Busch Series was the 1988 Grand National 200.
- As of 2007, Michael lives in Sherrills Ford, North Carolina with his wife.
- He has run 270 races over 20 years.
- He was in a wreck with Robby Gordon, in the 2005 Sylvania 300. When interviewed about the crash, Robby gave some nasty comments about Michael, claiming that he isn't the nice guy everybody thinks he is.
- He and Jeff Green had feuded and wrecked each other on several occasions during the 2005 season.
- In 1995, he struck Lake Speed twice on national television while Speed was still strapped in his car. He was fined $10,000 for his actions.
- He is the official spokesperson for Pivotal Payments.
- In the 1990s, he punched driver Dave Marcis and was fined $500 for it.
- In April 2007, he fell asleep behind the wheel of his car which flipped over and hit a utility pole. He only suffered minor cuts. However, he was charged with reckless driving and failing to report an accident.
- He drove the #23 Hawaiian Punch car for Bahari Racing in 1986.
- He made his Cup debut in the Coca-Cola 600 driving for Dick Bahre in 1985.
- He was voted the circuit's most popular driver in 1983 and 1984.
- Michael drives the #55 car for Michael Waltrip Racing.
- Michael's favorite TV show is, or was, Friends.
- Michael was one of the first drivers to use the short-lived roof hatch on his car at a restrictor plate track. His size had made it difficult to get out quickly and had become a safety issue. He used the roof hatch at Talladega's fall race in 2003 and went on to win. He exited the car through the roof hatch as a joke.
- In 2007 Michael will be one of the first owners to field Toyota in the Nascar Nextel Cup series with his team Waltrip-Jasper Racing.
- Michael and his wife Buffy co-own Michael Waltrip Incorporated, MWI. They field the #99 Aaron's Dream Machine in the Busch Series.
- Michael won The Winston, NASCAR's All-Star race, in 1996. Michael became the first driver to win The Winston after qualifiying for it without winning a race.
- Michael proposed to his wife Buffy in Victory Lane of his Bristol win in 1993.
- Michael made a goal to weigh under 200 lbs and began running to lose the weight. He is now an avid runner and runs marathons often.
- Michael is an avid fan of the Dallas Cowboys NFL team.
- Until his 2001 Daytona 500 victory, Michael held the record of longest active streak of Cup points races without a victory at 463 races.
- Michael Waltrip won his first Busch Race at Bristol in 1993. He paid homage to Alan Kulwicki, who had died on his way to the track in a place crash, by driving in reverse around the track for his Victory Lap.
- Won the 2001 Daytona 500 for DEI. This was also the race in which his boss, Dale Earnhardt, passed away.
- Michael: I probably don't have the right kind of personality to be a racecar driver because if somebody wants over that bad I'll just let them.
