Davey Allison
Encyclopedia
David Carl "Davey" Allison (25 February 1961 – 13 July 1993) was a NASCAR
driver. He was best known for driving the #28 Texaco
-Havoline
Ford for Robert Yates Racing in the Winston Cup Series. Born in Hollywood, Florida
, he was the eldest of four children born to Bobby Allison
and wife Judy. The family moved to Hueytown, Alabama
and along with Bobby's brother Donnie Allison
, family friend Red Farmer
, and Neil Bonnett
, became known in racing circles as the Alabama Gang
.
and notched his first win in just his sixth start. He became a regular winner at BIR and by 1983, was racing in the Automobile Racing Club of America
(ARCA) series. Davey won both ARCA events at his "home track", Talladega Superspeedway
in 1983, and was named ARCA Rookie of the Year in 1984, placing second in the series title. That same year, he married his first wife, Deborah.
Davey continued racing in the ARCA series in 1985 and eventually notched eight wins in the series, four at Talladega Superspeedway
. He also began competing in some of NASCAR
's lower divisions and in July 1985, car owner Hoss Ellington
gave him his first chance to drive a Winston Cup car in the Talladega 500. Davey qualified Ellington's Chevrolet
22nd and finished 10th in his first Winston Cup start. This impressive showing earned Davey more Winston Cup opportunities in 1986 where he would sub for injured friend and fellow Alabama Gang
member Neil Bonnett
in Junior Johnson
's #12 Budweiser
Chevy.
in the Ranier-Lundy #28 Ford Thunderbird
. Yarborough was leaving the Ranier-Lundy team to start his own operation along with the team's sponsor, Hardee's
. Ranier negotiated a sponsorship deal with Texaco
's Havoline
motor oil brand, a deal that was signed during the NASCAR
edition of Speedweeks
at Daytona International Speedway
. On qualifying day, Davey signalled that he was in Winston Cup to stay when he qualified an unmarked, but Texaco-Havoline painted #28 Thunderbird second for the 1987 Daytona 500
, becoming the first rookie ever to start on the front row for NASCAR
's most prestigious event. A pit miscue which allowed a rear tire to fall off on the track ended his hopes of a good finish in the race, but success for Davey Allison would be just around the corner.
May 3, 1987 would become an infamous day in NASCAR
history. Earlier in the week, Bill Elliott
had qualified his #9 Coors
-Melling
Ford Thunderbird at a record 212.809 mph (a record which still stands today) for the Winston 500
at the unlighted Talladega Superspeedway
. Davey Allison would qualify third, while father Bobby would start second alongside Elliott in the Stavola Brothers #22 Miller
Buick
. On lap 22 of the event, Bobby Allison
ran over a piece of debris, cutting his right-rear tire. The car turned sideways, lifted into the air, became airboirne, and crashed vertically into the frontstretch spectator fence near the start finish line. The car landed back on the track and collected a number of other competitors. Davey was ahead of his father at the time and saw the crash unfold in his mirror. Bobby Allison
was not injured, but the crash slightly injured several spectators and the race was red-flagged for two hours and thirty-eight minutes. It was this event that triggered the requirement of smaller carburetor
s, and later, carburetor restrictor plate
s on engines at Daytona and Talladega to reduce the top speeds.
When the race resumed, Davey continued to run up front and when Elliott exited the race with engine failure, Davey's toughest competition was eliminated. With darkness falling on the Talladega Superspeedway
during a late caution flag, the decision was made to end the race 10 laps short of its 188 lap distance. Running second on the restart, Davey passed leader Dale Earnhardt
on the backstretch and pulled away for his first Winston Cup win. In winning the race, Davey became the first rookie since Ron Bouchard in 1981 to win a Winston Cup event.
Davey would better that feat just 28 days later by winning the Budweiser
500 at Dover International Speedway
(then the Dover Downs International Speedway), becoming, at the time, the only rookie to win two Winston Cup events. In all, Davey started 22 of the 29 Winston Cup races in 1987, winning twice, and scoring nine top-five and 10 top-ten finishes. He also won five poles in his rookie season.
The 1988 season started with much promise. Davey again started outside the front row for the Daytona 500
, the first modern day race utilizing the NASCAR
mandated carburetor restrictor plate
. While father Bobby was battling up front early in the race, Davey and his team struggled with a car that was repaired during the early morning hours following a crash in the final practice session. But as the race came to a conclusion, Davey found himself running second, just behind his legendary father. Bobby Allison
would go on to hold off his son and win his third Daytona 500
. Father and son would celebrate their one-and-two finish in victory lane. Both would consider this the greatest moment of their lives.
But Davey would struggle through much of the first half of the 1988 season as he ran some of the Winston Cup short tracks for the first time. The team was also suffering from engine failures and now sole-owner Harry Ranier was looking to sell the team. Crew chief Joey Knuckles was fired and engine builder Robert Yates
replaced him. Then on June 19, at Pocono International Raceway came his father's near fatal, career ending crash at Pocono.
With his father clinging to life in a Pennsylvania
hospital, Davey Allison raced on but failed to finish the next three events. The team rebounded when the series returned to Pocono in July with Davey scoring a third place finish. Back at Talladega, the #28 Ford again suffered engine failure but Davey would drive his father's car later in the race when relief driver Mike Alexander
was overcome by heat. Two races later, Davey would score his first win of the season at Michigan International Speedway
. The win changed the fortunes for the financially strapped team and after a series of top-5 and top-10 finishes, Davey would win the inaugural race at the new Richmond International Raceway
. During the month of October, Robert Yates bought the #28 team from Harry Ranier. The rest of the season was a mixed bag but Davey would finish the season with a third place finish at Phoenix International Raceway
, and a second at the season ending Atlanta Journal 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
. He would finish eighth in the final Winston Cup standings. But the roller coaster 1988 Winston Cup season had taken a toll on Davey Allison's marriage and he and Deborah quietly divorced during the offseason.
Davey Allison also received the key to the city of talladega by then mayor Larry Barton.Larry
Barton was arrested for stealing from the city.But nearly 28 years later in 2011 Baton was elected mayor .
finish, Davey started a disappointing 16th, then was involved in an early incident with Geoff Bodine
that sent his car careening into the sand bar separating the track's backstretch from Lake Lloyd. The car made one slow, complete, roll-over with Davey eventually restarting the car and driving it back to the pits. He drove the damaged, hood-less car to a 25th place finish and had a heated exchange with Bodine following the race (the first of several exchanges with other drivers during his career).
The team rebounded at Rockingham and when the series moved to Talladega in May for the Winston 500
, Davey had scored one top-10 and three top-5 finishes. Davey started on the pole at Talladega and got his first win of 1989, his second victory in Talladega's spring event. After the race, Davey stood sixth in the Winston Cup Championship standings, but did not win again until the next restrictor plate
race, the Pepsi 400 at Daytona, his last win of the season. By the end of the season, Davey had collected seven top-five and 13 top-ten finishes along with one pole position to go with the two wins. He slipped to 11th in the final Winston Cup standings, a disappointment over the previous season. However, Davey would marry his second wife, Liz, during the season, and their first child, Krista, was born prior to the 1990 season.
The 1990 season did not start much better than the 1989 season and by the sixth race at Bristol, Davey was a disappointing 17th in the Winston Cup standings. A poor qualifying run had the team pitting in the backstretch pits, which usually doomed a team's chances of winning the race. But Robert Yates decided against pitting on the final caution flag and Davey scored his second short-track win in a thrilling photo-finish with Mark Martin
. But the win did not change the team's fortunes and after an ill-handling car at Dover required Davey to ask for relief from fellow Alabama driver Hut Stricklin
, Robert Yates decided to hire "Suitcase" Jake Elder
as the team's crew chief. Davey won the fall event at Lowe's Motor Speedway
(then Charlotte Motor Speedway) but finished the season 13th in the final Winston Cup standings. He again posted two wins, but only five top-five and 10 top-ten finishes.
and was in contention for the win until the final laps. After a late race restart, eventual winner Ernie Irvan
passed Dale Earnhardt
for the lead. Davey tried to follow Irvan around Earnhardt but could not make the pass and the two drivers battled side-by-side for a few laps. As the cars came off turn two, Earnhardt's car spun, collecting Allison and Kyle Petty
. Davey was unable to continue and finished a disappointing 15th. From there, things went downhill. Davey finished 12th at Richmond, 16th at Rockingham, then crashed hard early in the Motorcraft 500 at Atlanta, finishing 40th. Davey was openly feuding with crew chief Elder and, after the crash at Atlanta, Robert Yates decided to make a change.
Elder was fired, and Larry McReynolds
was hired away from the Kenny Bernstein
team to replace him. In his first race with McReynolds at the helm, Davey finished second at Darlington. A third place finish followed at Bristol, then a sixth at North Wilkesboro and an eighth at Martinsville. The team finished 22nd at Talladega due to a large accident triggered by Ernie Irvan
but there was no doubt the team had improved and was destined for bigger things.
Two weeks later, Davey dominated The Winston all-star race at Charlotte, and continued his domination by winning the Coca-Cola 600
the following week, leading 263 of the race's 400 laps. Two races later, Davey won his first road course event at then Sears Point International Raceway in a controversial finish with Ricky Rudd
. He won again at Michigan then finished third in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona. At the halfway point of the 1991 season, Davey had climbed to fifth in the Winston Cup point standings.
After finishing 14th at Pocono, the series moved to Talladega. As the race wound down, Davey Allison was poised for yet another win behind leader Dale Earnhardt
. But Davey was unable to get drafting
help from fellow Ford Motor Company
drivers and he slipped to ninth place after attempting to pass Earnhardt for the lead. In a fit of rage after the race, Allison punched a wall in the team's transporter, breaking his wrist. The injury failed to slow him down, however as he finished a remarkable 10th on the road course at Watkins Glen
, then was second at Michigan, a photo-finish in which Dale Jarrett
scored his first Winston Cup victory. Davey scored back-to-back victories at Rockingham and Phoenix and entered the final race at Atlanta second in the Winston Cup standings. But a dead battery in that race relegated him to a 17th place finish, dropping him to third in the final standings, only four points behind Ricky Rudd
. Dale Earnhardt
won the championship. The final tally of the 1991 season for Davey Allison; five wins, 12 top-five and 16 top-ten finishes, and three pole positions. It was also during the 1991 season that Davey and Liz welcomed their second child, a son, Robert Grey Allison.
With Larry McReynolds at the helm, Davey Allison entered the 1992 season as a legitimate championship contender.
but was probably not quite as fast as the Junior Johnson
teammates of Bill Elliott
and Sterling Marlin
. But the race would change dramatically on lap 92 when Elliott, Marlin, and Ernie Irvan
triggered a multi-car crash at the front of the pack. Fourteen cars were eliminated, but Allison—and eventual runner-up Morgan Shepherd
—somehow made it through the mess. He would lead 127 laps to join his father as a Daytona 500
winner.
Bill Elliott
would rebound to win the next four events, but Allison was not far behind in either event, posting four top-five finishes to maintain his lead in the points. A hard crash at Bristol left him with a bruised shoulder, but the following weekend he won at North Wilkesboro. Another hard crash at Martinsville left him with broken ribs, but Allison rebounded yet again, leading a contingent of Fords
to victory in the Winston 500
at Talladega, his third win in that race. The win also put him in position to win the Winston Million
if he could finish off the "small slam" with a win either the Coca-Cola 600
at Charlotte, or the Southern 500
at Darlington.
Next up was The Winston all-star race. One year removed from his domination of that event and the Coca-Cola 600
, Davey was ready to take the spotlight again. But this time around, there was more focus on the event itself. Over the winter, the Musco Lighting
company had installed a state-of-the-art lighting system at then Charlotte Motor Speedway. Billed as "One Hot Night" by The Nashville Network
, which was to broadcast the event, The Winston was the first superspeedway race to be held under the lights. Davey would drive the same car that he used to dominate the event one year earlier, affectionately known as "007".
In the final, 10-lap segment of the race, Dale Earnhardt
led, followed by Kyle Petty
and Davey. In the third turn on the final lap, Petty nudged Earnhardt's car and the GM Goodwrench
Chevrolet
spun. Davey took advantage of the contact and jumped into the lead. But Petty charged back and as Davey crossed the start-finish line to win the race, the two cars came together, sending the driver's side of Davey's car hard into the outside wall in a shower of sparks. An unconscious Allison was taken from his car and airlifted to a Charlotte hospital. The crash left him with a concussion, bruised lung, and a battered and bruised body. His car, "007", was totaled. Allison would later say to have sustained an out-of-body experience
after the crash. He claimed to have awoke to see his crashed car below him as he rose away from it, and to have turned his attention away from the frantic work of the emergency workers to a bright light above, which faded and left him in darkness until he awoke later in the hospital. McReynolds stated during the FOX telecasts that the first words from Allison when he awoke in the hospital were "did we win"? McReynolds told Allison "Yes Davey we won". Victory celebrations went on even though the driver was not present and all crew members later went to the hospital to be with their driver.
The wreck did not deter Allison. He finished fourth in the Coca-Cola 600
the following week despite the injuries and maintained his points lead. He then finished 11th at Dover, 28th at Sears Point, and fifth at Pocono. Still hanging onto the points lead and his body healing, Davey won the pole and dominated the Miller Genuine Draft 400
at Michigan, leading 158 of the race's 200 laps. The first half of the season ended with Davey posting a 10th place finish in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona. At the halfway point of the season, Allison had a 46 point lead over second place Bill Elliott
and a 134 point lead over third place Alan Kulwicki
, and had held the points lead since the first race of the season, despite the injuries and setbacks.
That would all change as the series went back to Pocono. Davey won the pole for the event and led 115 of the first 149 laps. But a lengthy pit stop during a caution flag sent him to the middle of the pack. On lap 150, Allison was charging back through the pack, followed closely by Darrell Waltrip
. The two cars made contact and Davey went sliding into the grass off Pocono's "tunnel turn". The car went airborne and began a series of violent flips before landing on top of an infield guardrail. Miraculously, Davey survived the crash. He was airlifted to the hospital with a severe concussion, along with a broken arm, wrist, and collar bone. His 33rd place finish left him nine points behind Bill Elliott
for the series title, but that seemed insignificant at the moment. Especially traumatizing was the fact that Pocono was the site of Davey's father Bobby's career-ending crash a few years earlier (see above). In fact, many worried fans wondered if the younger Allison's career was over.
Davey arrived at Talladega the following week wearing dark shades to hide eyes severely bruised in the Pocono crash. His arm was in a cast that allowed him to drive, and velcro attachments to his glove and the car's shifter knob helped him drive with less exertion, but Bobby Hillin, Jr.
would relieve Davey after the initial laps of the DieHard 500
. Under NASCAR rules, the driver who takes the green flag is the one assigned to the points for all drivers that drive that car during the race. Hillin drove the #28 Texaco-Havoline Ford Thunderbird
to a third place finish at Talladega, helping Davey and the team keep pace with Elliott. The team was a strong contender for the win until suffering a jack failure on a pit stop. The following week, veteran road racer Dorsey Schroeder
would relieve Allison, but he could only manage a 20th place finish.
With his body healed enough to allow him to drive an entire race, Davey headed to Michigan where he had dominated the track's earlier event. But tragedy struck as the Michigan events began. While practicing for the weekend's Busch Series race
, Davey's younger brother, Clifford crashed hard in the third and fourth turns of Michigan International Speedway
. He would die en route to the hospital. Heartbroken, Davey drove to a fifth place finish in the Champion Spark Plug 400, then went home to Hueytown for Clifford's funeral. The following weekend, Davey crashed again at Bristol, finishing 30th. Though still in second place in the Winston Cup standings, he now trailed leader Bill Elliott
by 109 points.
Davey's chance to win the Winston Million
was up next as the series headed to Darlington for the Mountain Dew Southern 500, which was worth both a million dollar bonus if he could win the Small Slam, but moreover, become the fourth driver to win the Career Grand Slam. There was a promotion for the event as fake Million Dollar Bills were printed with Allison's face on them were handed out for fans. Davey led 72 laps of the event and was in contention to win, but soon after the leaders pitted for tires and fuel, rain halted the race with 69 laps left. Instead it was Darrell Waltrip
, gambling that the rains would come, did not pit and was leading the race when it was red flagged. He was declared the winner as darkness fell and the rains continued. Waltrip, who had long feuded with the entire Allison clan (Bobby and Donnie; ironically, Waltrip had replaced Donnie Allison with the DiGard team in 1975 and was a relief driver for one of Donnie's wins at Talladega), sat next to his car on pit road in lawn chair and held a colorful umbrella, gleefully joking that the rain shower was worth "one million dollars" to him as he became the fourth driver to finish a Career Grand Slam. (This was the second time Waltrip prevented a driver from clinching a Small Slam; in 1985, he stopped Bill Elliott's 1985 run at a Small Slam at Charlotte and Elliott has yet to win that leg of the Grand Slam; Elliott would take the Small Slam at Darlington in September; Dale Earnhardt
stopped Waltrip's Small Slam and Career Grand Slam attempt three years previously at Darlington.) Davey finished fifth and was now 119 points behind Elliott, who finished third.
Allison and Elliott continued their drive for the championship after Darlington as the two kept pace with each other. But beginning with the Goody's 500
at Martinsville on September 28, Elliott's hold on the points lead began to slip. He finished 30th in that event while Allison finished 16th. Then at North Wilkesboro, Allison posted an 11th place finish, while Elliott finished 26th. Back at Charlotte, Allison finished a disappointing 19th, but Elliott finished 30th and there were now four drivers within 100 points of Elliott...Allison, Alan Kulwicki, Mark Martin, and Harry Gant. Martin and Kulwicki finished first and second respectively at Charlotte, and Kulwicki was continuing a late season charge. Three races prior to Charlotte, Kulwicki had crashed and finished 34th at Dover leaving him 278 points behind Elliott and in fourth place in the standings.
Elliott's skid stopped temporarily at Rockingham where he finished fourth. Davey finished 10th and Kulwicki 12th and entering the final two races of the 1992 season, Davey was 70 points behind Elliott in second, with Kulwicki 85 points behind in third. But Davey's fortunes changed dramatically at Phoenix as he won the event, and Elliott finished 31st. Davey now had the points lead for the first time since his violent Pocono crash, and was 30 points ahead of Kulwicki, and 40 ahead of Elliott, who had slipped to third in the standings. Also in contention to win the championship as the series moved to the final race at Atlanta were Harry Gant (fourth place, 97 points behind), Kyle Petty (fifth place, 98 points behind), and Mark Martin (sixth place, 113 points behind).
The 1992 Hooters 500
would be a milestone race in NASCAR
Winston Cup history. It would be the final race of Richard Petty
's career, as well as the first for future Winston Cup Champion Jeff Gordon
. Couple that with the closest championship race in history, and the race was destined to be a classic. Davey Allison entered the race needing only to finish fifth or better to win the Winston Cup. A first lap incident involving Rick Mast
caused minor damage to Davey's car, and he battled through much of the race to stay in the top ten. Meanwhile, Elliott and Kulwicki were staging a battle for the ages, battling for and swapping the lead through much of the event. Late in the race, Davey had finally managed to reach the top five and was in position to win the championship when Ernie Irvan
lost control of his car on the frontstretch on lap 286. Davey could not avoid Irvan's spinning car and plowed into the #4 Kodak Chevrolet Lumina
. Allison's tumultuous 1992 season was over, his championship hopes lost as Elliott and Kulwicki finished first and second in the race respectively. Kulwicki, an independent driver who had turned down offers to drive for other teams, including Junior Johnson
, won the championship by leading one more lap than Elliott (103 to 102). Davey was noted for his gracious concession of defeat after emerging from a medical evaluation, and his refusal to blame or criticize Irvan.
The next race at Atlanta was delayed a week by a blizzard that blanketed much of the Southeast. Morgan Shepherd
won the race and Davey finished 13th. He then posted an 11th at Darlington. Despite the early season struggles, Davey was sixth in the Winston Cup standings, while defending series champ Kulwicki was ninth.
Davey Allison had debuted in the International Race of Champions
(IROC) in 1992, but his injuries forced him to miss the last two races. 1993 was shaping up to be a far better year for Davey, with a second place at Daytona and a victory at Darlington, giving him a large points lead.
Three days after Kulwicki's death in an airplane crash, Davey Allison finished fifth in an emotional race at Bristol. He followed that finish with a fourth at North Wilkesboro, second at Martinsville, seventh at Talladega, and 15th at Sears Point. He finished a disappointing 30th in the Coca-Cola 600
at Charlotte, but rebounded at Dover, finishing third. He was sixth at Pocono, but finished 35th at Michigan and 31st at Daytona. Halfway through the 1993 season, Davey was fifth in the point standings, but was 323 points behind leader Dale Earnhardt
. Still, Davey and the Robert Yates team were confident that they could put their early season struggles and inconsistency behind them and could make a run for the championship in the second half. The inaugural race at New Hampshire International Speedway
proved the team's optimism was not unfounded. Davey led 38 laps of the event and finished third behind Rusty Wallace
and Mark Martin
.
to watch family friend Neil Bonnett
and his son David test a car for David's Busch Series
debut. He picked up another family friend, legendary racer Red Farmer
, en route to the track. Allison was attempting to land the helicopter inside a fenced-in area of the track infield when the craft nosed up suddenly, then crashed. The National Transportation Safety Board
blamed the crash on Allison's inexperience in helicopters, coupled with the decision to attempt a downwind landing. Neil Bonnett
was able to free a semi-conscious Red Farmer
from the wreckage, but could not reach Allison. Paramedics arrived and freed Allison, who was alive but had suffered serious head injuries. He died the next morning, July 13, 1993, at Carraway Methodist Medical Center. Thousands packed the auditorium at St. Aloysious Church in Bessemer, Alabama
to pay their respects at his funeral. He is buried near his brother, Clifford in Bessemer's Highland Memorial Gardens.
After the final race of the season, series champion Dale Earnhardt
and race winner Wallace drove a side by side Polish Victory Lap carrying flags for fallen drivers Alan Kulwicki
and Allison.
In his short NASCAR
Winston Cup career, Davey Allison posted 19 wins, 66 top-five and 92 top-ten finishes. He also won 14 poles and earned $6,724,174. He is survived by his wife, Liz, and two children, daughter Krista Marie, and son Robert Grey.
put the throwback Battlestar on the pole. Later, Texaco would often use the throwback paint scheme for their drivers at the track until they discontinued sponsorship.
The R. K. Allen Oil Company, the Talladega-based distributor for Texaco in the area, remembered the legacy of Allison with the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame in the city of Talladega, where fans vote drivers, past and present, to a specially themed "hall of fame" for drivers. The induction ceremony takes place at the AMP Energy 500 weekend.
NOTES:
1. The Walk of Fame induction was moved from July to October in 1997, and was in September in 2003.
2. Hamilton was voted by fans to the Walk of Fame in 2000; the Board of Directors did not want the retiring Waltrip, whose 84 wins was the most driver who started his career after 1972 (when the schedule was reduced to the current format) to be inducted as an inactive driver, so he was automatically inducted by the board. It should be known Waltrip was very unpopular at Talladega in his prime for his feuds with all three Allisons, starting when he replaced Donnie in the DiGard racing car in 1975; ironically, it was Waltrip who was a relief driver driving when Donnie won the 1977 Talladega 500
.
3. The Board of Directors of the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame inducted the inaugural class by decree in 1994.
series championship at the time of his death, with one race remaining in the four race series. Terry Labonte
drove the final race in place of Allison and secured the championship for him. Allison's championship money, $175,000, was set up as a trust fund for his children.
Davey Allison finished 31st in the final 1993 NASCAR Championship Standings.
Racing Champions ran diecast cars of Davey Allison as a tribute after his death which were cars Allison drove during his career. Allison's replacement, Ernie Irvan appeared as a promotional diecast 28 car to pay tribute to the team's win at Martinsville. Only 20,000 of them were released.
Davey Allison was posthumously inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame
in 1998.
In a foreshadowing of NASCAR's rise to prominence ten years later, Davey was a figure in a mildly scandalous controversy as his widow became involved with country music star Joe Diffie
shortly after Davey's death. Tabloid television programs and newspapers gave much coverage to the story at the time, with some claiming that the two had been lovers before Davey's death. Liz has openly discussed her relationship with Diffie, most recently on the Paul Finebaum Radio Network during the week of the 2006 race at Talladega. Liz expressed some regret over the relationship and mentioned that she and Diffie were band-aids for each other, and band aids were not meant to be permanent.
Liz Allison and their two children moved to Nashville and she married physical therapist Ryan Hackett on May 13, 2000. After being divorced for four years, Bobby and Judy Allison reunited at the wedding, after nearly seven years of tragedy had separated them.
In 2003, on April 28, the mayor of Hueytown, Alabama declared it Davey Allison Day and is celebrated on the weekend of the springtime Talladega race.
The driver that replaced Davey Allison at Talladega was Robby Gordon
, but he lost control of the Texaco/Havoline Ford early in the race and crashed then Lake Speed took over the ride after that. Ernie Irvan
, the man that won the race on the weekend of Allison's death would later take over the ride at the Mountain Dew Southern 500 and won the Goody's 500 at Martinsville Speedway and it was a heartwarming time for Irvan's crew as it marked their first time back to victory lane since Allison's death. Irvan would also win the Slick 50 500 at Lowe's Motorspeedway as well. Racing Champions ran the #28 Havoline Ford with Ernie Irvan replacing Allison as the driver in tribute of the win and in addition ran #28 Cars that were driven by Allison as a tribute.
A portrait of Davey Allison had been placed at the headquarters of Texaco
before the firm was purchased by Chevron.
Allison also had his own brand of chili
by Bunker Hill with his face on the can. Allison also had a comic book
printed about him during his racing days.
Son Robert has pursued a successful racing career in an on-again, off-again fashion, but is frequently "parked" by his mother for fears of his safety and health. Meanwhile, Liz is active in the racing community as an author, radio host for WGFX
with Bobby Hamilton, Jr.
, and is a track announcer at Nashville Superspeedway
. The Hacketts have also have a daughter, Bella.
Allison's crew chief, Larry McReynolds
honours his driver with #28 used in the golf cart transporting him in commercials run for Subway on TNT
during the Coke Zero 400
for "Wide Open Coverage" and also on his son Brandon's late model in UARA racing.
A road called "Allison-Bonnett Memorial Drive" in his hometown is honored by him, along with fellow native Neil Bonnett
, who died a year after Davey.
In the videogames NASCAR 99
and NASCAR 2000
, he appears as an unlockable NASCAR Legend with his Texaco Ford that he drove from 1987–1989.
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
driver. He was best known for driving the #28 Texaco
Texaco
Texaco is the name of an American oil retail brand. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owns the Havoline motor oil brand....
-Havoline
Havoline
Havoline is a motor oil brand of Texaco, a former major oil company based in the United States that is now merged with the Chevron Corporation.-History:First introduced 1904, the Havoline brand was named by Havemeyer Oil Company of New York....
Ford for Robert Yates Racing in the Winston Cup Series. Born in Hollywood, Florida
Hollywood, Florida
-Demographics:As of 2000, there were 59,673 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.5% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.2% were non-families. 34.4% of all households were made up of...
, he was the eldest of four children born to Bobby Allison
Bobby Allison
Robert Arthur Allison is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver and was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers. His two sons, Clifford Allison and Davey Allison followed him into racing, and both died within a year of each other....
and wife Judy. The family moved to Hueytown, Alabama
Hueytown, Alabama
Hueytown is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 16,105.It was the home of the legendary NASCAR Alabama Gang...
and along with Bobby's brother Donnie Allison
Donnie Allison
Dunkiny "Donnie" Allison is a former driver on the NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup circuit, who won ten times during his racing career, which spanned the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s. He was part of the "Alabama Gang," and is the brother of 1983 champion Bobby Allison and uncle of Davey Allison...
, family friend Red Farmer
Red Farmer
Charles "Red" Farmer is a former NASCAR racecar driver.-Racing career:His first race was at Opa-locka Speedway near Miami, Florida in a 1934 Ford in 1948. He became famous as a member of the Alabama Gang and he considered his hometown to be Hueytown, Alabama...
, and Neil Bonnett
Neil Bonnett
Lawrence Neil Bonnett was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. The Alabama native currently ranks 35th in all-time NASCAR Cup victories. He appeared in the 1983 film Stroker Ace and the 1990 film Days of Thunder...
, became known in racing circles as the Alabama Gang
Alabama Gang
The Alabama Gang was the nickname for a group of NASCAR drivers who set up shop and operated out of Hueytown, Alabama, near Birmingham, Alabama. In the late 1950s, young auto racer Bobby Allison left Miami, Florida, looking for an area that had more opportunities to race. He discovered central...
.
Early career
Growing up, Davey participated in athletics, preferring football, but was destined, like many children of racers, to become a racer himself. He began working for his father's Winston Cup team after graduating high school, and would work after-hours on his own race car, a Chevy Nova built by Davey and a group of his friends affectionately known as the "Peach Fuzz Gang". He began his career in 1979 at Birmingham International RacewayBirmingham International Raceway
Birmingham International Raceway, was a 5/8-mile oval paved racetrack located at the Alabama State Fairgrounds in the Five Points West neighborhood of Birmingham, Alabama...
and notched his first win in just his sixth start. He became a regular winner at BIR and by 1983, was racing in the Automobile Racing Club of America
Automobile Racing Club of America
Automobile Racing Club of America is an auto racing sanctioning body in the United States, founded in 1953 by John Marcum. The current president of ARCA is Ron Drager. The ARCA RE/MAX Series races stock cars similar to those seen in past years in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and indeed most cars...
(ARCA) series. Davey won both ARCA events at his "home track", Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
in 1983, and was named ARCA Rookie of the Year in 1984, placing second in the series title. That same year, he married his first wife, Deborah.
Davey continued racing in the ARCA series in 1985 and eventually notched eight wins in the series, four at Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
. He also began competing in some of NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
's lower divisions and in July 1985, car owner Hoss Ellington
Hoss Ellington
Hoss Ellington is a retired NASCAR driver and team owner. He made 31 starts as a driver between 1968 and 1970 in the Grand National ., finishing in the top 10 four times, all in 1969. He later became a successful team owner, with five wins, four of them by Donnie Allison and the other one by David...
gave him his first chance to drive a Winston Cup car in the Talladega 500. Davey qualified Ellington's Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
22nd and finished 10th in his first Winston Cup start. This impressive showing earned Davey more Winston Cup opportunities in 1986 where he would sub for injured friend and fellow Alabama Gang
Alabama Gang
The Alabama Gang was the nickname for a group of NASCAR drivers who set up shop and operated out of Hueytown, Alabama, near Birmingham, Alabama. In the late 1950s, young auto racer Bobby Allison left Miami, Florida, looking for an area that had more opportunities to race. He discovered central...
member Neil Bonnett
Neil Bonnett
Lawrence Neil Bonnett was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. The Alabama native currently ranks 35th in all-time NASCAR Cup victories. He appeared in the 1983 film Stroker Ace and the 1990 film Days of Thunder...
in Junior Johnson
Junior Johnson
Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr. , better known as Junior Johnson, is a retired moonshiner in the rural South who became one of the early superstars of NASCAR in the 1950s and 1960s. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966...
's #12 Budweiser
Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch)
Budweiser is a 5.0% abv American-style lager introduced in 1876 by Adolphus Busch and one of the highest selling beers in the United States. It is made with up to 30% rice in addition to hops and barley malt. Budweiser is produced in various breweries located around the world...
Chevy.
Early Winston Cup career
Prior to the 1987 season, car owner Harry Ranier tapped Davey to replace veteran driver Cale YarboroughCale Yarborough
William Caleb "Cale" Yarborough , is a farmer, businessman and former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and owner. He is one of only two drivers in NASCAR history to win three consecutive championships...
in the Ranier-Lundy #28 Ford Thunderbird
Ford Thunderbird
The Thunderbird , is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company in the United States over eleven model generations from 1955 through 2005...
. Yarborough was leaving the Ranier-Lundy team to start his own operation along with the team's sponsor, Hardee's
Hardee's
Hardee's is a restaurant chain, located mostly in the Southeast and Midwestern regions of the United States. It has evolved through several corporate ownerships since its establishment in 1960. It is currently owned and operated by CKE Restaurants. Along with its sibling restaurant chain, Carl's...
. Ranier negotiated a sponsorship deal with Texaco
Texaco
Texaco is the name of an American oil retail brand. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owns the Havoline motor oil brand....
's Havoline
Havoline
Havoline is a motor oil brand of Texaco, a former major oil company based in the United States that is now merged with the Chevron Corporation.-History:First introduced 1904, the Havoline brand was named by Havemeyer Oil Company of New York....
motor oil brand, a deal that was signed during the NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
edition of Speedweeks
Speedweeks
Hershey's Milk & Milkshake Speedweeks is a name given to a three-week series of auto races held at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States of America in early February...
at Daytona International Speedway
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, one of the most prestigious races in NASCAR. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races of ARCA, AMA Superbike, Grand-Am and Motocross...
. On qualifying day, Davey signalled that he was in Winston Cup to stay when he qualified an unmarked, but Texaco-Havoline painted #28 Thunderbird second for the 1987 Daytona 500
Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
, becoming the first rookie ever to start on the front row for NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
's most prestigious event. A pit miscue which allowed a rear tire to fall off on the track ended his hopes of a good finish in the race, but success for Davey Allison would be just around the corner.
May 3, 1987 would become an infamous day in NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
history. Earlier in the week, Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott
William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...
had qualified his #9 Coors
Coors Brewing Company
The Coors Brewing Company is a regional division of the world's fifth-largest brewing company, the Canadian Molson Coors Brewing Company and is the third-largest brewer in the United States...
-Melling
Melling
Melling, is the name of several places in England;one in New Zealand and one in Styria, Austria. The name was once used on a locomotive. Melling originates from the Anglo-Saxon roots for "The homestead of Maella", , first settled in Lancashire, England by Maella's family in the 6th century...
Ford Thunderbird at a record 212.809 mph (a record which still stands today) for the Winston 500
Winston 500
Winston 500 may refer to the following NASCAR Sprint Cup races:* Aaron's 499, held at Talladega Superspeedway from 1971 to 1993 and in 1997* Good Sam Club 500, held at Talladega Superspeedway from 1998 to 2000...
at the unlighted Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
. Davey Allison would qualify third, while father Bobby would start second alongside Elliott in the Stavola Brothers #22 Miller
Miller
A miller usually refers to a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a cereal crop to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents in other languages around the world...
Buick
Buick
Buick is a premium brand of General Motors . Buick models are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, Taiwan, and Israel, with China being its largest market. Buick holds the distinction as the oldest active American make...
. On lap 22 of the event, Bobby Allison
Bobby Allison
Robert Arthur Allison is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver and was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers. His two sons, Clifford Allison and Davey Allison followed him into racing, and both died within a year of each other....
ran over a piece of debris, cutting his right-rear tire. The car turned sideways, lifted into the air, became airboirne, and crashed vertically into the frontstretch spectator fence near the start finish line. The car landed back on the track and collected a number of other competitors. Davey was ahead of his father at the time and saw the crash unfold in his mirror. Bobby Allison
Bobby Allison
Robert Arthur Allison is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver and was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers. His two sons, Clifford Allison and Davey Allison followed him into racing, and both died within a year of each other....
was not injured, but the crash slightly injured several spectators and the race was red-flagged for two hours and thirty-eight minutes. It was this event that triggered the requirement of smaller carburetor
Carburetor
A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom....
s, and later, carburetor restrictor plate
Restrictor plate
A restrictor plate or air restrictor is a device installed at the intake of an engine to limit its power. This kind of system is occasionally used in road vehicles for insurance purposes, but mainly in automobile racing, to limit top speed and thus increase safety, to provide equal level of...
s on engines at Daytona and Talladega to reduce the top speeds.
When the race resumed, Davey continued to run up front and when Elliott exited the race with engine failure, Davey's toughest competition was eliminated. With darkness falling on the Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
during a late caution flag, the decision was made to end the race 10 laps short of its 188 lap distance. Running second on the restart, Davey passed leader Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
on the backstretch and pulled away for his first Winston Cup win. In winning the race, Davey became the first rookie since Ron Bouchard in 1981 to win a Winston Cup event.
Davey would better that feat just 28 days later by winning the Budweiser
Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch)
Budweiser is a 5.0% abv American-style lager introduced in 1876 by Adolphus Busch and one of the highest selling beers in the United States. It is made with up to 30% rice in addition to hops and barley malt. Budweiser is produced in various breweries located around the world...
500 at Dover International Speedway
Dover International Speedway
Dover International Speedway is a NASCAR-sanctioned race track located in Dover, Delaware, owned by, and serving as the corporate headquarters of, Dover Motorsports, Inc. It is co-located with a harness racing track, Dover Downs, and shares the complex with Dover Downs Hotel & Casino...
(then the Dover Downs International Speedway), becoming, at the time, the only rookie to win two Winston Cup events. In all, Davey started 22 of the 29 Winston Cup races in 1987, winning twice, and scoring nine top-five and 10 top-ten finishes. He also won five poles in his rookie season.
The 1988 season started with much promise. Davey again started outside the front row for the Daytona 500
Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
, the first modern day race utilizing the NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
mandated carburetor restrictor plate
Restrictor plate
A restrictor plate or air restrictor is a device installed at the intake of an engine to limit its power. This kind of system is occasionally used in road vehicles for insurance purposes, but mainly in automobile racing, to limit top speed and thus increase safety, to provide equal level of...
. While father Bobby was battling up front early in the race, Davey and his team struggled with a car that was repaired during the early morning hours following a crash in the final practice session. But as the race came to a conclusion, Davey found himself running second, just behind his legendary father. Bobby Allison
Bobby Allison
Robert Arthur Allison is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver and was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers. His two sons, Clifford Allison and Davey Allison followed him into racing, and both died within a year of each other....
would go on to hold off his son and win his third Daytona 500
Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
. Father and son would celebrate their one-and-two finish in victory lane. Both would consider this the greatest moment of their lives.
But Davey would struggle through much of the first half of the 1988 season as he ran some of the Winston Cup short tracks for the first time. The team was also suffering from engine failures and now sole-owner Harry Ranier was looking to sell the team. Crew chief Joey Knuckles was fired and engine builder Robert Yates
Robert Yates (NASCAR Team Owner)
Robert Yates was the owner of the longtime NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team Yates Racing, now owned by his son Doug. He purchased the team from Harry Rainer in 1988, with driver Davey Allison.-Biography:...
replaced him. Then on June 19, at Pocono International Raceway came his father's near fatal, career ending crash at Pocono.
With his father clinging to life in a Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
hospital, Davey Allison raced on but failed to finish the next three events. The team rebounded when the series returned to Pocono in July with Davey scoring a third place finish. Back at Talladega, the #28 Ford again suffered engine failure but Davey would drive his father's car later in the race when relief driver Mike Alexander
Mike Alexander (NASCAR)
Mike Alexander was an American racing driver. He won the NASCAR Weekly Series national championship in 1983. He also raced in Winston Cup and in the Busch Series.-Career before national racing:...
was overcome by heat. Two races later, Davey would score his first win of the season at Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway is a two-mile moderate-banked D-shaped superspeedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than in Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is sometimes known as a "sister track" to Texas...
. The win changed the fortunes for the financially strapped team and after a series of top-5 and top-10 finishes, Davey would win the inaugural race at the new Richmond International Raceway
Richmond International Raceway
Richmond International Raceway is a 3/4-mile , D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series...
. During the month of October, Robert Yates bought the #28 team from Harry Ranier. The rest of the season was a mixed bag but Davey would finish the season with a third place finish at Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...
, and a second at the season ending Atlanta Journal 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway is a track just outside Hampton, Georgia, twenty miles south of Atlanta. It is a quad-oval track with a seating capacity of over 125,000. It opened in 1960 as a standard oval. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track...
. He would finish eighth in the final Winston Cup standings. But the roller coaster 1988 Winston Cup season had taken a toll on Davey Allison's marriage and he and Deborah quietly divorced during the offseason.
Davey Allison also received the key to the city of talladega by then mayor Larry Barton.Larry
Barton was arrested for stealing from the city.But nearly 28 years later in 2011 Baton was elected mayor .
Initial years with Robert Yates Racing, 1989–1990
Davey Allison's 1989 season did not start well. A year after he and his father's one-two Daytona 500Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
finish, Davey started a disappointing 16th, then was involved in an early incident with Geoff Bodine
Geoff Bodine
Geoffrey Eli Bodine is an American motorsport driver and bobsled builder. He is the oldest of the three Bodine brothers . Bodine currently lives in Cornelius, North Carolina....
that sent his car careening into the sand bar separating the track's backstretch from Lake Lloyd. The car made one slow, complete, roll-over with Davey eventually restarting the car and driving it back to the pits. He drove the damaged, hood-less car to a 25th place finish and had a heated exchange with Bodine following the race (the first of several exchanges with other drivers during his career).
The team rebounded at Rockingham and when the series moved to Talladega in May for the Winston 500
Winston 500
Winston 500 may refer to the following NASCAR Sprint Cup races:* Aaron's 499, held at Talladega Superspeedway from 1971 to 1993 and in 1997* Good Sam Club 500, held at Talladega Superspeedway from 1998 to 2000...
, Davey had scored one top-10 and three top-5 finishes. Davey started on the pole at Talladega and got his first win of 1989, his second victory in Talladega's spring event. After the race, Davey stood sixth in the Winston Cup Championship standings, but did not win again until the next restrictor plate
Restrictor plate
A restrictor plate or air restrictor is a device installed at the intake of an engine to limit its power. This kind of system is occasionally used in road vehicles for insurance purposes, but mainly in automobile racing, to limit top speed and thus increase safety, to provide equal level of...
race, the Pepsi 400 at Daytona, his last win of the season. By the end of the season, Davey had collected seven top-five and 13 top-ten finishes along with one pole position to go with the two wins. He slipped to 11th in the final Winston Cup standings, a disappointment over the previous season. However, Davey would marry his second wife, Liz, during the season, and their first child, Krista, was born prior to the 1990 season.
The 1990 season did not start much better than the 1989 season and by the sixth race at Bristol, Davey was a disappointing 17th in the Winston Cup standings. A poor qualifying run had the team pitting in the backstretch pits, which usually doomed a team's chances of winning the race. But Robert Yates decided against pitting on the final caution flag and Davey scored his second short-track win in a thrilling photo-finish with Mark Martin
Mark Martin (NASCAR)
Mark Anthony Martin is an American stock car driver currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. As of 2012, Martin will drive for Michael Waltrip Racing, moving on from successful organizations such as Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Fenway Racing. He has the second most wins in the NASCAR...
. But the win did not change the team's fortunes and after an ill-handling car at Dover required Davey to ask for relief from fellow Alabama driver Hut Stricklin
Hut Stricklin
Waymond Lane "Hut" Stricklin is a former NASCAR race car driver. He was born on June 24, 1961, in Calera, Alabama. He married Pam Allison, the daughter of NASCAR legend Donnie Allison after they were introduced by her cousin Davey. Hut was the last member of the Alabama Gang.In 1986, Stricklin won...
, Robert Yates decided to hire "Suitcase" Jake Elder
Jake Elder
J.C. "Jake" Elder was a retired NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup crew chief. He was the championship crew chief for two years and for part of a third season...
as the team's crew chief. Davey won the fall event at Lowe's Motor Speedway
Lowe's Motor Speedway
Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the Sprint All-Star Race...
(then Charlotte Motor Speedway) but finished the season 13th in the final Winston Cup standings. He again posted two wins, but only five top-five and 10 top-ten finishes.
1991 and the hiring of Larry McReynolds
The 1991 season began with much promise. Davey won the pole for the Daytona 500Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
and was in contention for the win until the final laps. After a late race restart, eventual winner Ernie Irvan
Ernie Irvan
Virgil Earnest Irvan, more commonly known as Ernie Irvan is a former race driver in NASCAR. He is best remembered for his comeback after a serious head injury at Michigan International Speedway which earned him numerous awards and respect from his fellow drivers...
passed Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
for the lead. Davey tried to follow Irvan around Earnhardt but could not make the pass and the two drivers battled side-by-side for a few laps. As the cars came off turn two, Earnhardt's car spun, collecting Allison and Kyle Petty
Kyle Petty
Kyle Eugene Petty is a former American NASCAR driver and is currently a co-host for NASCAR RaceDay and panel member for NASCAR Smarts which are both on SPEED. He also commentates for TNT in the summer. He is the son of racer Richard Petty, grandson of racer Lee Petty, and father of the late Adam...
. Davey was unable to continue and finished a disappointing 15th. From there, things went downhill. Davey finished 12th at Richmond, 16th at Rockingham, then crashed hard early in the Motorcraft 500 at Atlanta, finishing 40th. Davey was openly feuding with crew chief Elder and, after the crash at Atlanta, Robert Yates decided to make a change.
Elder was fired, and Larry McReynolds
Larry McReynolds
Lawrence Joseph McReynolds III is a former NASCAR crew chief and currently serves as a racing analyst on Fox Sports, TNT and a columnist on Foxsports.com. He currently lives in Mooresville, North Carolina...
was hired away from the Kenny Bernstein
Kenny Bernstein
Kenny Bernstein is an American drag racer and former NASCAR and IndyCar team owner. He is nicknamed the "Bud King" for his success in the Budweiser King dragster, he has also been nicknamed "The King of Speed," because he was the first driver to break 300 miles per hour in the standing-start...
team to replace him. In his first race with McReynolds at the helm, Davey finished second at Darlington. A third place finish followed at Bristol, then a sixth at North Wilkesboro and an eighth at Martinsville. The team finished 22nd at Talladega due to a large accident triggered by Ernie Irvan
Ernie Irvan
Virgil Earnest Irvan, more commonly known as Ernie Irvan is a former race driver in NASCAR. He is best remembered for his comeback after a serious head injury at Michigan International Speedway which earned him numerous awards and respect from his fellow drivers...
but there was no doubt the team had improved and was destined for bigger things.
Two weeks later, Davey dominated The Winston all-star race at Charlotte, and continued his domination by winning the Coca-Cola 600
Coca-Cola 600
The Coca-Cola 600, formerly known as the World 600, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held each year at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend...
the following week, leading 263 of the race's 400 laps. Two races later, Davey won his first road course event at then Sears Point International Raceway in a controversial finish with Ricky Rudd
Ricky Rudd
Ricky Rudd is a former American NASCAR driver. He is the uncle of actor Skeet Ulrich and Nationwide Series driver Jason Rudd. Rudd is known as the "Iron Man" of NASCAR; holding the record for most consecutive starts in NASCAR racing. At the conclusion of the 2005 season, Rudd had made 788...
. He won again at Michigan then finished third in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona. At the halfway point of the 1991 season, Davey had climbed to fifth in the Winston Cup point standings.
After finishing 14th at Pocono, the series moved to Talladega. As the race wound down, Davey Allison was poised for yet another win behind leader Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
. But Davey was unable to get drafting
Drafting (racing)
Drafting or slipstreaming is a technique where two vehicles or other moving objects are caused to align in a close group reducing the overall effect of drag due to exploiting the lead object's slipstream...
help from fellow Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
drivers and he slipped to ninth place after attempting to pass Earnhardt for the lead. In a fit of rage after the race, Allison punched a wall in the team's transporter, breaking his wrist. The injury failed to slow him down, however as he finished a remarkable 10th on the road course at Watkins Glen
Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International is an auto race track located near Watkins Glen, New York, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. The facility is owned by International Speedway Corporation...
, then was second at Michigan, a photo-finish in which Dale Jarrett
Dale Jarrett
Dale Arnold Jarrett is a former American race car driver and current sports commentator known for winning the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship...
scored his first Winston Cup victory. Davey scored back-to-back victories at Rockingham and Phoenix and entered the final race at Atlanta second in the Winston Cup standings. But a dead battery in that race relegated him to a 17th place finish, dropping him to third in the final standings, only four points behind Ricky Rudd
Ricky Rudd
Ricky Rudd is a former American NASCAR driver. He is the uncle of actor Skeet Ulrich and Nationwide Series driver Jason Rudd. Rudd is known as the "Iron Man" of NASCAR; holding the record for most consecutive starts in NASCAR racing. At the conclusion of the 2005 season, Rudd had made 788...
. Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
won the championship. The final tally of the 1991 season for Davey Allison; five wins, 12 top-five and 16 top-ten finishes, and three pole positions. It was also during the 1991 season that Davey and Liz welcomed their second child, a son, Robert Grey Allison.
With Larry McReynolds at the helm, Davey Allison entered the 1992 season as a legitimate championship contender.
1992
Statistically, 1992 was Davey Allison's best season in Winston Cup racing. And yet, it was also a very painful and heartwrenching season. Davey started sixth in the 1992 Daytona 500Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
but was probably not quite as fast as the Junior Johnson
Junior Johnson
Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr. , better known as Junior Johnson, is a retired moonshiner in the rural South who became one of the early superstars of NASCAR in the 1950s and 1960s. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966...
teammates of Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott
William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...
and Sterling Marlin
Sterling Marlin
Sterling Marlin is a retired NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver. He is the son of late NASCAR driver Coo Coo Marlin. He is married to Paula and has a daughter, Sutherlin, and a son, Steadman, who sometimes races in the Nationwide Series....
. But the race would change dramatically on lap 92 when Elliott, Marlin, and Ernie Irvan
Ernie Irvan
Virgil Earnest Irvan, more commonly known as Ernie Irvan is a former race driver in NASCAR. He is best remembered for his comeback after a serious head injury at Michigan International Speedway which earned him numerous awards and respect from his fellow drivers...
triggered a multi-car crash at the front of the pack. Fourteen cars were eliminated, but Allison—and eventual runner-up Morgan Shepherd
Morgan Shepherd
Clay Morgan Shepherd has been a NASCAR Sprint Cup driver since 1977. He has also raced in the Nationwide, and Camping World Truck Series. He is a born again Christian who serves as a lay minister to the racing community...
—somehow made it through the mess. He would lead 127 laps to join his father as a Daytona 500
Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
winner.
Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott
William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...
would rebound to win the next four events, but Allison was not far behind in either event, posting four top-five finishes to maintain his lead in the points. A hard crash at Bristol left him with a bruised shoulder, but the following weekend he won at North Wilkesboro. Another hard crash at Martinsville left him with broken ribs, but Allison rebounded yet again, leading a contingent of Fords
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
to victory in the Winston 500
Winston 500
Winston 500 may refer to the following NASCAR Sprint Cup races:* Aaron's 499, held at Talladega Superspeedway from 1971 to 1993 and in 1997* Good Sam Club 500, held at Talladega Superspeedway from 1998 to 2000...
at Talladega, his third win in that race. The win also put him in position to win the Winston Million
Winston Million
The Winston Million was a cash prize award program in the NASCAR Winston Cup series, based on the Grand Slam concept. From 1985 to 1997, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, then the title sponsor of NASCAR's premier circuit, offered an award of $1 million for any driver who won three of the four "crown...
if he could finish off the "small slam" with a win either the Coca-Cola 600
Coca-Cola 600
The Coca-Cola 600, formerly known as the World 600, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held each year at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend...
at Charlotte, or the Southern 500
Southern 500
The Showtime Southern 500 is the annual spring NASCAR Sprint Cup race held at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, USA, and is the second such event at Darlington to bear the name. It began in 1957 as a race in the Convertible Division, known as the Rebel 300. In 1966, the race was...
at Darlington.
Next up was The Winston all-star race. One year removed from his domination of that event and the Coca-Cola 600
Coca-Cola 600
The Coca-Cola 600, formerly known as the World 600, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held each year at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend...
, Davey was ready to take the spotlight again. But this time around, there was more focus on the event itself. Over the winter, the Musco Lighting
Musco Lighting
Musco Lighting is an American privately owned company, based out of Oskaloosa, Iowa that is noted for providing permanent or temporary lighting at major sports events and stadiums including the Super Bowl and Olympics....
company had installed a state-of-the-art lighting system at then Charlotte Motor Speedway. Billed as "One Hot Night" by The Nashville Network
The Nashville Network
The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows...
, which was to broadcast the event, The Winston was the first superspeedway race to be held under the lights. Davey would drive the same car that he used to dominate the event one year earlier, affectionately known as "007".
In the final, 10-lap segment of the race, Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
led, followed by Kyle Petty
Kyle Petty
Kyle Eugene Petty is a former American NASCAR driver and is currently a co-host for NASCAR RaceDay and panel member for NASCAR Smarts which are both on SPEED. He also commentates for TNT in the summer. He is the son of racer Richard Petty, grandson of racer Lee Petty, and father of the late Adam...
and Davey. In the third turn on the final lap, Petty nudged Earnhardt's car and the GM Goodwrench
GM Goodwrench
GM Goodwrench is an auto repair service for General Motors in Canada, and previously, the United States. In 2011, GM replaced Goodwrench in the US with separate Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC Certified Service brands.-Background:...
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
spun. Davey took advantage of the contact and jumped into the lead. But Petty charged back and as Davey crossed the start-finish line to win the race, the two cars came together, sending the driver's side of Davey's car hard into the outside wall in a shower of sparks. An unconscious Allison was taken from his car and airlifted to a Charlotte hospital. The crash left him with a concussion, bruised lung, and a battered and bruised body. His car, "007", was totaled. Allison would later say to have sustained an out-of-body experience
Out-of-body experience
An out-of-body experience is an experience that typically involves a sensation of floating outside of one's body and, in some cases, perceiving one's physical body from a place outside one's body ....
after the crash. He claimed to have awoke to see his crashed car below him as he rose away from it, and to have turned his attention away from the frantic work of the emergency workers to a bright light above, which faded and left him in darkness until he awoke later in the hospital. McReynolds stated during the FOX telecasts that the first words from Allison when he awoke in the hospital were "did we win"? McReynolds told Allison "Yes Davey we won". Victory celebrations went on even though the driver was not present and all crew members later went to the hospital to be with their driver.
The wreck did not deter Allison. He finished fourth in the Coca-Cola 600
Coca-Cola 600
The Coca-Cola 600, formerly known as the World 600, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held each year at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend...
the following week despite the injuries and maintained his points lead. He then finished 11th at Dover, 28th at Sears Point, and fifth at Pocono. Still hanging onto the points lead and his body healing, Davey won the pole and dominated the Miller Genuine Draft 400
Miller Genuine Draft 400
At one time, two different NASCAR races were known as the Miller Genuine Draft 400:* Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400, at Michigan International Speedway from 1990 to 1995* Air Guard 400, at Richmond International Raceway from 1990 to 1995...
at Michigan, leading 158 of the race's 200 laps. The first half of the season ended with Davey posting a 10th place finish in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona. At the halfway point of the season, Allison had a 46 point lead over second place Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott
William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...
and a 134 point lead over third place Alan Kulwicki
Alan Kulwicki
Alan Dennis Kulwicki , nicknamed "Special K" and the "Polish Prince", was an American NASCAR Winston Cup Series racecar driver. He started racing at local short tracks in Wisconsin before moving up to regional stock car touring series...
, and had held the points lead since the first race of the season, despite the injuries and setbacks.
That would all change as the series went back to Pocono. Davey won the pole for the event and led 115 of the first 149 laps. But a lengthy pit stop during a caution flag sent him to the middle of the pack. On lap 150, Allison was charging back through the pack, followed closely by Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Lee Waltrip is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champion , 3-time runner-up , winner of the 1989 Daytona 500 and 5-time winner of the prestigeous Coca-Cola 600 ,...
. The two cars made contact and Davey went sliding into the grass off Pocono's "tunnel turn". The car went airborne and began a series of violent flips before landing on top of an infield guardrail. Miraculously, Davey survived the crash. He was airlifted to the hospital with a severe concussion, along with a broken arm, wrist, and collar bone. His 33rd place finish left him nine points behind Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott
William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...
for the series title, but that seemed insignificant at the moment. Especially traumatizing was the fact that Pocono was the site of Davey's father Bobby's career-ending crash a few years earlier (see above). In fact, many worried fans wondered if the younger Allison's career was over.
Davey arrived at Talladega the following week wearing dark shades to hide eyes severely bruised in the Pocono crash. His arm was in a cast that allowed him to drive, and velcro attachments to his glove and the car's shifter knob helped him drive with less exertion, but Bobby Hillin, Jr.
Bobby Hillin, Jr.
Bobby Hillin, Jr. , is an American stock car racecar driver. Hillin's love for racing began when he was a young boy watching his father's USAC Sprint and Indy cars race across the Midwest. At the age of 13, after a short period of racing go-karts and motocross, Hillin drove his first race car in...
would relieve Davey after the initial laps of the DieHard 500
DieHard 500
Two NASCAR races at Talladega Superspeedway have been called the DieHard 500:* For the race from 1990 to 1997, see AMP Energy Juice 500* For the race from 1998 to 2000, see Aaron's 499...
. Under NASCAR rules, the driver who takes the green flag is the one assigned to the points for all drivers that drive that car during the race. Hillin drove the #28 Texaco-Havoline Ford Thunderbird
Ford Thunderbird
The Thunderbird , is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company in the United States over eleven model generations from 1955 through 2005...
to a third place finish at Talladega, helping Davey and the team keep pace with Elliott. The team was a strong contender for the win until suffering a jack failure on a pit stop. The following week, veteran road racer Dorsey Schroeder
Dorsey Schroeder
Dorsey Schroeder is a race car driver born February 5, 1953 in Kirkwood, Missouri. Dorsey currently lives in Florida with his wife Kim and daughter Carissa Schroeder from his second marriage...
would relieve Allison, but he could only manage a 20th place finish.
With his body healed enough to allow him to drive an entire race, Davey headed to Michigan where he had dominated the track's earlier event. But tragedy struck as the Michigan events began. While practicing for the weekend's Busch Series race
Carfax 250
The Alliance Truck Parts 250 is a NASCAR Nationwide Series race that takes place at Michigan International Speedway. First held in 1992, the race was a event from its inception through 1999, and was extended to 250 miles starting with the 2000 race...
, Davey's younger brother, Clifford crashed hard in the third and fourth turns of Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway is a two-mile moderate-banked D-shaped superspeedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than in Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is sometimes known as a "sister track" to Texas...
. He would die en route to the hospital. Heartbroken, Davey drove to a fifth place finish in the Champion Spark Plug 400, then went home to Hueytown for Clifford's funeral. The following weekend, Davey crashed again at Bristol, finishing 30th. Though still in second place in the Winston Cup standings, he now trailed leader Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott
William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...
by 109 points.
Davey's chance to win the Winston Million
Winston Million
The Winston Million was a cash prize award program in the NASCAR Winston Cup series, based on the Grand Slam concept. From 1985 to 1997, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, then the title sponsor of NASCAR's premier circuit, offered an award of $1 million for any driver who won three of the four "crown...
was up next as the series headed to Darlington for the Mountain Dew Southern 500, which was worth both a million dollar bonus if he could win the Small Slam, but moreover, become the fourth driver to win the Career Grand Slam. There was a promotion for the event as fake Million Dollar Bills were printed with Allison's face on them were handed out for fans. Davey led 72 laps of the event and was in contention to win, but soon after the leaders pitted for tires and fuel, rain halted the race with 69 laps left. Instead it was Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Lee Waltrip is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champion , 3-time runner-up , winner of the 1989 Daytona 500 and 5-time winner of the prestigeous Coca-Cola 600 ,...
, gambling that the rains would come, did not pit and was leading the race when it was red flagged. He was declared the winner as darkness fell and the rains continued. Waltrip, who had long feuded with the entire Allison clan (Bobby and Donnie; ironically, Waltrip had replaced Donnie Allison with the DiGard team in 1975 and was a relief driver for one of Donnie's wins at Talladega), sat next to his car on pit road in lawn chair and held a colorful umbrella, gleefully joking that the rain shower was worth "one million dollars" to him as he became the fourth driver to finish a Career Grand Slam. (This was the second time Waltrip prevented a driver from clinching a Small Slam; in 1985, he stopped Bill Elliott's 1985 run at a Small Slam at Charlotte and Elliott has yet to win that leg of the Grand Slam; Elliott would take the Small Slam at Darlington in September; Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
stopped Waltrip's Small Slam and Career Grand Slam attempt three years previously at Darlington.) Davey finished fifth and was now 119 points behind Elliott, who finished third.
Allison and Elliott continued their drive for the championship after Darlington as the two kept pace with each other. But beginning with the Goody's 500
Goody's 500
At one time, two different NASCAR races were known as the Goody's Headache Powder 500:* For the spring race at Martinsville Speedway from 1996 to 2000 and from 2007 to the present, see Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500...
at Martinsville on September 28, Elliott's hold on the points lead began to slip. He finished 30th in that event while Allison finished 16th. Then at North Wilkesboro, Allison posted an 11th place finish, while Elliott finished 26th. Back at Charlotte, Allison finished a disappointing 19th, but Elliott finished 30th and there were now four drivers within 100 points of Elliott...Allison, Alan Kulwicki, Mark Martin, and Harry Gant. Martin and Kulwicki finished first and second respectively at Charlotte, and Kulwicki was continuing a late season charge. Three races prior to Charlotte, Kulwicki had crashed and finished 34th at Dover leaving him 278 points behind Elliott and in fourth place in the standings.
Elliott's skid stopped temporarily at Rockingham where he finished fourth. Davey finished 10th and Kulwicki 12th and entering the final two races of the 1992 season, Davey was 70 points behind Elliott in second, with Kulwicki 85 points behind in third. But Davey's fortunes changed dramatically at Phoenix as he won the event, and Elliott finished 31st. Davey now had the points lead for the first time since his violent Pocono crash, and was 30 points ahead of Kulwicki, and 40 ahead of Elliott, who had slipped to third in the standings. Also in contention to win the championship as the series moved to the final race at Atlanta were Harry Gant (fourth place, 97 points behind), Kyle Petty (fifth place, 98 points behind), and Mark Martin (sixth place, 113 points behind).
The 1992 Hooters 500
1992 Hooters 500
The 1992 Hooters 500 was the final race of the 1992 NASCAR season. The race is considered one of the greatest NASCAR races of all-time. It was held November 15, 1992 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and was televised live on ESPN...
would be a milestone race in NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
Winston Cup history. It would be the final race of Richard Petty
Richard Petty
Richard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series...
's career, as well as the first for future Winston Cup Champion Jeff Gordon
Jeff Gordon
Jeffery Michael "Jeff" Gordon is a professional NASCAR driver. He is the driver of the #24 Drive to End Hunger/DuPont/Pepsi Chevrolet Impala. He is a four-time Sprint Cup Series champion and a three-time Daytona 500 winner. He is third on the all-time wins list, with 85 career wins, and has the...
. Couple that with the closest championship race in history, and the race was destined to be a classic. Davey Allison entered the race needing only to finish fifth or better to win the Winston Cup. A first lap incident involving Rick Mast
Rick Mast
Rick Mast is a former NASCAR driver. He competed in both the Winston Cup and Busch Series before retiring in 2002...
caused minor damage to Davey's car, and he battled through much of the race to stay in the top ten. Meanwhile, Elliott and Kulwicki were staging a battle for the ages, battling for and swapping the lead through much of the event. Late in the race, Davey had finally managed to reach the top five and was in position to win the championship when Ernie Irvan
Ernie Irvan
Virgil Earnest Irvan, more commonly known as Ernie Irvan is a former race driver in NASCAR. He is best remembered for his comeback after a serious head injury at Michigan International Speedway which earned him numerous awards and respect from his fellow drivers...
lost control of his car on the frontstretch on lap 286. Davey could not avoid Irvan's spinning car and plowed into the #4 Kodak Chevrolet Lumina
Chevrolet Lumina
The North American Chevrolet Lumina sedan , coupe and minivan were first introduced in 1989 for the 1990 model year as a new range of vehicles from the Chevrolet brand of General Motors to replace the Chevrolet Camaro, Chevrolet Celebrity sedan, and the Monte Carlo coupe. The Lumina was an answer...
. Allison's tumultuous 1992 season was over, his championship hopes lost as Elliott and Kulwicki finished first and second in the race respectively. Kulwicki, an independent driver who had turned down offers to drive for other teams, including Junior Johnson
Junior Johnson
Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr. , better known as Junior Johnson, is a retired moonshiner in the rural South who became one of the early superstars of NASCAR in the 1950s and 1960s. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966...
, won the championship by leading one more lap than Elliott (103 to 102). Davey was noted for his gracious concession of defeat after emerging from a medical evaluation, and his refusal to blame or criticize Irvan.
1993
Though 1992 had been a heartbreaking year for Davey Allison and the Robert Yates Racing team in more ways than one, they had to be encouraged by their run for the championship. But 1993 opened on a sour note with Allison finishing 28th at Daytona. That finish was followed by a 16th at Rockingham, but Davey rebounded to win at Richmond the following week. No one knew at the time, but it would be Davey Allison's last win.The next race at Atlanta was delayed a week by a blizzard that blanketed much of the Southeast. Morgan Shepherd
Morgan Shepherd
Clay Morgan Shepherd has been a NASCAR Sprint Cup driver since 1977. He has also raced in the Nationwide, and Camping World Truck Series. He is a born again Christian who serves as a lay minister to the racing community...
won the race and Davey finished 13th. He then posted an 11th at Darlington. Despite the early season struggles, Davey was sixth in the Winston Cup standings, while defending series champ Kulwicki was ninth.
Davey Allison had debuted in the International Race of Champions
International Race of Champions
International Race of Champions, better known as IROC, was a North American auto racing competition, promoted as an equivalent of an American All-Star Game or The Masters...
(IROC) in 1992, but his injuries forced him to miss the last two races. 1993 was shaping up to be a far better year for Davey, with a second place at Daytona and a victory at Darlington, giving him a large points lead.
Three days after Kulwicki's death in an airplane crash, Davey Allison finished fifth in an emotional race at Bristol. He followed that finish with a fourth at North Wilkesboro, second at Martinsville, seventh at Talladega, and 15th at Sears Point. He finished a disappointing 30th in the Coca-Cola 600
Coca-Cola 600
The Coca-Cola 600, formerly known as the World 600, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held each year at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend...
at Charlotte, but rebounded at Dover, finishing third. He was sixth at Pocono, but finished 35th at Michigan and 31st at Daytona. Halfway through the 1993 season, Davey was fifth in the point standings, but was 323 points behind leader Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
. Still, Davey and the Robert Yates team were confident that they could put their early season struggles and inconsistency behind them and could make a run for the championship in the second half. The inaugural race at New Hampshire International Speedway
New Hampshire International Speedway
New Hampshire Motor Speedway is a oval speedway located in Loudon, New Hampshire which has hosted NASCAR racing annually since the early 1990s, as well as an IndyCar weekend and the oldest motorcycle race in North America, the Loudon Classic...
proved the team's optimism was not unfounded. Davey led 38 laps of the event and finished third behind Rusty Wallace
Rusty Wallace
Russell William Wallace, Jr. is a past NASCAR Winston Cup Champion, currently a broadcaster on ESPN, car owner in the Nationwide Series, and a co-host of NASCAR Angels.-Early racing career:...
and Mark Martin
Mark Martin (NASCAR)
Mark Anthony Martin is an American stock car driver currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. As of 2012, Martin will drive for Michael Waltrip Racing, moving on from successful organizations such as Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Fenway Racing. He has the second most wins in the NASCAR...
.
Death
On Monday, July 12, 1993, Davey Allison boarded his newly acquired Hughes 369HS helicopter to fly to Talladega SuperspeedwayTalladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
to watch family friend Neil Bonnett
Neil Bonnett
Lawrence Neil Bonnett was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. The Alabama native currently ranks 35th in all-time NASCAR Cup victories. He appeared in the 1983 film Stroker Ace and the 1990 film Days of Thunder...
and his son David test a car for David's Busch Series
Busch Series
The NASCAR Nationwide Series is a stock car racing series owned and operated by the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing. It is promoted as NASCAR's "minor league" circuit, and is a proving ground for drivers who wish to step up to the organization's "big leagues"; the Sprint Cup circuit...
debut. He picked up another family friend, legendary racer Red Farmer
Red Farmer
Charles "Red" Farmer is a former NASCAR racecar driver.-Racing career:His first race was at Opa-locka Speedway near Miami, Florida in a 1934 Ford in 1948. He became famous as a member of the Alabama Gang and he considered his hometown to be Hueytown, Alabama...
, en route to the track. Allison was attempting to land the helicopter inside a fenced-in area of the track infield when the craft nosed up suddenly, then crashed. The National Transportation Safety Board
National Transportation Safety Board
The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
blamed the crash on Allison's inexperience in helicopters, coupled with the decision to attempt a downwind landing. Neil Bonnett
Neil Bonnett
Lawrence Neil Bonnett was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. The Alabama native currently ranks 35th in all-time NASCAR Cup victories. He appeared in the 1983 film Stroker Ace and the 1990 film Days of Thunder...
was able to free a semi-conscious Red Farmer
Red Farmer
Charles "Red" Farmer is a former NASCAR racecar driver.-Racing career:His first race was at Opa-locka Speedway near Miami, Florida in a 1934 Ford in 1948. He became famous as a member of the Alabama Gang and he considered his hometown to be Hueytown, Alabama...
from the wreckage, but could not reach Allison. Paramedics arrived and freed Allison, who was alive but had suffered serious head injuries. He died the next morning, July 13, 1993, at Carraway Methodist Medical Center. Thousands packed the auditorium at St. Aloysious Church in Bessemer, Alabama
Bessemer, Alabama
Bessemer is a city outside of Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States eight miles west of Hoover. The population was 29,672 at the 2000 Census, but by the 2009 U.S...
to pay their respects at his funeral. He is buried near his brother, Clifford in Bessemer's Highland Memorial Gardens.
After the final race of the season, series champion Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
and race winner Wallace drove a side by side Polish Victory Lap carrying flags for fallen drivers Alan Kulwicki
Alan Kulwicki
Alan Dennis Kulwicki , nicknamed "Special K" and the "Polish Prince", was an American NASCAR Winston Cup Series racecar driver. He started racing at local short tracks in Wisconsin before moving up to regional stock car touring series...
and Allison.
In his short NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
Winston Cup career, Davey Allison posted 19 wins, 66 top-five and 92 top-ten finishes. He also won 14 poles and earned $6,724,174. He is survived by his wife, Liz, and two children, daughter Krista Marie, and son Robert Grey.
Tribute
Ten years after Allison's first win, Texaco debuted the throwback Battlestar paint scheme in his memory. It ran two races, but in the second, at the 1997 DieHard 500 in October, Ernie IrvanErnie Irvan
Virgil Earnest Irvan, more commonly known as Ernie Irvan is a former race driver in NASCAR. He is best remembered for his comeback after a serious head injury at Michigan International Speedway which earned him numerous awards and respect from his fellow drivers...
put the throwback Battlestar on the pole. Later, Texaco would often use the throwback paint scheme for their drivers at the track until they discontinued sponsorship.
The R. K. Allen Oil Company, the Talladega-based distributor for Texaco in the area, remembered the legacy of Allison with the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame in the city of Talladega, where fans vote drivers, past and present, to a specially themed "hall of fame" for drivers. The induction ceremony takes place at the AMP Energy 500 weekend.
Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame Members
NOTE: Starting in 2003, only one inactive driver was voted, unlike the past, when two were voted. The Board of Directors also inducted an active driver in 2000.| Year | Active Driver | Inactive Drivers |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Kasey Kahne Kasey Kahne Kasey Kenneth Kahne is a NASCAR driver. He drives the #5 Farmers Insurance Group Chevrolet Impala for Hendrick Motorsports in the Sprint Cup Series.... |
Jim Paschal Jim Paschal James Roy "Jim" Paschal, Jr. was a NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup driver. He won twenty-five races and twelve poles over his career. Elected to the "Stock Car Racing Hall of Fame" in 1977, he won the World 600 in 1964 and the 1967 Charlotte Motor Speedway... |
| 2009 | Morgan Shepherd Morgan Shepherd Clay Morgan Shepherd has been a NASCAR Sprint Cup driver since 1977. He has also raced in the Nationwide, and Camping World Truck Series. He is a born again Christian who serves as a lay minister to the racing community... |
Jack Smith (NASCAR driver) |
| 2008 | Bobby Labonte Bobby Labonte Robert Alan "Bobby" Labonte is an American race car driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He currently drives the #47 Kroger/Clorox/Kimberly-Clark/Kingsford/Reese Towpower Hitches Toyota Camry for JTG Daugherty Racing. He currently resides in Trinity, North Carolina. He is married to his wife... |
Rex White Rex White Rex White is a retired American auto racer and NASCAR champion. White was one of the drivers who competed for the original Chevrolet racing team. He began racing in 1956, grabbing fourteen top-ten finishes. After a part-time run in 1957, White won twice in 1958... |
| 2007 | Matt Kenseth Matt Kenseth Matthew Roy "Matt" Kenseth is an American stock car driver. Kenseth currently drives the No. 17 Crown Royal Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Roush Fenway Racing... |
Terry Labonte Terry Labonte Terrance Lee Labonte is a semi-retired NASCAR driver who occasionally drives in the Sprint Cup Series when called upon and is a two-time Winston Cup and IROC champion. He currently drives the #32 U.S. Chrome Ford for FAS Lane Racing. Labonte was introduced to the sport through his father, who had... |
| 2006 | Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart... |
Rusty Wallace Rusty Wallace Russell William Wallace, Jr. is a past NASCAR Winston Cup Champion, currently a broadcaster on ESPN, car owner in the Nationwide Series, and a co-host of NASCAR Angels.-Early racing career:... |
| 2005 | Kevin Harvick Kevin Harvick Kevin Michael Harvick is an American stock car auto racing race car driver and car owner currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Richard Childress Racing, driving the No. 29 Budweiser/Jimmy John's/Rheem/Okuma/Realtree Outdoors/Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet Impala... |
Herb Thomas Herb Thomas Herbert Watson Thomas was a NASCAR pioneer who was one of the series' most successful drivers in the 1950s.-Background:... |
| 2004 | Kyle Petty Kyle Petty Kyle Eugene Petty is a former American NASCAR driver and is currently a co-host for NASCAR RaceDay and panel member for NASCAR Smarts which are both on SPEED. He also commentates for TNT in the summer. He is the son of racer Richard Petty, grandson of racer Lee Petty, and father of the late Adam... |
Fonty Flock Fonty Flock Truman Fontello "Fonty" Flock of Fort Payne, Alabama was an early NASCAR driver.-Flock family:He was the brother of NASCAR pioneers Tim Flock and Bob Flock, and the second female NASCAR driver Ethel Mobley... |
| 2003 | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. * NOTE: References to "Earnhardt", "he", and "him" refer to the subject of this article, unless otherwise specified. References to his father will include "Sr."... |
Fred Lorenzen Fred Lorenzen Fred Lorenzen , nicknamed The Golden Boy, Fast Freddie, The Elmhurst Express and Flyin Freddy, is a former NASCAR driver active between 1958 and 1972. He won the 1965 Daytona 500. Lorenzen was born in Elmurst, Illinois.-Early career:Lorenzen first caught the car bug young, and had built his first... |
| 2002 | Mark Martin Mark Martin (NASCAR) Mark Anthony Martin is an American stock car driver currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. As of 2012, Martin will drive for Michael Waltrip Racing, moving on from successful organizations such as Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Fenway Racing. He has the second most wins in the NASCAR... |
Red Byron Red Byron Robert "Red" Byron was a NASCAR driver who was successful in the sanctioning body's first years. He was NASCAR's first Modified champion in 1948 and its first Strictly Stock champion in 1949.-Background:Born in Colorado he moved to Anniston, Alabama at an early age, Byron began... Bobby Isaac Bobby Isaac Bobby Isaac is a former NASCAR Grand National champion.-Early life:Isaac grew up on a farm near Catawba, North Carolina, the second youngest of nine children... |
| 2001 | Ricky Rudd Ricky Rudd Ricky Rudd is a former American NASCAR driver. He is the uncle of actor Skeet Ulrich and Nationwide Series driver Jason Rudd. Rudd is known as the "Iron Man" of NASCAR; holding the record for most consecutive starts in NASCAR racing. At the conclusion of the 2005 season, Rudd had made 788... |
Buck Baker Buck Baker Elzie Wylie Baker Sr. , better known as Buck Baker, was an American race car driver.-Racing career:... Joe Weatherly Joe Weatherly Joseph "Joe" Weatherly was a two-time NASCAR championship driver. Weatherly was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2009 after winning NASCAR's Grand National championships in 1962 and 1963, three A.M.A... |
| 2000 | Bobby Hamilton Bobby Hamilton Charles Robert Hamilton, Sr. was a driver and owner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series circuit and the winner of the 2004 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship. Hamilton owned Bobby Hamilton Racing, which fielded three entries in each NCWTS event... Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Darrell Lee Waltrip is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champion , 3-time runner-up , winner of the 1989 Daytona 500 and 5-time winner of the prestigeous Coca-Cola 600 ,... |
Fireball Roberts Fireball Roberts Edward Glenn Roberts, Jr. , nicknamed "Fireball", was one of the pioneering race car drivers of NASCAR.-Background:... Tim Flock Tim Flock Julius Timothy Flock was one of NASCAR's early pioneers, and a two time series champion. He was a brother to NASCAR's second female driver Ethel Mobley and NASCAR pioneers Bob Flock and Fonty Flock.- NASCAR career :... |
| 1999 | Jeff Gordon Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael "Jeff" Gordon is a professional NASCAR driver. He is the driver of the #24 Drive to End Hunger/DuPont/Pepsi Chevrolet Impala. He is a four-time Sprint Cup Series champion and a three-time Daytona 500 winner. He is third on the all-time wins list, with 85 career wins, and has the... |
Harry Gant Harry Gant Harry Phil Gant is a retired American racecar driver best known for driving the #33 Skoal Bandit car on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit during the 1980s and 1990s.-Nicknames:... Lee Petty Lee Petty Lee Arnold Petty was an American stock car driver in the 1950s and 1960s. He was one of the pioneers of NASCAR, and one of its first superstars. He was born near Randleman, North Carolina.-Career:... |
| 1998 | Bill Elliott Bill Elliott William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup... |
David Pearson Junior Johnson Junior Johnson Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr. , better known as Junior Johnson, is a retired moonshiner in the rural South who became one of the early superstars of NASCAR in the 1950s and 1960s. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966... |
| 1997 | Dale Jarrett Dale Jarrett Dale Arnold Jarrett is a former American race car driver and current sports commentator known for winning the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship... |
Ned Jarrett Ned Jarrett Ned Jarrett is a retired race car driver and two-time NASCAR champion.Jarrett was best known for his calm demeanor, and he became known as "Gentleman Ned Jarrett", yet he was an intense competitor when he put his two hands on the steering wheel of a NASCAR Grand National stock car... Buddy Baker Buddy Baker Elzie Wylie Baker, Jr. , nicknamed "Leadfoot" or more famously Buddy, is a former American NASCAR racecar driver.-Early life:... |
| 1996 | Ernie Irvan Ernie Irvan Virgil Earnest Irvan, more commonly known as Ernie Irvan is a former race driver in NASCAR. He is best remembered for his comeback after a serious head injury at Michigan International Speedway which earned him numerous awards and respect from his fellow drivers... |
Alan Kulwicki Alan Kulwicki Alan Dennis Kulwicki , nicknamed "Special K" and the "Polish Prince", was an American NASCAR Winston Cup Series racecar driver. He started racing at local short tracks in Wisconsin before moving up to regional stock car touring series... Cale Yarborough Cale Yarborough William Caleb "Cale" Yarborough , is a farmer, businessman and former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and owner. He is one of only two drivers in NASCAR history to win three consecutive championships... |
| 1995 | Dale Earnhardt Dale Earnhardt Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR... |
Richard Petty Richard Petty Richard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series... Benny Parsons Benny Parsons Benjamin Stewart Parsons was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst on TBS, ESPN, NBC and TNT... |
| 1994 | Board Vote Only | Bobby Allison Bobby Allison Robert Arthur Allison is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver and was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers. His two sons, Clifford Allison and Davey Allison followed him into racing, and both died within a year of each other.... Donnie Allison Donnie Allison Dunkiny "Donnie" Allison is a former driver on the NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup circuit, who won ten times during his racing career, which spanned the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s. He was part of the "Alabama Gang," and is the brother of 1983 champion Bobby Allison and uncle of Davey Allison... Neil Bonnett Neil Bonnett Lawrence Neil Bonnett was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. The Alabama native currently ranks 35th in all-time NASCAR Cup victories. He appeared in the 1983 film Stroker Ace and the 1990 film Days of Thunder... Red Farmer Red Farmer Charles "Red" Farmer is a former NASCAR racecar driver.-Racing career:His first race was at Opa-locka Speedway near Miami, Florida in a 1934 Ford in 1948. He became famous as a member of the Alabama Gang and he considered his hometown to be Hueytown, Alabama... |
NOTES:
1. The Walk of Fame induction was moved from July to October in 1997, and was in September in 2003.
2. Hamilton was voted by fans to the Walk of Fame in 2000; the Board of Directors did not want the retiring Waltrip, whose 84 wins was the most driver who started his career after 1972 (when the schedule was reduced to the current format) to be inducted as an inactive driver, so he was automatically inducted by the board. It should be known Waltrip was very unpopular at Talladega in his prime for his feuds with all three Allisons, starting when he replaced Donnie in the DiGard racing car in 1975; ironically, it was Waltrip who was a relief driver driving when Donnie won the 1977 Talladega 500
1977 Talladega 500
The 1977 Talladega 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on August 7, 1977 at Talladega Superspeedway in the American community of Talladega, Alabama.-Summary:...
.
3. The Board of Directors of the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame inducted the inaugural class by decree in 1994.
Legacy
Davey was leading the IROCInternational Race of Champions
International Race of Champions, better known as IROC, was a North American auto racing competition, promoted as an equivalent of an American All-Star Game or The Masters...
series championship at the time of his death, with one race remaining in the four race series. Terry Labonte
Terry Labonte
Terrance Lee Labonte is a semi-retired NASCAR driver who occasionally drives in the Sprint Cup Series when called upon and is a two-time Winston Cup and IROC champion. He currently drives the #32 U.S. Chrome Ford for FAS Lane Racing. Labonte was introduced to the sport through his father, who had...
drove the final race in place of Allison and secured the championship for him. Allison's championship money, $175,000, was set up as a trust fund for his children.
Davey Allison finished 31st in the final 1993 NASCAR Championship Standings.
Racing Champions ran diecast cars of Davey Allison as a tribute after his death which were cars Allison drove during his career. Allison's replacement, Ernie Irvan appeared as a promotional diecast 28 car to pay tribute to the team's win at Martinsville. Only 20,000 of them were released.
Davey Allison was posthumously inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame
International Motorsports Hall of Fame
The International Motorsports Hall of Fame is a Hall of Fame dedicated to enshrining those who have contributed the most to auto racing either as a driver, owner, developer or engineer...
in 1998.
In a foreshadowing of NASCAR's rise to prominence ten years later, Davey was a figure in a mildly scandalous controversy as his widow became involved with country music star Joe Diffie
Joe Diffie
Joe Logan Diffie is an American country music singer known for his ballads and novelty songs. Between 1990 and 2004, Diffie charted 35 cuts on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, including five number one singles: his debut release "Home", "If the Devil Danced ", "Third Rock from the Sun",...
shortly after Davey's death. Tabloid television programs and newspapers gave much coverage to the story at the time, with some claiming that the two had been lovers before Davey's death. Liz has openly discussed her relationship with Diffie, most recently on the Paul Finebaum Radio Network during the week of the 2006 race at Talladega. Liz expressed some regret over the relationship and mentioned that she and Diffie were band-aids for each other, and band aids were not meant to be permanent.
Liz Allison and their two children moved to Nashville and she married physical therapist Ryan Hackett on May 13, 2000. After being divorced for four years, Bobby and Judy Allison reunited at the wedding, after nearly seven years of tragedy had separated them.
In 2003, on April 28, the mayor of Hueytown, Alabama declared it Davey Allison Day and is celebrated on the weekend of the springtime Talladega race.
The driver that replaced Davey Allison at Talladega was Robby Gordon
Robby Gordon
Robert W. "Robby" Gordon is an American racecar driver who currently competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series as an owner-driver, driving the No. 7 Speed Energy Dodge Charger for Robby Gordon Motorsports, and also competes part-time in the Nationwide Series...
, but he lost control of the Texaco/Havoline Ford early in the race and crashed then Lake Speed took over the ride after that. Ernie Irvan
Ernie Irvan
Virgil Earnest Irvan, more commonly known as Ernie Irvan is a former race driver in NASCAR. He is best remembered for his comeback after a serious head injury at Michigan International Speedway which earned him numerous awards and respect from his fellow drivers...
, the man that won the race on the weekend of Allison's death would later take over the ride at the Mountain Dew Southern 500 and won the Goody's 500 at Martinsville Speedway and it was a heartwarming time for Irvan's crew as it marked their first time back to victory lane since Allison's death. Irvan would also win the Slick 50 500 at Lowe's Motorspeedway as well. Racing Champions ran the #28 Havoline Ford with Ernie Irvan replacing Allison as the driver in tribute of the win and in addition ran #28 Cars that were driven by Allison as a tribute.
A portrait of Davey Allison had been placed at the headquarters of Texaco
Texaco
Texaco is the name of an American oil retail brand. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owns the Havoline motor oil brand....
before the firm was purchased by Chevron.
Allison also had his own brand of chili
Chili con carne
Chili con carne is a spicy stew. The name of the dish derives from the Spanish chile con carne, "chili pepper with meat". Traditional versions are made, minimally, from chili peppers, garlic, onions, and cumin, along with chopped or ground beef. Beans and tomatoes are frequently included...
by Bunker Hill with his face on the can. Allison also had a comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
printed about him during his racing days.
Son Robert has pursued a successful racing career in an on-again, off-again fashion, but is frequently "parked" by his mother for fears of his safety and health. Meanwhile, Liz is active in the racing community as an author, radio host for WGFX
WGFX
WGFX is a radio station broadcasting on the FM band at 104.5 MHz licensed to the city of Gallatin, Tennessee, but serving the Nashville market as a whole. It is currently branded as 104.5 The Zone, broadcasting a sports talk format. It is owned by Cumulus Media and operates out of studios on Second...
with Bobby Hamilton, Jr.
Bobby Hamilton, Jr.
Charles Robert Hamilton, Jr. is a NASCAR driver and owner, and current track promoter. He is currently a free agent...
, and is a track announcer at Nashville Superspeedway
Nashville Superspeedway
Nashville Superspeedway is a motor racing complex located in Gladeville, Tennessee , United States, about 30 miles southeast of Nashville. On August 2, 2011, it was announced that Nashville Superspeedway will not host any NASCAR events in 2012. It is a concrete oval track 1 1/3 miles in...
. The Hacketts have also have a daughter, Bella.
Allison's crew chief, Larry McReynolds
Larry McReynolds
Lawrence Joseph McReynolds III is a former NASCAR crew chief and currently serves as a racing analyst on Fox Sports, TNT and a columnist on Foxsports.com. He currently lives in Mooresville, North Carolina...
honours his driver with #28 used in the golf cart transporting him in commercials run for Subway on TNT
NASCAR on TNT
NASCAR on TNT is the tagname for any NASCAR series race that has been broadcast on Turner Network Television by Turner Sports.-Prior to 2001:...
during the Coke Zero 400
Coke Zero 400
The Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola at Daytona is a 160 lap, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held annually, beginning in 1959, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida; the second major stock car event held at Daytona on the Sprint Cup circuit...
for "Wide Open Coverage" and also on his son Brandon's late model in UARA racing.
A road called "Allison-Bonnett Memorial Drive" in his hometown is honored by him, along with fellow native Neil Bonnett
Neil Bonnett
Lawrence Neil Bonnett was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. The Alabama native currently ranks 35th in all-time NASCAR Cup victories. He appeared in the 1983 film Stroker Ace and the 1990 film Days of Thunder...
, who died a year after Davey.
In the videogames NASCAR 99
NASCAR 99
NASCAR 99 is a racing simulator video game game developed and published by EA Sports and co-developed by Stormfront Studios. It was released for Nintendo 64 on September 11, 1998, and for the PlayStation on September 30, 1998. NASCAR 99 is the second game in the EA Sports NASCAR series of video...
and NASCAR 2000
NASCAR 2000
For the 2000 NASCAR Season bearing the same name, see 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series.NASCAR 2000 is a racing simulator video game developed and published by EA Sports and co-developed by Stormfront Studios. The game was released on September 15, 1999 for the Nintendo 64, November 30, 1999 for the...
, he appears as an unlockable NASCAR Legend with his Texaco Ford that he drove from 1987–1989.
Winston Cup (19 career wins)
- 1993 (1 win ) Pontiac Excitement 400 (RichmondRichmond International RacewayRichmond International Raceway is a 3/4-mile , D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series...
) - 1992 (5 wins) Daytona 500Daytona 500The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....
(DaytonaDaytona International SpeedwayDaytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, one of the most prestigious races in NASCAR. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races of ARCA, AMA Superbike, Grand-Am and Motocross...
), First Union 400 (North WilkesboroNorth Wilkesboro SpeedwayNorth Wilkesboro Speedway was a short track that held races in NASCAR's top three series from NASCAR's inception in 1949 until its closure in 1996...
), Winston 500Aaron's 499The Aaron's 499 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car auto race held at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. The race has always been held in late April or early May. The Aaron's 499 is also one of four races currently run with restrictor plates, the others being the AMP Energy 500,...
(TalladegaTalladega SuperspeedwayTalladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
), Miller Genuine Draft 400 (MichiganMichigan International SpeedwayMichigan International Speedway is a two-mile moderate-banked D-shaped superspeedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than in Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is sometimes known as a "sister track" to Texas...
), Pyroil 500K (PhoenixPhoenix International RacewayPhoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...
) - 1991 (5 wins) Coca-Cola 600Coca-Cola 600The Coca-Cola 600, formerly known as the World 600, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held each year at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend...
(CharlotteLowe's Motor SpeedwayCharlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the Sprint All-Star Race...
), Banquet Frozen Foods 300 (SonomaInfineon RacewayInfineon Raceway, formerly Sears Point Raceway, is a road course and drag strip located on the landform known as Sears Point in the southern Sonoma Mountains near Sonoma, California, USA. The course is a complex series of twists and turns that go up and down the hills...
), Miller Genuine Draft 400 (MichiganMichigan International SpeedwayMichigan International Speedway is a two-mile moderate-banked D-shaped superspeedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than in Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is sometimes known as a "sister track" to Texas...
), AC Delco 500 (RockinghamNorth Carolina SpeedwayRockingham Speedway, formerly North Carolina Motor Speedway and later North Carolina Speedway is a racetrack located near Rockingham, North Carolina...
), Pyroil 500 (PhoenixPhoenix International RacewayPhoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...
) - 1990 (2 wins) Valleydale Meats 500 (BristolBristol Motor SpeedwayBristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961...
), Mello Yello 500 (CharlotteLowe's Motor SpeedwayCharlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the Sprint All-Star Race...
) - 1989 (2 wins) Winston 500Aaron's 499The Aaron's 499 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car auto race held at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. The race has always been held in late April or early May. The Aaron's 499 is also one of four races currently run with restrictor plates, the others being the AMP Energy 500,...
(TalladegaTalladega SuperspeedwayTalladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
), Pepsi 400 (DaytonaDaytona International SpeedwayDaytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, one of the most prestigious races in NASCAR. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races of ARCA, AMA Superbike, Grand-Am and Motocross...
) - 1988 (2 wins) Champion Spark Plug 400 (MichiganMichigan International SpeedwayMichigan International Speedway is a two-mile moderate-banked D-shaped superspeedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than in Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is sometimes known as a "sister track" to Texas...
), Miller High Life 400Chevy Rock and Roll 400The Wonderful Pistachios 400 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup stock car race held at the Richmond International Raceway in Richmond, Virginia. Since 2004, the race has served as the last race in NASCAR's "regular season". After this race, the top twelve drivers in the standings advance to the ten-race...
(RichmondRichmond International RacewayRichmond International Raceway is a 3/4-mile , D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series...
) - 1987 (2 wins) Winston 500Aaron's 499The Aaron's 499 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car auto race held at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. The race has always been held in late April or early May. The Aaron's 499 is also one of four races currently run with restrictor plates, the others being the AMP Energy 500,...
(TalladegaTalladega SuperspeedwayTalladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
), Budweiser 500 (DoverDover International SpeedwayDover International Speedway is a NASCAR-sanctioned race track located in Dover, Delaware, owned by, and serving as the corporate headquarters of, Dover Motorsports, Inc. It is co-located with a harness racing track, Dover Downs, and shares the complex with Dover Downs Hotel & Casino...
), Rookie of the YearNASCAR Rookie of the YearThe NASCAR Rookie of the Year Award is presented to the first-year driver that has the best season in a NASCAR season. Each of NASCAR's national and regional touring series selects a RotY winner each year....
International Race of Champions (2 career wins)
- 1993 (1 win ) Race 2 (DarlingtonDarlington RacewayDarlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed the "Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition"...
), IROC ChampionshipInternational Race of ChampionsInternational Race of Champions, better known as IROC, was a North American auto racing competition, promoted as an equivalent of an American All-Star Game or The Masters... - 1992 (1 win ) Race 2 (TalladegaTalladega SuperspeedwayTalladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
)