|| *Comments on the 1991 Winston 500:* View the most recent comment <#46> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. Dave posted: 01.22.2005 - 7:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race was run on a monday afternoon, and a huge backstretch crash broke Kyle Petty's leg. The finish was controversial because Rick Mast, who was 1 lap down, stayed righ in line behind Harry Gant. Gant, almost out of fuel, was pushed by Mast for the final few laps to victory. 2. HomeDepot20TS posted: 04.24.2005 - 8:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I have this race on tape. I'll never forget when the camera paned back and showed my favorite driver at the time, Mark Martin, in the air. 3. Jeff posted: 12.03.2005 - 3:49 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race weekend was a wild one,but also a tragic one. Dorsey Schroder flipped in the IROC event,and on Saturday,in the ARCA race, Chris Gherke was killed after flipping in the tri-oval. That along with Kyle being injured in the cup race made it one rough weekend. 4. Matt posted: 08.22.2006 - 6:03 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Tragedy also struck the stock car world during this weekend when Gary Neice suffered a fatal heart attack during the Busch race at South Boston. 5. Fenway posted: 10.11.2006 - 1:33 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle Petty was never the same after he broke his leg in a hard accident in this race. 6. Steve.M. posted: 01.24.2007 - 5:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) after the big one broke out on lap 71 they ran the rest of the race green and if it hadnt been for Gants fuel mileage would have been hands down battle bewteen Eanrhardt and Waltrip they had em covered after the big wreck 7. myself posted: 02.13.2007 - 6:50 pm Rate this comment: (2) (1) I was at this one! I figured I'd never make it out of that place alive w/o being struck by lightning! Another major wreck caused by ole' Ernie Irvan. The man was a menace! 8. Steve.M. posted: 04.24.2007 - 9:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) i have this race on tape, so i bring to you the big one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKgbpJZGYhE 9. Boyd posted: 09.21.2007 - 7:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cool video. I remember that race. I also taped it and watched it that night. My wife (at the time) was an Earnhardt fan and I was a DW fan. Would have been exciting had Gant not won it on fuel mileage. Waltrip finished 2nd and Earnhardt 3rd, but Waltrip made the pass for second in the last few laps. 10. Seymore Hotcars posted: 05.02.2008 - 10:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Best career finish for Stanley Smith, 21st. Ironically, Smith's career would basically end in a vicious wreck at Talladega less than 3 years later 11. Patrick posted: 07.21.2008 - 9:20 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Kyle was never the same? Maybe in '91, but he won 4 more races after this. 12. JCS posted: 09.02.2008 - 11:28 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was one of the more memorable "big ones" at Talladega. There was some really good in-car camera footage. Lake Speed had a lot of water pouring through his broken windshield as the car slid through the waterlogged infield. Ernie Irvan got the blame for this wreck. The wreck that took Richard Petty out on lap 2, was strange. The damage did not look bad enough to keep him out of the rest of the race. 13. jp posted: 02.23.2009 - 2:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I saw the pearson wreck, and petty was nowhere near the wreck. 14. Anonymous posted: 02.16.2010 - 7:48 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Swervin Irvan causing chaos.This was one of the biggest "big ones" ever at Dega. 15. Anonymous posted: 03.17.2010 - 2:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I remember the following years race in the intro it show a clip of Geoff Bodine saying that the wreck was "balonga" but broken windshields, classic. 16. Schroeder51 posted: 09.11.2010 - 9:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) jp posted: 02.23.09 - 2:05 pm I saw the pearson wreck, and petty was nowhere near the wreck. Petty actually smacked the wall and as a result, Pearson spun out in the chain reaction. You can see it in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kP7S0-AM-wc 17. Electric Flash Yo posted: 07.06.2011 - 8:44 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Michael Waltrip was 4th in points after this race. That's insane. 18. 00andJoe posted: 08.09.2011 - 5:13 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #90 sponsor: Ford Motorsports Sportswear 19. Schroeder51 posted: 08.19.2012 - 11:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race weekend was unfortunately marred by tragedy, a terrible crash in the ARCA race dealt fatal injuries to Chris Gehrke. Gehrke passed away from his injuries the day after this race was won. 20. Anonymous posted: 05.05.2013 - 4:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) There was a tornado about a mile from the track on Sunday on the last pace lap. Suprised no one was hurt. 21. 83andJoe posted: 09.17.2013 - 12:57 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #88 owner: Robin Rennicks #88 crew chief: David Ifft 22. 83andJoe posted: 09.17.2013 - 1:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #20 crew chief: David Ifft. (same for all races this year). (and yes, Ifft was CC for both the #20 and #88 in this race.) 23. sk posted: 01.05.2014 - 4:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The only time that Darrell and Michael Waltrip finished in the top-5 together in a Cup race. 24. WardBurtonfan posted: 09.24.2014 - 7:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Both of The Waltrip brothers in top 5 of the points at this stage of the season. Bet Mama Waltrip was proud.. M Waltrip never would finish top 10 points. Best was 12th '94 & '95 25. HD11 posted: 01.11.2015 - 1:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Pearson stated he hit a patch of water on the track that sent him for his ride. He's lucky he wasn't injured, hit drivers side first very hard. Petty and Chad Little collided around the same time but it was never mentioned if it was related to the Pearson situation. As for the big one, no doubt Irvan caused that one, unfortunately not the first time he would be in the spotlight for such a reason. 26. Stretch posted: 02.04.2015 - 12:02 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Kyle Petty's best years were actually still to come. 92 and 93 were great years for him. I liked Kyle until he started working for speed channel. I thought he was a real dick and horrible analyst. 27. autryvilleracefan posted: 04.02.2015 - 12:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In the 1993 book, "Kyle at 200 MPH," Kyle Petty's injury is explained as a compound fracture with 9 inches of bone protruding form his leg. It ruined high hopes for the '91 season, after the team won the biggest purse in NASCAR history (at that time) in the '90 Goodwrench 500 at Rockingham race and then set a track qualifying record and won the Goodwrench 500 in 1991. Kyle recovered after intense physical therapy and strength training and his '92 and '93 seasons were his best ever. 28. nascarman posted: 05.26.2015 - 1:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Qualifying Results: Pos. Driver Speed 1. Ernie Irvan 195.186 2. Harry Gant 194.963 3. Kyle Petty 194.852 4. Davey Allison 193.756 5. Darrell Waltrip 193.685 6. Ricky Rudd 193.306 7. Rusty Wallace 193.240 8. Dale Earnhardt 193.158 9. Bill Elliott 192.870 10. Lake Speed 192.862 11. Geoffrey Bodine 192.823 12. Hut Stricklin 192.777 13. Rick Mast 192.726 14. Bobby Hamilton 192.680 15. Alan Kulwicki 192.664 16. Brett Bodine 192.544 17. Chad Little 192.471 18. Ken Schrader 192.424 19. Sterling Marlin 192.374 20. Michael Waltrip 192.343 21. Mickey Gibbs 192.316 22. Dale Jarrett 192.127 23. Derrike Cope 191.911 24. Terry Labonte 191.819 25. Greg Sacks 191.785 26. Richard Petty 191.712 27. Phil Barkdoll 191.535 28. Mark Martin 191.329 29. Jimmy Spencer 191.130 30. Rick Wilson 191.039 31. Stanley Smith 190.943 32. Wally Dallenbach, Jr. 190.711 33. Morgan Shepherd 190.643 34. Joe Ruttman 190.340 35. Bobby Hillin, Jr. 190.654 36. Jimmy Means 189.552 37. Buddy Baker 189.152 38. Ted Musgrave 188.608 39. Jeff Purvis 188.130 40. Larry Pearson 187.831 41. Dave Marcis 186.141 29. Ryan W posted: 11.28.2015 - 1:17 am Rate this comment: (0) (9) Darlington '90, this race, '92 500, '96 Die-Hard 500 what are they known for? Swervin Irvan at his finest... What's amazing is that people actually think he was worth the price of admission to watch... I guess if you like demolition derby. The guy couldn't get out of Nascar fast enough. 30. myself posted: 03.04.2016 - 2:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Add in the '92 Hooters 500. 2nd Pocono race in '91 too. 31. Josh posted: 02.07.2017 - 11:54 am Rate this comment: (1) (1) He would have beaten your boy in 1994 for the title if not for that tire puncture during practice at Michigan. 32. chevyfan98 posted: 02.07.2017 - 7:20 pm Rate this comment: (2) (2) You're replying to a comment that is (a) over a year old and (b) from someone who hasn't posted in forever. I guess if that's what makes you happy... 33. JSPorts posted: 02.07.2017 - 8:10 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I think the criticism of Irvan is a little unfair. From someone who never actually watched him race, he seems to have been a very polarizing figure. 34. chevyfan98 posted: 02.07.2017 - 8:22 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) I never understood why people don't like him either, everyone says they want to see good, hard racing, and Swervin' Irvan was one of the most exciting racers ever. And he never wrecked anyone intentionally either. 35. Maverick19 posted: 02.07.2017 - 9:57 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Earnhardt and Irvan were only separated by 27 points before Irvan's Michigan crash. To hand either one of them the title would be foolish. 36. Anonymous posted: 03.04.2017 - 7:16 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Irvan got hate because of what others have already said. The guy had talent, but the guy stuck his nose in places when common sense says that such a move is foolish. 37. Amanda K posted: 07.05.2017 - 4:50 am Rate this comment: (0) (5) And this mess was caused when he had two GOOD eyes. NASCAR should've permanently parked Irvan after his 1994 wreck when it was determined that his peripheral vision would never be correct again. 38. RaceFanX posted: 07.05.2017 - 8:59 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Irvan was actually a pretty clean, if still quite aggressive, driver after his comeback. His "Swervin' Irvan" days were long behind him at that point. He largely started cleaning up his act after his mid-1991 issues after all the other drivers got on him and he admitted his errors. 39. Josh posted: 10.25.2017 - 5:26 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Alan Kulwicki debuted his full famous Hooters paint scheme in this race, with the orange down and Hooters owl on the hood. Prior to this, in 1991 Alan had been running the white #7 with simple Hooters lettering on the hood and flanks. In the few laps before the crash, evidently Irvan was getting quite impatient. Running second behind Earnhardt, he pulled out of line to try to pass, and then got hung out of the draft, leaving him in the middle of the lead pack. Even 2-3 laps before the crash, Benny Parsons commented "Don't go in the middle of those guys, Ernie! Please!" Irvan, including on that occasion, tried to make it three wide a couple of times prior to actually unsuccessfully doing so to cause the accident. The red flag came out as a result of the crash and was rather lengthy, partly due to the trucks struggling to get to the cars because of the deluge of rain that had occurred in the 2-3 days prior to the race, which was already being run on Monday to begin with. Another reason for the long red was Kyle Petty's injury required careful extraction. Car owner Felix Sabates commented that Kyle said his leg was bent in two and up in the air, demonstrating as much with his two index fingers pointing up. There's no clear camera angle as far as I know that shows the impact that broke Kyle's leg, but in the aftermath of the accident, Chad Little's nose is locked into the driver's side of the 42, so that told the story. Phil Barkdoll did have sponsors for this one. X-1R was on the hood and Metal Center was on the flanks. So it should be X-1R/Metal Center Oldsmobile. 40. John 1994 posted: 12.11.2018 - 9:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) From Tom Jensen's "An Inside Look At The Bad Things Winston Cup Drivers Do In Pursuit Of Speed" "Gary [Kyle Petty's crew chief] spent probably 50 percent of his time trying to figure out how to circumvent the system and 50 percent of the time doing it the right way," said Sabates. "Gary did a lot of creative things with our bodies. We showed up one time at Talladega with a car that was one-third Pontiac, one-third Oldsmobile and one-third Chevy. ... We went to Talladega and kicked everybody's butt until we got involved in a wreck and Kyle broke his leg." 41. GoPM21 posted: 12.27.2018 - 10:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) It was alleged D.W. was running an illegal spoiler (below the 30° minimum) in this race. At the next restrictor plate race, the limit was raised and all cars were checked post-race. 42. Jimnsimforever posted: 01.11.2019 - 12:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Webmaster and @39 "Alan Kulwicki debuted his full famous Hooters paint scheme in this race, with the orange down and Hooters owl on the hood. Prior to this, in 1991 Alan had been running the white #7 with simple Hooters lettering on the hood and flanks." There is a reason for that. This Talladega race is the very first race that Alan Kulwicki had Hooters as his primary sponsor. Starting with Atlanta on through Martinsville the week before this Alan had Hooters as an associate sponsor only. Thats why races 4 through 8 of this season, on his hood above Hooters he kept the big AK emblem there that had been the only thing there in races 2 and 3. It stood for Alan Kulwicki racing, because he was his main sponsor. Races 5-8 of this season Alan's sponsorship should be listed the way it is for the Atlanta race, AK Racing/Hooters. 43. Ryan posted: 10.06.2019 - 12:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @31 I doubt Ernie could have overcame eight podium finishes from Earnhardt over the next ten races, but OK. At least three of those races Dale could have forced the issue and won, but was obviously looking at the big picture. @34 Your comment contradicts itself. You called him "Swervin Irvan", yet say he never did anything intentionally and said he was exciting. It's why he got the name. @38 Mid-1991 huh? See 1992 Daytona 500 and 1996 Die-Hard 500. Alan Kulwicki stated after the wreck that he would be hit hard after this race and then Dale Jarrett spoke on the Dale Jr. Download not too long ago how the wreck Ernie caused in the '92 500 about made Joe Gibbs shut her down. @39 Yea, Benny knew. I'd say he was thinking to himself, "I'm glad I'm not out there anymore." 44. Ed posted: 05.19.2020 - 9:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Rick Mast made headlines for all the wrong reasons at Talladega in 1991. His apparent assist of Harry Gant during the final lap of this race created controversy as to whether or not the two should have been penalized, and in the DieHard 500 in July he slid from the tri-oval down past the start-finish line upside down after contact with Buddy Baker. 45. SweetRich21/43 posted: 08.01.2020 - 4:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The commentators were Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons. The pit road reporters were Dr. Jerry Punch and John Kernan. 46. Jimmie4life posted: 10.29.2020 - 3:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Qualifying Times: 1. Ernie Irvan - 49.062 Sec. 2. Harry Gant - 49.118 Sec. 3. Kyle Petty - 49.146 Sec. 4. Davey Allison - 49.424 Sec. 5. Darrell Waltrip - 49.442 Sec. 6. Ricky Rudd - 49.539 Sec. 7. Rusty Wallace - 49.556 Sec. 8. Dale Earnhardt - 49.577 Sec. 9. Bill Elliott - 49.651 Sec. 10. Lake Speed - 49.653 Sec. 11. Geoffrey Bodine - 49.663 Sec. 12. Hut Stricklin - 49.675 Sec. 13. Rick Mast - 49.688 Sec. 14. Bobby Hamilton - 49.700 Sec. 15. Alan Kulwicki - 49.704 Sec. 16. Brett Bodine - 49.735 Sec. 17. Chad Little - 49.754 Sec. 18. Ken Schrader - 49.766 Sec. 19. Sterling Marlin - 49.779 Sec. 20. Michael Waltrip - 49.787 Sec. 21. Mickey Gibbs - 49.794 Sec. 22. Dale Jarrett - 49.843 Sec. 23. Derrike Cope - 49.899 Sec. 24. Terry Labonte - 49.923 Sec. 25. Greg Sacks - 49.932 Sec. 26. Richard Petty - 49.951 Sec. 27. Phil Barkdoll - 49.997 Sec. 28. Mark Martin - 50.051 Sec. 29. Jimmy Spenser - 50.103 Sec. 30. Rick Wilson - 50.127 Sec. 31. Stanley Smith - 50.152 Sec. 32. Wally Dallenbach, Jr. - 50.213 Sec. 33. Morgan Shepherd - 50.231 Sec. 34. Joe Ruttman - 50.311 Sec. 35. Bobby Hillin, Jr. - 50.228 Sec. 36. Jimmy Means - 50.520 Sec. 37. Buddy Baker - 50.627 Sec. 38. Ted Musgrave - 50.773 Sec. 39. Jeff Purvis - 50.902 Sec. 40. Larry Pearson - 50.983 Sec. 41. Dave Marcis - 51.446 Sec. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: