|| *Comments on the 1993 Die Hard 500:* View the most recent comment <#102> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. Dan Noon posted: 06.08.2004 - 3:50 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) This event was the first race at Talladega since the untimely death of the great Davey Allison. I remember NASCAR paying tribute to Davey at his home track with the #28 Havoline Ford circling the track ahead of the field before the race began. The race was pretty exciting as well. I remember two major accidents that day. The first took out several cars, including Jimmy Horton, who actually rolled his car up the banking in Turn 1 and and disappeared in a cloud of dust outside of the track. He was okay, but he was covered in Alabama clay from head to toe. Officials at Talladega thought it might be a good idea to place those safety fences in the turns as well shortly thereafter. The second major accident involved the late Neil Bonnett. He actually tore the fence down while going airborne in the tri-oval. He climbed out of his car unscathed, but NASCAR had to red flag the race to fix the huge hole in punched into the fence. Ironic, Bobby Allison did the very same thing back in 1987, before restrictor plates came along. 2. Sebastien posted: 07.03.2004 - 1:33 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the smallest margin of victory ever with 0.005 sec, until the 2003 darlington finish between Craven and busch 3. HomeDepotKid posted: 09.12.2004 - 3:14 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) About the Bonnett wreck, I have heard stories of him within an hour of the wreck, he was in the CBS booth. 4. Chris Robinson posted: 12.17.2004 - 9:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The story about Neil Bonnett going to the CBS booth after his wreck are true. It was Neil's first race back after his 1990 wreck at Darlington and CBS had him miked as well as an in-car camera on him. At one point, after stalling the car coming off of pit road, you can hear Neil chiding himself for stalling the car, "...just like a rookie." 5. Brad Allen posted: 12.18.2004 - 3:59 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Thanks Chris for confirming the memory I had of Neil in the car chiding himself. As I remember it he was asked by Ned Jerrett and the boys in the booth during a restart, what happened when he jammed them up and he said "I Missed a gear like a damn rookie" I remember him going back to the booth as well. Neil was old school racing, the kind I grew up with in the late 70's and 80's. There was still some redneck left in the sport :) Neil was a good man, you could just tell :) 6. Brad Allen posted: 12.18.2004 - 4:02 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) You have me second guessing myself now. Was it that he killed it in the pits and they asked him in the pace laps what happened when he responded "I missed a gear like a damn rookie"? 7. Matt posted: 01.16.2005 - 1:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Stanley Smith who was also involved in the Horton wreck suffered a basal skull fracture which effectively ended his career in NASCAR's major three series. 8. Chris posted: 02.07.2005 - 5:53 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Brad, I think you're exactly right on what happened. About the Stanley Smith wreck: My dad and I watched the race on the CBS satellite feed and what you didn't see on the network broadcast was all the blood on the ground after they pulled Stanley from his car. If I remember right, Stanley got hit in the head by the still-attached-to-the-car left front tire of another car. It was frightening and I thought he was dead. I think he was in the hospital for quite a while after that wreck too. Very scary. 9. Jeff posted: 05.31.2005 - 5:12 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jef Gordon finished 31th 10. binno posted: 07.18.2005 - 10:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) reading the post on stanley smith got me wondering what happened after that day, found this link from espn http://espn.go.com/rpm/2001/0608/1211508.html 11. Darrell posted: 02.24.2006 - 4:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Here is the coverage of the Horton-Smith wreck. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gN8qQnirKjU&search=NASCAR%20crash 12. David posted: 06.08.2006 - 9:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I was at that race and will contend to the death that this has to be one of NASCAR's top five races of all-time. The Davey Allison ceremony was excellent. His widow, Liz, read a poem and his uncle, Donnie Allison, drove the #28 around the track. Robby Gordon was the substitute driver and stunk up the race before wrecking all by himself. 13. driver1 posted: 06.28.2006 - 11:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What a great way to honor the late Davey Allison have his car finish last(sarcasm). 14. Brett posted: 06.29.2006 - 4:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ha Ha. Good one. 15. Steve posted: 07.17.2006 - 11:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Robby certainly didn't want that to happen. Neither did Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Rockingham the week after his father was killed. He crashed on the first lap of that race. 16. driver1 posted: 07.18.2006 - 6:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Of course Robby didn't want that to happen he was running in the top five when he crashed. He got squezed down to the apron by by Sterling Marlin and Stanley Smith. If he didn't crash he would've had a great finish. 17. Bill posted: 10.20.2006 - 9:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm watching a clean "no commercials" copy of this race. During one of the commerical breaks, the cameras panned to Stanley Smith. He was lying lifeless and extremely bloody on the track as workers tried to get him on a stretcher. This was never shown to the viewers. Years later, I'm glad to know that he survived and is ok now. 18. Canadian Fan posted: 01.03.2007 - 9:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrZAJtwwRSA 19. myself posted: 02.14.2007 - 2:47 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I remember CBS airing a Davey tribute before the race started w/ "The Dance" by Garth Brooks playing during it. So sad! 20. Brock posted: 02.27.2007 - 8:55 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^ I thought that song was "The Fans" by Alabama; they played the Richard Petty version of it the previous November for The King's last race. Either way, it was indeed very emotional. With Davey gone and The Family Channel on Kulwicki's former Hooters car in this race, I remember realizing just how different the sport was becoming. And I do not mean that in a positive way. Ever since then, it seems NASCAR's become a whole different animal with it's mainstream sponsors and stuff. 21. CBCMikeyfan posted: 03.14.2007 - 5:05 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "The Fans" was done before the race. The tribute with "The Dance" was shown after it. 22. Bill posted: 03.19.2007 - 1:19 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Brock, that's the way its gotta be if it wants to survive. I am thrilled ESPN has come back though. 23. Eric posted: 04.28.2007 - 1:24 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) If I'm not mistaken, isn't the Robby Gordon wreck from this race in the Burger King commercial when it shows a driver trying to eat a chicken sandwich, and then spinning through the Talladega infield, and back onto the tri-oval? 24. Patrick posted: 04.28.2007 - 7:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yea, the #28 Havoline Ford wrecking in the Burger King Commerical is the Robby Gordon wreck from Dega. 25. myself posted: 05.17.2007 - 6:27 pm Rate this comment: (4) (3) Robbie Gordon in Davey Allison's ride....HOW INSULTING!!!! 26. Anonymous posted: 06.22.2007 - 7:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Was Ritchie Petty Kyle's cousin? 27. ForeverDavey28 posted: 06.27.2007 - 8:38 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great to see the 28 car on the track with Robby in it 28. Matt posted: 08.15.2007 - 8:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yes, Ritchie is Kyle's cousin. 29. Anonymous posted: 08.20.2007 - 9:33 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I thought so but I wasn't sure. Just to follow up on Stanley Smith, he won a Nascar Southeast series race a couple of years ago. 30. SK posted: 08.26.2007 - 10:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was really Neil Bonnett's last proper Winston Cup start. He'd appear once more prior to his death at Daytona, but solely to start-and-park a second RCR Chevy in the finale at Atlanta to help Dale Earnhardt clinch his sixth championship. 31. nj posted: 12.23.2007 - 12:59 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) I actually have this race on VHS...recorded it when I was 11 years old (I was at the pool, but was a huge fan and never missed a race). I have hung on to the tape ever since, and watch this race every off-season. -Allison tribute -The Horton over-the-wall wreck -Bonnett returning, then crashing huge. (This gives me 1.5hrs of tour de france to fast-forward through while they fix the catch-fence.) Bonnett does return to the broadcast booth with his arm in a sling. -Then, of course, the amazing finish between Earnhardt and Ervin. That #4 was like those DEI cars in '02-'04 for a while at the restrictor-plate tracks. It's amazing to think how many races Earnhardt won with a lesser car. While I'd like to say that racing was better then, watching those tapes from the early 90's, you can tell that nascar was dying to sell its soul -it just hadn't done it yet. I'm glad I caught the sport when there was something there. I'm a huge fan of the history of the sport, and there needs to be more respect paid to nascar's past. 32. Anonymous posted: 02.21.2008 - 1:04 am Rate this comment: (0) (3) A lesser car? Is that why he won all those championships in the early 90s? 33. RaceFanX posted: 05.07.2008 - 1:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Buddy Baker, at the time doing testing for Gordon's team, attempted to qualify for this race in a Rick Hendrick Chevy painted like Gordon's and numbered #46. The car was quick in practice but after inspection NASCAR made adjustments to cowl and the Buddy's Chevy DNQed for the race 34. mike 81 posted: 05.09.2008 - 8:06 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) Jimmy "Air" Horton! 35. Neal posted: 05.19.2008 - 1:53 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race was the canary in the coal mine for basilar skull fractures and it took NASCAR 8 more years and several driver deaths before they figured it out. Dale Earnhardt, Tony Roper, Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin, Neil Bonnett, Stanley Smith, Ernie Irvan, Clifford Allison and Rick Carelli all suffered basilar skull fractures. Only Carelli, Irvan, and Stanley Smith survived. 36. spamgasm posted: 06.28.2008 - 8:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Last race for Lake Speed and the #83. He would go onto Bud Moore's 15, then Melling's 9, before retiring about 1/2 thru 1998. 37. Bryan Blanton posted: 12.04.2008 - 4:59 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I just wanted to say that i feel the 4 restrictor plate races of 1993 i feel were 4 of the best races at those tracks in the history of the restrictor plate. Also by reading the comments about this race i found out something i did not know i found out that buddy baker tried to qualify for this race i did not know that. I also did not know he used to test for hendrick. I know he did test for penske but not for hendrick. That was interesting finding out that he also tested for hendrick. 38. Ryan posted: 01.08.2009 - 6:09 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Yes a lesser car, Earnhardt won titles when many other had better equipment... Imagine if he was ever in Hendrick's or Yates' cars... He would have been even more amazing. As for the finish, Earnhardt gave a another lesson in "side drafting" in the tri-oval of the last lap. It took a while for drivers to realize what side drafting was 39. Anonymous posted: 01.23.2009 - 9:03 pm Rate this comment: (2) (5) But Childress did have the best cars in the field in the early 90s. There is no way he would have 7 championships if he drove for Yates or Hendrick (at least in the early 90s, maybe later in the decade). Hendrick (and to a lesser extent Yates) didn't develop until the mid 1990s. You don't win 6 championships in 9 years with "lesser" equipment. 40. Ryan posted: 01.26.2009 - 1:30 am Rate this comment: (3) (2) You're wrong, because he did win 6 titles in 9 years with lesser equipment. It's why he is considered the best ever. He would have won 100 races with Yates or Hendrick.... easily Hendrick had been developed already too. Jeff Gordon came along and started winning during the mid 90's. Bodine, Schrader, Waltrip, Richmond, and even Bonnett and Parsons all had good runs with Hendrick during the 80's, and then Rudd was solid too during the 90's and then Labonte and Gordon came in. So to say Hendrick didn't develop until the mid 90's is pretty foolish. Davey Allison had awesome cars during the late 80's and early 90's. He got third in 1991 and 1992, and probably should have won 1992. Who did he race for? Yates... Ernie Irvin had an awesome year with Yates in '94 until his crash, so many times Dale didnt have the best car, he just was a better racer... all there is to it. He probably would have won the same amount of races With Roush as he did with Childress. What made Dale so great was that he could take a 15th place car and finish 5th. That's why he won his titles. Childress hasn't hardly did anything since Dale's death either. He hasn't finished 1st or 2nd in points like Dale did for him a combined 10 times. Childress would be nothing without Dale. Dale was already somebody when he got with Childress. And don't you or anyone forget that. 41. 18fan posted: 02.06.2009 - 1:42 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Good point, Ryan. Childress's best points finish since Dale's death was Clint Bowyer's 3rd place finish in 2007. And that wasn't as high as Dale's in 2000 when Dale was about twice as old as Clint while Dale finished ahead of drivers like Jeff Burton, Dale Jarrett, Jeff Gordon, and Tony Stewart who had just as good if not better equipment than Dale. True legend, sad I became a fan of NASCAR in 2005, so I couldn't ever see him live. 42. Juicebox posted: 04.24.2009 - 2:38 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) An electrifying race that saw two brutal crashes, one involved Jimmy Horton tumbling over the wall in turn one, and the other seeing Neil Bonnett flip into the catch fence in the trioval. Robby Gordon drove the Yates car for the late Davey Allison and crashed when he dipped below the banking while trying to pass Sterling Marlin. The finish was a six car shootout, with Petty diving below Earnhardt in turn one before washing up the track and allowing Irvan to snag the bottom. From there, Earnhardt and Irvan ran side by side with Earnhardt pulling ahead to win by what was at the time the closest margin of victory in Nascar history. 43. RR posted: 04.24.2009 - 11:27 am Rate this comment: (2) (4) Dale Earnhardt had the best car in the field overall from 1986-1993. I really don't see how you can win a championship by hundreds of points in an inferior car. Unless, of course, you have NASCAR in your back pocket. Yates had flashes of brilliance, but didn't put all the pieces together until Larry Mac signed on as crew chief. They didn't have the best car consistently until 1991. Hendrick had some good runs, but they were a tick below Childress until the perfect Gordon/Evernham combo came in and wiped the floor with everyone. Roush did beat Earnhardt in 1990, but NASCAR decided to play favorites. Remember, Mark didn't win a race until 1989, when Earnhardt had already won three of his championships. Johnson's teams were the best of the mid 1980s, but internal strife on that team brought that team down, I don't think Earnhardt would have won as much as he did if he drove for them. In 1987, Earnhardt won 11 times, and had only 2 DNF's all year. He averaged a sixth place finsh. That doesn't happen in an inferior car. He's one of the best, no doubt, but I think it's silly to say that his car was holding him back. He had a crew built around him, and that's part of the reason why Chidress hasn't matched his success since. Earnhardt is one of the greats, but I think Pearson, Petty, and Yarborough were all better. 44. Baker posted: 06.09.2009 - 3:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Exciting race and finish, but Davey would have out raced them to the finish if he were still around. Robby Gordon as the replacement for Davey Allison was an insult to Davey and all of his fans. 45. myself posted: 07.29.2009 - 4:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Wasn't this the race Ned Jarrett called Rick Mast "Ole' Flipper?" 46. RR posted: 02.05.2010 - 9:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) "Earnhardt is one of the greats, but I think Pearson, Petty, and Yarborough were all better." Damn, just saw that I said this. I meant to say "as good", it's a bit difficult to pick one over the other (though I'd have to argue for Pearson). 47. 18fan posted: 06.27.2010 - 1:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bobby Labonte would've finished no worse than sixth as he was running with Petty, Earnhardt, Irvan, Jarrett, and Martin but ran out of gas on the last lap. 48. Thomas posted: 07.16.2010 - 2:45 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) To answer the long ago debate on Bonnett's chiding himself. It was on pit road on the caution just before his accident that he stalled his car. His comment was, "Tore first out of there for us...like a little rookie." The race in its entirety is up on YouTube now. 49. Anonymous posted: 08.17.2010 - 10:21 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Baker's #46 was sponsored by DuPont and painted just like Gordon's car. 50. Aaron posted: 09.10.2010 - 1:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ironic how after Davey, an AL native, passes away in AL, all the drivers involved in serious accidents in this race were also AL natives. 51. Ryan posted: 11.05.2010 - 8:45 pm Rate this comment: (4) (3) 43. RR posted: 04.24.09 - 11:27 am "Dale Earnhardt had the best car in the field overall from 1986-1993. I really don't see how you can win a championship by hundreds of points in an inferior car. Unless, of course, you have NASCAR in your back pocket." It's pretty obvious you're an Earnhardt hater. If anything Nascar couldn't stand him winning. He was the best racer during that time period and all time. Had he been in better equipment who knows what more he could have accomplished. He may have had the best team and crew, but never the best equipment. "Yates had flashes of brilliance, but didn't put all the pieces together until Larry Mac signed on as crew chief. They didn't have the best car consistently until 1991." I think I said that. From 1991-1994, Yates easily had the best cars, and three of those years Earnhardt won titles with Kulwicki winning the other. Now I know circumstances kept Yates from winning a title during that time period, but when both of those circumstances happened Dale was ahead of both Allison and Irvin in the standings. "Hendrick had some good runs, but they were a tick below Childress until the perfect Gordon/Evernham combo came in and wiped the floor with everyone." Unbelievable. You never heard of Tim Richmond/Harry Hyde? Or Waltrip/Hammond? Schrader and Rudd were great too, as well as Bodine. Earnhardt was a better racer than all of them. "Roush did beat Earnhardt in 1990, but NASCAR decided to play favorites. Remember, Mark didn't win a race until 1989, when Earnhardt had already won three of his championships." Lets get something straight here. Had that happened with maybe four or five races left in the season, I could see maybe just a little bit of a controversy. But hello?! What you are referring to happened in the second race of the season. As you said Mark Martin didn't win a race until 1989, so who would have thought he would have had that great of a season in 1990? His infraction happened in the 2nd race of the season! Don't blame Dale for having a legal car. They should have gave Earnhardt the 1st place points for that race. What cost Martin that year was he and his team's decision to pit late at Phoenix in the next to last race of the season. "Johnson's teams were the best of the mid 1980s, but internal strife on that team brought that team down, I don't think Earnhardt would have won as much as he did if he drove for them." He would have won more with them. And don't blame Earnhardt and his team for not having internal strife. Waltrip tried over and over to play mind games with Earnhardt, and at the '86 Richmond race the mind games were over. Go look at Earnhardt and Waltrips stats after that race and see who won the mind games. Not only was Dale a great racer, but he was great at psychology. "In 1987, Earnhardt won 11 times, and had only 2 DNF's all year. He averaged a sixth place finsh. That doesn't happen in an inferior car. He's one of the best, no doubt, but I think it's silly to say that his car was holding him back. He had a crew built around him, and that's part of the reason why Chidress hasn't matched his success since." Dale won 11 of the first 22 races that year, and 6 of the first 8, and very well could have won 7 out of 8 or even 8 out of 8 with a faster pit stop at Daytona. Who knows what could have happened had he been in a more superior car, but we will never know. I think he would have 100 wins. When he raced during his prime there was 28-30 races and now there is 36. "Earnhardt is one of the greats, but I think Pearson, Petty, and Yarborough were all better." Earnhardt is the greatest. The Hall of Fame says so and many historians magazines as well. 52. Anonymous posted: 11.06.2010 - 7:12 pm Rate this comment: (2) (3) "It's pretty obvious you're an Earnhardt hater." It's more than clear that you're an Earnhardt lover. What's your point? 53. Smiff_99 posted: 01.06.2011 - 1:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure Horton is a native of New Jersey. Bonnett? Yes. Stanley Smith? Yes. Horton? No. 54. Smiff_99 posted: 01.06.2011 - 1:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yeah, the raw satellite feed of this race is borderline disturbing. I mean, the sight of Smith lying on the apron of the backstretch, motionless, and just COVERED in blood.....I'll NEVER be able to fully erase that image from my memory. Sadly enough, I had never even heard about Stanley Smith or his injury in this race until I actually obtained a copy of it a few years back. At the time of me discovering this whole incident, I had seen every single race from 1994 all the way through 'til then (2005), and I had NEVER heard anybody reference it. Actually, until I bought the 1993 season in Review on VHS, I'd never even heard anybody mention the Horton going over the wall. Weird. 55. RR posted: 02.11.2011 - 8:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm not an Earnhardt hater, but I think the hyperbole get really old sometimes. Was he one of the greatest NASCAR drivers of all time? Without question, and I've never said otherwise. But he wasn't some superhuman force who somehow single-handedly dragged his cars to victory 76 times. At certain times others had better raw pace, but Earnhardt always had better consistency. I will admit I was being a bit ridiculous in saying that NASCAR "played favorites" in 1990. But I really don't see how any else I said was that far off the mark. He was a great driver with a great team. 56. 18fan posted: 10.27.2011 - 7:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ernie Irvan was .005 seconds away from being, at the time, the second man to win 3 consecutive races at Talladega. 57. 18fan posted: 12.25.2011 - 2:35 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the first race Bill Elliott led all season. He only led 4 races all year and only 14 laps after coming so close to the championship one year earlier. 58. Jim posted: 01.11.2012 - 5:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hut Stricklin would have been a good choice in Davey' car but he already had the Johnson ride. Hut is Donnie Allison's son in law. 59. 44andJoe posted: 12.16.2012 - 1:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #49 sponsor: Kresto Hand Cleaner 60. allen posted: 05.08.2013 - 10:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The first safety worker to arrive at Stanley Smith's car looked into the car reached in to take Smith's helmet off and jumped back at what he saw..You knew then Stanley was badly hurt.. 61. Nascarman posted: 10.31.2013 - 4:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #4 crew chief: Larry McClure (Tony Glover's mother died) #31 crew chief: Bobby Hutchens 62. wrank fakefield posted: 04.29.2014 - 9:56 am Rate this comment: (5) (3) Earnhardt fans are like the Da Bears guys on SNL are about Ditka.Its not enough that he won 7 championships, was at the very least as good as anyone whoever raced, and became the biggest star the sport ever had. They have to embellish it with an "inferior equipment" mythology as well. There was a time when Earnhardt was in inferior equipment, in his Bud Moore days, when he'd win a race or two a year and drop a lot of valves. Thats what you get when a great driver is in inferior equipment. When said driver is suddenly winning 45 races and 6 championships in 9 seasons, it stands to reason the equipment has caught up to his abilities. Sure there were stretches when the 2 and the 28, among others, showed greater speed. But they were never as reliable or as consistent. AND other than most of 1992, it never looked like the 3 was out to lunch. And speaking of which,if all of Childress' success in those years is owed totally to Earnhardt's talent, then how could the slump in 1992 have happened anyway? Earnhardt decide to start mailing it in? His slumps are all about car and team, but his successes are all down to him? Must be nice living in fantasy land... 63. nascarman posted: 05.15.2014 - 7:05 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Buddy Baker mentioned once on Sirius NASCAR Radio that there was nothing wrong with his car this weekend. He said that some other drivers complained to NASCAR that they didn't feel comfortable racing with him following his blood clots in his brain. His car was very fast that weekend and perhaps they didn't like the idea of him being at the front. Changes were made to the cowl that slowed him down 2 seconds before qualifying. When they mentioned it on air before the Busch race that weekend both him and Neil Bonnett had a look on their face as if Buddy was betrayed. He wouldn't mention any names of the drivers who complained but he sounded very disappointed even talking about it 20 years later. 64. Evan posted: 08.15.2014 - 10:49 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Sponsors #28 Robby Gordon Havoline/"Our Teammate Forever" Yates Racing ran the words "Davey-Our Teammate Forever" in remembrance to their fallen driver Davey Allison on the rear deck lid and on the B-Post in the race. It can be seen when Gordon makes the first pit stop in the race. Unfortunately Gordon crashed the car and finished last in the race. Source:I watched the race. 65. Andre posted: 01.07.2015 - 1:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Here's an article about how 46 was meant to be Gordon's number before the beginning of his career, but due to licensing (probably related to Days if Thunder), had to be changed to 24. They obviously kept the numbers and planned to run Dega with Baker, but that obviously fell through... there's a pic of Baker's #46 in the article, with Gordon's 24 in the background. http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/blogs/inside-groove/jeff-gordon-original-car-number-not-24-photo-of-46-ray-evernham.html 66. myself posted: 04.14.2015 - 12:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Freakin' Robbie Gordon!!!! 67. Jared DiCarlo posted: 09.07.2015 - 8:13 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race was a freaking bloodbath. 68. Ryan W posted: 09.13.2015 - 4:24 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I will admit I was being a bit ridiculous in saying that NASCAR "played favorites" in 1990. But I really don't see how any else I said was that far off the mark. He was a great driver with a great team. I agree with the great driver part... Decent team "Earnhardt fans are like the Da Bears guys on SNL are about Ditka.Its not enough that he won 7 championships, was at the very least as good as anyone whoever raced, and became the biggest star the sport ever had. They have to embellish it with an "inferior equipment" mythology as well. There was a time when Earnhardt was in inferior equipment, in his Bud Moore days, when he'd win a race or two a year and drop a lot of valves. Thats what you get when a great driver is in inferior equipment. When said driver is suddenly winning 45 races and 6 championships in 9 seasons, it stands to reason the equipment has caught up to his abilities. Sure there were stretches when the 2 and the 28, among others, showed greater speed. But they were never as reliable or as consistent. AND other than most of 1992, it never looked like the 3 was out to lunch. And speaking of which,if all of Childress' success in those years is owed totally to Earnhardt's talent, then how could the slump in 1992 have happened anyway? Earnhardt decide to start mailing it in? His slumps are all about car and team, but his successes are all down to him? Must be nice living in fantasy land" You fail to mention in 1980 when he was with an upstart team and won. That year he raced every lap like it was his last (well he did that about every year) and beat the greats of Yarborough, Petty, and Waltrip in his 2nd year! It was him! Not the cars, not the equipment! Yes, the 2, 5, 9, 11, 25, and 28 all had more speed, but he was just a better overall racer in decent equipment and could take a 15th place/garbage car and finish 5th or sometimes even win! That's what made him so great and why he is considered the greatest. Ask Ned Jarrett who raced with some greats and followed and was a major part of the sport for years who the greatest was. Petty even himself said Dale probably would have won 300 races if he had his equipment... I agree that 1987 he had the better cars for the majority of the year.. but that was the only year! Heck Elliott arguably was faster quite a bit that year. At the end of 1991 and the beginning of 1992 there were rule changes that really helped the Fords run a lot better than Earnhardt/Chevy. Ford went on a huge win streak (13 I believe) as Earnhardt was the last chevy to win before the streak started and the one that broke the streak. They basically made the rule changes that year ("Earnhardt proof" it where he was so good) to make things equal and it made the Fords superior. Dale had a lot of mechanical failures in 1991, but more in 1992. That wasn't his doing. All he can do is race the thing. 69. Ryan W posted: 09.13.2015 - 5:17 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Earnhardt fans are like the Da Bears guys on SNL are about Ditka" Polish Sausage... Dale was Da Best! 70. HD11 posted: 02.08.2016 - 8:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) All three Hendrick cars suffered engine trouble shortly after the hour plus red flag delay. It stands to reason they were all victim to the cooling off during the break. I've always wondered what was different about those engines that would cause such a thing. I don't believe anyone else had motor trouble afterward the red. 71. Smiff_2 posted: 09.29.2016 - 10:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The raw satellite feed of this race is getting uploaded on YouTube tonight 72. Thomas posted: 09.30.2016 - 7:06 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Thanks for that. This is a race I've wanted to see the satellite feed for. 73. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 09.30.2016 - 7:06 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) ^Saw those video(s). Specifically, I can confirm the rather grisly stories some have said about Stanley Smith being shown seriously injured during a commercial break. There is a moment during the raw broadcast where, indeed, Smith is shown being laid down on the ground beside his car with his white driver's suit soaking red with his blood. Had I seen that back in the day I probably would've thought he was dead myself. Miraculous that he was able to come back from those injuries to even compete again at any level of racing at all. By any chance, Smiff...are you the Josh Smith who uploaded those videos and several others? I've noticed there've been quite a few channels that have recently started uploading races that weren't on there before... 74. Smiff_2 posted: 09.30.2016 - 3:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yes, JMG, that is me 75. Smiff_2 posted: 09.30.2016 - 3:22 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) I'm in the NASCARNixon Fanpage on Facebook and lately Dave W has been uploading previously-unseen-on-YouTube races and I realized I had a few of my own, so I've been on an uploading spree for the past couple of days. I ran out of races that aren't on youtube at all, so I've now resorted to uploading all of the raw satellite feed versions that aren't already online. So far, I've done this race and the 1996 Winston Select 500, while I *still* have several others "on deck", including (but not limited to): 1997 Primestar 500 1995 DieHard 500 1993 Daytona 500, 1993 Winston 500 1994 Winston Select 500 1991 Bud at the Glen 76. dennyfan11 posted: 09.30.2016 - 4:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) You know what race i've really wanted to see, but haven't found ANYWHERE? The 1995 Hanes 500. Pretty much every other race from that time is on, but NOT that race. 77. jp posted: 07.16.2017 - 2:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dave Marcis also had sponsorshio from Motel 6 in this race 78. Amanda K posted: 08.21.2017 - 12:41 am Rate this comment: (1) (1) Just watched the Stanley Smith crash footage from the satellite feed and I'm not 100% convinced that was all blood on his uniform. I feel like if he bled that much, that quickly, he would've died from blood loss regardless of whatever head injuries he had. Oh and Smiff, love your YouTube channel. You and a few others should be considered NASCAR archivists for exposing the younger generations to NASCAR done the right way, i.e. pre 2004. 79. Mr.Victory posted: 02.01.2018 - 7:59 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I think the race didn't finish 0.005 seconds from 1st to second. If you look at the difference, it's about a 3rd of the car, but if you look at Burton and Bowyer's finish, it's even closer, when in 1993 and 2011 they're going roughly the same speed. 80. Anthony posted: 07.25.2018 - 9:22 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Today marks the 25th anniversary of this infamous race. Jimmy Horton going over the wall, Stanley Smith was nearly killed that day, Neil Bonnett survives a horrible accident and later on changes to his suit & tie to join Ken Squier & Ned Jarrett in the CBS booth late in the race, and then the photo finish between Dale Earnhardt & Ernie Irvan. What a crazy & wild race that was! 81. Ryan posted: 07.25.2018 - 11:13 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) @80 Dale side drafted Ernie in the trioval to win the race and at the time it was the closest margin of victory. A lot of people and most drivers at the time had no idea what side drafting was and how you could do it, besides one. 82. Ryan posted: 10.14.2018 - 1:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Watched the full race for the first time since it was live... It's hard to fathom that a lot of the car owners and drivers spoke during the race that these cars were so safe due to the some of the violent crashes (most notably Bonnett and Richard Childress). I guess it was easy to say that when Jimmy Horton went over the wall and his car was completely destroyed and the fact that he walked away and Neil Bonnett's car got caught by the catch fence after flipping. However, obviously more should have been done. The cars may have been safer than what they had been in the past, but there were a lot of things that were unsafe. NASCAR didn't do anything to research what could be done to prevent what happened to Stanley Smith. If they did it was not made public. They took the approach that it was just "Stanley Smith". That's unfortunate. Smith's tire marks leading up to the turn 1 wall was harrowing to see. The track worker looking at Smith when he approaches the car is disturbing. I'm sure that will live with him the rest of his life much like when Larry McReynolds saw Ernie Irvan at Michigan in '94 and when Ken Schrader saw Earnhardt at Daytona. It's unreal that Stanley Smith survived that crash from looking the way he did. The man was covered in blood down to his knees in his race uniform. The track workers didn't even get the jaws of life to take him out of the car. Most of the attention was given to Jimmy Horton due to his car going over the wall and amazingly he was just fine. Smith lost a lot of blood and the time it took just to get him out of the car and lying motionless on the apron of the track then taken to the infield care center (he should have immediately been taken to a local hospital) and then airlifted to the hospital, man... the fact he survived is simply amazing. Thank God we didn't have to see Dale Earnhardt after his crash or his autopsy photos, or any drivers for that matter. Thanks to the Bush brothers W and Jeb for that. Formula 1 did seem to like the HANS better instead of the airbag system they had after A. Senna died in 1994. It took NASCAR's biggest star perishing in 2001 to finally do something. Several drivers died or were seriously injured in Cup from 1994-2001. That's a big time frame. Earnhardt didn't like it referring to it as a "noose" and Mark Martin even stated that he didn't want to wear it and other drivers raised concern that it could do more harm such as keeping them trapped if there was a fire after a crash. It's possible that backlash from the drivers caused NASCAR to step back from making it mandatory. I believe when Earnhardt died there were only a couple of Cup drivers that raced with it on. It's disappointing to look back at the time period and hear several well known faces at that time in the sport state that NASCAR was one of the safest forms of racing, when in actuality it was behind. There were no catch fences around the turns, no safer barriers (although I know it wasn't much of an idea then if one at all and if they're going to have them they might as well be all the way around the track), no head or neck restraints, the catch fence they had should have been higher, or helmets for the pit crews. Several drivers and lives could have been saved had more been done. It seems to be much safer now, NASCAR safety was about 10 years behind or a dead superstar. 83. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 10.14.2018 - 2:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^ Just too add on too your post. After Senna died F1 reworked a lot of tracks in order too slow the cars down. The HANS wasn't made mandatory until at least the late 90's. But steps were taken but a few guys still had massive crashes (Mikka Hakianen (sp?) had a massive crash at Adelide in 1995. I wouldn't recommend anyone too watch it but he lived after it one has too wonder how he did). Bill France Jr. and the big wigs at NASCAR lived in a bubble for quite some time about safety of the sport. I honestly think the cars at the time Big E past on were safe... but the drivers weren't. Also just for added context on the safety NASCAR. Pocono used too have steel walls but got rid of them because they always had too fix them. And about half the drivers in the 2001 Daytona 500 wear a HANS device. Andy Houston and Dale Jarrett wore one, I think M. Waltrip did too. Perhaps Junior did. NASCAR didn't make the HANS "a must too wear" until after Blaise Alexander past away. And the HANS has been around since the 1980's but only came in 3 sizes (small, medium and large). Vast majority of drivers didn't wear it but i'm sure a few did. 84. Ryan posted: 10.15.2018 - 12:43 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'll have to fact check that comment about half the drivers having the HANS device for the 2001 Daytona 500. You may be right, but I don't feel that is accurate. I know good and well Dale Jr. did not use the HANS device for that race, as a matter of fact he didn't use the HANS device after the 2001 Daytona 500, but he did start using the Hutchens device. Dale Jarrett and Terry Labonte talked Jr. into getting rid of the open face helmet and to go to a closed helmet like most everyone else. I know that Jimmy Spencer raced a open face helmet for a long time. Eventually, NASCAR mandated that every driver use the HANS device. I don't think the Hutchens device was allowed no longer, that or you could have it, but STILL had to have the HANS device. I knew it had been involved with some forms of racing since the early 80's, but it didn't make it big until after Senna's death. 85. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 10.15.2018 - 7:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^ Did the fact check myself. Was wrong about half but 5-7 of the 52 guys who raced that weekend wore one. Andy Houston, Dale Jarrett, Ricky Carven, Brett Bodine and Kyle Petty, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Burton plan or did wear the HANS device. Petty and Bodine wore the HANS for at least 6 months before said race. 86. Corey posted: 10.15.2018 - 8:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) We need to keep in mind the mindset they and we fans had at the time. I can go on YouTube and watch replays of those races and think how dangerous everything was and how stupid they were, but when I was watching it live, I didn't think so. As far as guys thinking they cars were so safe, well they were, in comparison to the cars they had driven previously. Like all new models cars, they get a little safer each year. Those cars of 1993 don't look so safe now, compared to the cars of 2018. I remember when Terry was done full time driving. They gave him a send off at Homestead and brought along one of his first cars to be driven along side him by his son Justin. Terry called it a death trap and yet when he raced it in the early 80's, he might not of thought of it that way. 87. Ryan posted: 10.15.2018 - 10:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @85 I remember Burton wearing one. @86 It makes you appreciate those drivers from that time period and before that even more. They couldn't afford any mistakes. One minor mistake could be very serious for the driver or another driver or both. The sound of the cars from the late 70's to early 90's was simply awesome. 88. RaceFanX posted: 10.16.2018 - 9:09 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) @86 That was at Texas in 2006 for what was initially planned to be Labonte's last race but yeah, I'm sure that comment is accurate. Vintage stock car racing is a niche that almost exclusively focuses on road course tracks for a reason, the safety equipment of the day just isn't up to the standards necessary for oval track competition now. 89. Yeet #PrayForWickens posted: 01.05.2019 - 2:43 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) 'I knew I was in trouble when the first guy that got to the window was holding a beer' - Jimmy Horton following the race 90. Jimnsimforever posted: 02.08.2019 - 8:05 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I think the worst thing to see about the Stanley Smith wreck wasn't the wreck, or him laying there, because I know he lived. It was seeing his loved one when they were taking him in the in field care center being held back, trying to get to him and not knowing how he was. Whether that was his wife or sister, whoever, you have to feel for her in that moment. It was surreal for her. Also, Neal Bonnett should've listened to Ken Squier and retired. Before that wreck even happened he was doubting his abilities and didn't think he had it anymore. Don't know why he decided to try to go back to racing in 94 if he already felt that way. 91. RaceFanX posted: 02.08.2019 - 8:40 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Everyone told Neil to retire, especially his doctors, but Bonnett was determined to race again. This wreck should have convinced him to hang it up for good but he decided to press on regardless and it cost him his life. Sometimes racers get like that, I saw an interview with Dick Johnson where he described his rival and ATCC legend Peter Brock as the same way. Brock would try to retire only to continually decide to come back to run this race or that race until finally he was killed in a crash during the 2006 Targa West road rally in Western Australia. Johnson said Brock never seemed to realize in later years he wasn't the same seemingly invincible driver he was younger. 92. Jimnsimforever posted: 02.08.2019 - 3:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yeah, its a shame when any driver dies. I was only 12 or 13 when Neil died, and grew up in a family that weren't race fans. I went with a friends family to Richmond at age 17 for both the Busch and Cup races and was instantly hooked seeing it in person. I had heard of Bonnett and knew basic facts about racing history. Until getting to watch old races recently I get to see exactly who Bonnett was as a driver and a person and just how many injuries he went through at the end of his career. In broadcasting he did a really great job and would've done it for years. I can understand going out again and doing a start and park to help a buddy guarantee 3 more points towards a title, but deciding to go back out plate racing the next year after this, just a shame. 93. Eklund posted: 02.08.2019 - 5:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I've seen Neil bonnets crash (the in car footage) and it's amazinf how they could get cameras right 25 years ago but screw it up now. 94. Jimnsimforever posted: 02.11.2019 - 7:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @34 I knew it, thought I remembered seeing this in the comments. I was just watching the Dover race from later in the 93 season and during the TNN broadcast they showed Jimmy Horton and Buddy Baker made this exact same joke on air on national television and they all laughed about it and gave the assumption that the guys in the garage had given him that nickname. Comment #34 was made 11 years ago in 2008 and got a thumb down at some point in time. Perfect example of how something that was perfectly fine to say by a broadcaster on national television in 1993 is something that gets a thumb down by someone who was pretending to be outraged and offended by the exact same joke years later because that is what society has come to. 95. Joshua posted: 04.23.2019 - 9:01 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) This is one of my favorite races. I still remember it like it was yesterday, watching it with my dad as a young kid. This was not my first race I watched start to finish live, but it was one of the first and it has stuck with me since. The Davey tribute at the beginning, Donnie driving the car around the track, my dad trying to explain to me that Horton did fly over the wall, and then showing me the picture in the paper the next day of Bonnett going into the catch fence (TV cameras didn't get it but you could infer that's what happened). The handling and instability of the cars made for so much better racing back then, drivers had to be calculated and risky to try things that guys don't think twice about today. The finish is one of the most underrated/forgotten in history, as I believe the MOV is one of the top 5 smallest in history. Earnhardt not only "sucked off the side of Irvan" to win, as he stated in victory lane, but he did the same to Kyle when Kyle was almost past him in Turn 1 to hold Kyle back. The man was a master ahead of his time with the draft and aero. 96. RaceFanX posted: 07.19.2019 - 2:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle Petty's fourth-place finish, with a lot of laps led en route, would be his best in a restrictor plate race. Petty had two fourth-place runs at Talladega over the years but his other one was back in 1982 before the restrictor plate era began. 97. Jordan posted: 04.03.2020 - 1:19 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Regarding the comments by #82 Ryan started, the one thing you have to remember about the safety of Nascar in 1993 is that the cars were much safer than other forms of motor sport. While Nascar certainly had its fair share of fatal accidents, it was nothing like F1 or even Sportscar racing. The cars all had purpose built seats, with strong roll cages and many drivers had switched to full face helmets by 93. Was it as safe as 2020? Certainly not. I do whole heartedly agree that I wish Nascar would have taken a more proactive approach to safety starting in the 1980s when the sport really started to grow. Not to mention the speeds at Daytona/Talladega running in excess of 200 mph should have been impetus to do something, but that just wasn't the culture at the time. Thankfully steps were made, regrettably too late for Petty, Irwin, Roper and Earnhardt, but made none the less. 98. Jimmie4life posted: 05.20.2020 - 9:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Just saw Stanley Smith's wreck and the aftermath, and it's a damn miracle he survived. Never have I seen something like that where someone could get out alive. Even the officials who were attending to him just after the wreck were freaking out and disgusted because he was so mangled up but was alive still. Basilar Skull Fractures are no joke. 99. BOBO83329521 posted: 07.08.2020 - 12:57 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Greg Sacks' sixth place finish is, as of July 2020, the last top 10 finish for #68 in the Cup Series. 100. RaceFanX posted: 12.10.2020 - 9:53 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) As noted by nascarman on his Twitter page, Stanley Smith kept the #49 Lumina he almost died in here for years. He put its remains out behind his race shop and would sometimes go look at it to reflect on how close he came to losing it all driving it. Smith considered making a Cup series comeback once he healed up and was going to attempt the summer race at Talladega again in 1994 but even with a deal to rent a fast car already in place he decided it best to move on from superspeedway racing after his friend Neil Bonnett was killed at Daytona that year. He'd do well back in the short track ranks though. R.I.P. Stanley Smith 1949-2020 101. Rich posted: 12.30.2020 - 3:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ken Squier, Ned Jarrett and Neil Bonnett were the commentators. David Hobbs and Mike Joy were the pit road reporters. 102. Ryan posted: 02.04.2021 - 3:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Unbelievable that Ned Jarrett announcing Jimmy Horton going over the wall and embankment like it was another day at the office. You have to remember though that Jarrett had probably seen it all before during his career as a driver and announcer. I'm sure he remembered Cale going over the wall at Darlington in the mid-60's. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: