Davey Allison: What Might Have Been
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12/16/2015 Jeremiah Thalheimer |
Welcome back, readers, to this week's edition of What Might Have Been. Once again, we will focus on a driver who was tragically ripped from our midst before his full potential could be reached: Davey Allison.
As many of you know, Davey had descended from racing royalty. Both his father, Bobby, and his uncle, Donnie, are NASCAR legends and members of the famous Alabama Gang. In 1987, Davey burst onto the scene by becoming the first rookie since Ron Bouchard to win a Sprint Cup race. In 1988, Davey and Bobby enjoyed one of the most famous moments in NASCAR history as they dueled in the Daytona 500 with Bobby prevailing as the victor and Davey finishing right behind in second. However, Davey's place was forever etched in NASCAR history at the 1992 Hooters 500. He went into the race leading the points and only needing to finish sixth or better to clinch the championship. In the latter half of the race, Davey was running in the top five and appeared well on his way to hoisting the championship trophy. However, Davey was collected in a crash with Ernie Irvan and ultimately finished third in the final points standings. Despite the heartbreak, it appeared that this would be the first of many championship runs for Davey in the years to come.
Unfortunately, tragedy struck the following July as Davey was killed in a helicopter crash outside of Talladega Superspeedway leaving us all to wonder what might have been.
Unlike last week's profiled driver, Alan Kulwicki, I think the sky really was the limit for Davey Allison. First of all, Davey wasn't just talented, he was tough as well. During the 1992 season, Davey battled for the championship despite suffering a bruised shoulder, bruised ribs, a broken arm, a broken wrist, and two concussions. One can only wonder just how formidable a truly healthy Davey would have been. Secondly, Davey was extremely talented. During his rookie season, Davey visited Victory Lane twice, a feat that went unmatched until Tony Stewart's rookie campaign in 1999. This is even more remarkable considering the fact that Davey missed seven races that season. Also, even though his Cup career only spanned seven seasons, Davey still won nineteen races. To say he was talented would be a huge understatement and one can only imagine what he could have accomplished with a full career.
We all know how the 1990s ultimately played out as Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt battled for NASCAR supremacy. However, had Davey lived, he certainly would have given them plenty of company at the top. He would have also added a Ford to the battle of Chevies and probably would have caused either Dale or Jeff to have one or two fewer championships between them. Unfortunately, tragedy struck and Davey was ripped from us too soon causing us all to wonder what might have been.
As many of you know, Davey had descended from racing royalty. Both his father, Bobby, and his uncle, Donnie, are NASCAR legends and members of the famous Alabama Gang. In 1987, Davey burst onto the scene by becoming the first rookie since Ron Bouchard to win a Sprint Cup race. In 1988, Davey and Bobby enjoyed one of the most famous moments in NASCAR history as they dueled in the Daytona 500 with Bobby prevailing as the victor and Davey finishing right behind in second. However, Davey's place was forever etched in NASCAR history at the 1992 Hooters 500. He went into the race leading the points and only needing to finish sixth or better to clinch the championship. In the latter half of the race, Davey was running in the top five and appeared well on his way to hoisting the championship trophy. However, Davey was collected in a crash with Ernie Irvan and ultimately finished third in the final points standings. Despite the heartbreak, it appeared that this would be the first of many championship runs for Davey in the years to come.
Unfortunately, tragedy struck the following July as Davey was killed in a helicopter crash outside of Talladega Superspeedway leaving us all to wonder what might have been.
Unlike last week's profiled driver, Alan Kulwicki, I think the sky really was the limit for Davey Allison. First of all, Davey wasn't just talented, he was tough as well. During the 1992 season, Davey battled for the championship despite suffering a bruised shoulder, bruised ribs, a broken arm, a broken wrist, and two concussions. One can only wonder just how formidable a truly healthy Davey would have been. Secondly, Davey was extremely talented. During his rookie season, Davey visited Victory Lane twice, a feat that went unmatched until Tony Stewart's rookie campaign in 1999. This is even more remarkable considering the fact that Davey missed seven races that season. Also, even though his Cup career only spanned seven seasons, Davey still won nineteen races. To say he was talented would be a huge understatement and one can only imagine what he could have accomplished with a full career.
We all know how the 1990s ultimately played out as Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt battled for NASCAR supremacy. However, had Davey lived, he certainly would have given them plenty of company at the top. He would have also added a Ford to the battle of Chevies and probably would have caused either Dale or Jeff to have one or two fewer championships between them. Unfortunately, tragedy struck and Davey was ripped from us too soon causing us all to wonder what might have been.