On Saturday, the auto racing legend lost a legend as NASCAR driver Bobby Allison of Miami, Florida passed away at the age of 86. Allison, is fourth all-time in NASCAR victories with 85. He is only behind Richard Petty of Level Cross, North Carolina (200), David Pearson of Spartanburg, South Carolina (105), and Jeff Gordon of Vallejo, California (93).
Recently given his 85th victory
Allison was only given his 85th NASCAR victory last month according to Jacob Lev of CNN. He was recognized for winning the 1971 Myers Brothers 250 at the Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Allen was not initially credited with a victory because he was not racing in a Grand National Car.
Three-time Daytona 500 champion
Allison won three Daytona 500 titles in a span of a decade. They came in 1978, 1982, and 1988. The 1978 Daytona 500 was a dominant performance by Allison as he posted a winning time of three hours, seven minutes and 49 seconds. While driving a Ford, Allison beat his nearest competitor, Cale Yarborough of Timmonsville, South Carolina by 33.2 seconds. Yarborough, like Allison, also died in the last year. On New Year’s Eve, 2023, Yarborough died at the age of 84.
In 1982, Allison led the most laps (147), in beating Yarborough again. This was redemption for Allison. In 1981, he led the most laps at the 1981 Daytona 500 with 117, but finished in second place, only behind Petty. Known as simply “The King,” Petty had a winning time of two hours, 56 minutes and 50 seconds, and beat Allison by 3.5 seconds.
In 1988, Allison won his final Daytona 500 at age 50. What was fascinating about this race was the fact that Bobby beat his son Davey to the finish line. Bobby Allison led the most laps in the race with 70. Darrell Waltrip of Owensboro, Kentucky led the second most laps in the 1988 Daytona 500 with 69.
Honours
Allison was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in Talladega, Alabama in 1993. He was then inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2011.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
