5. Dale Earnhardt: A Difficult Customer is Born (1982)
Dale Earnhardt’s toughness behind the wheel of a race car was never questioned. The Intimidator was originally coined “One Tough Customer” back in his days as a Wrangler Jeans driver, and in 1982 at Pocono Raceway, Earnhardt earned that nickname.
On lap 136 of the July 1982 Mountain Dew 500 at Pocono, Earnhardt suffered a problem entering Turn 1 and was unable to slow his No. 15 Bud Moore machine. Earnhardt crashed into the rear of the number car. 2 by Tim Richmond, causing both drivers to crash.
Earnhardt took the brunt of it when his No. 15 Ford was thrown when it hit the outside wall, and after a wild tumble, Earnhardt’s car landed on its cover and skidded to a stop. When Earnhardt tried to get out of his car, he noticed Richmond running toward him. In 1987, Earnhardt would admit in an interview with The Washington Post that he thought his competitor was reaching out to “whip my butt” and that he was worried because he knew he was in no position to defend himself.
Fortunately, Richmond wasn’t coming to fight, but rather to help his fellow competitor. Earnhardt suffered a broken leg in the accident, but refused to inform NASCAR about the injury and later let his sponsor know that he would not miss any races due to the injury.
It did not.
4. The MASSIVE impact of Elliott Sadler (2010)
It was a crash that was so hard that it directly ripped the engine out of Elliott Sadler’s No. 19 car and left the driver grimacing in pain as he tried to climb out of the car. But what happened? We still don’t know for sure, but when Kurt Busch crashed in front of him, Sadler was somehow sent spinning into the grass.
When he hit the grass, Sadler was unable to slow his car and fell headfirst into a 90-degree L-shaped section of metal guardrail.
3. The Nasty Fall of Davey Allison (1992)
After a push from Darrell Waltrip, Davey Allison’s No. 28 Texaco Ford Thunderbird spun backward and went flying through the air, falling again and again as his car skidded over the top of the field’s metal railing.
Allison would be flown to the hospital, where he would be diagnosed with a broken arm, wrist, collarbone, and a concussion. After holding a press conference, where he showed his bloodshot eyes after the horrific accident, Allison would start the next points race, but would be relieved by Bobby Hillin Jr.
The driver would battle Alan Kulwicki and Bill Elliott for the NASCAR Cup title in the final race of the season that year, but a crash ended his title hopes.
2. Richard Petty suffers a broken neck (1980)
On lap 56 of the 1980 Pocono 500, ‘The King’ Richard Petty suffered right front tire failure in Turn 2, sending his No. 43 Petty Enterprises machine hard into the outside wall. Petty’s car was thrown violently into the air before falling back onto its wheels.
As Petty’s car sat motionless on the exit of Turn 2, a spinning Chuck Bown narrowly missed him, but then Darrell Waltrip hit him in the driver’s door.
After a trip to the hospital, it was revealed that Petty had broken his neck in the accident, and the hospital also saw evidence that Petty had previously broken his neck even though the driver was unaware of that fact.
1. Bobby Allison’s Near Death Experience (1988)
It was an accident that changed Bobby Allison’s life and marked the end of the NASCAR Hall of Famer’s NASCAR Cup Series driving career. Fortunately, it didn’t mark the end of his life, but things were in danger, no doubt.
On the first lap of the 1988 Miller 500 at Pocono, Allison dropped a tire on his No. 12 machine, sending him into the outside wall in Turn 2, causing his car to spin and stop. on the track. . Jocko Maggiacomo then hit Allison on the driver’s side door. Allison estimated in an interview that Maggiacomo was traveling about 150 mph at the time of impact.
Allison, 50 years old at the time, would be transported to Lehigh Valley Hospital Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where reports say she suffered a concussion, a broken left leg, blunt abdominal trauma and internal bleeding.
Allison remained unconscious in the hospital for days, once he regained consciousness, Allison spent months in the hospital recovering and years of rehabilitation. Allison suffered memory loss in the accident and still does not remember beating his son Davey Allison to the win in the 1988 Daytona 500.
Are you thinking about going to Pocono Raceway?
With the NASCAR weekend at Pocono Raceway quickly approaching, the iconic 2.5-mile tricky triangle has teamed up with Racing America and some of the top racing teams in the NASCAR Cup Series ranks to give racing fans the opportunity to utilize your love for your favorite NASCAR Cup Series. The series team will get an exclusive offer on tickets to the upcoming The Great American Getaway 400 presented by VisitPA.com.
Click here and then select your favorite team to take advantage of a special ticket offer ($10 off a Paddock Pass+ with the purchase of a 100 or 200 level grandstand ticket) for The Great American Getaway 400 presented by VisitPA at Pocono Raceway.
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