NASCAR Hall of Fame: The Second Class
In October, the next five inductees for NASCAR’s Hall of Fame will be announced but who should be admitted?
In the early stages of honoring a sport’s finest, the true legends are so obvious, but over time, certain benchmarks seem to evolve but there will always be exceptions. Looking at the honored legends at Cooperstown, New York and Canton, Ohio testify to that.
We feel four of the next five are absolutely clear. These are drivers whose success on the track stood far above all those except the three already admitted. We feel their accomplishments speak for themselves, but we’ll remind our readers of a few details.
David Pearson – Pearson had 105 wins second to Richard Petty. Pearson won three championships during King Richard’s reign, 1966, 1968, and 1969.
Bobby Allison – Allison is tied in victories with 84 wins with Darrell Waltrip. He won one championship in 1982. The end of his career was marked by two horrific accidents. His first accident was a vicious incident at Talladega when his car airlifted off the track during the May, 1987 race traveling over 200 mph injuring several fans. This led to the beginning of restrictor plates as mandatory at Talladega and Daytona. In February, 1988 Allison was involved in one of NASCAR’s most touching personal moments when the senior Allison held off his son, Davey to win the Daytona 500. Later that season, June 19, 1988, Allison was involved in a near fatal accident causing memory loss and other complications at Pocono forcing the end of his brilliant career. He’d later lose two sons, Clifford and Davey, both racers: Clifford 1992 practicing for a Busch series race and Davey was killed in a helicopter accident at Talladega the following summer.
Cale Yarborough – Yarborough is 5th in overall wins just behind Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip tied with 84. Yarborough was the first driver to win three consecutive championships until that feat was equaled by Jimmie Johnson in 2008 with Johnson’s streak still continuing with four championships. Yarborough was a master of the Daytona 500 winning the February classic four times. During his career, he raced for both the legendary Wood Brothers (remember – legendary is mandatory in citing the Wood Brothers) and Junior Johnson. Besides his NASCAR accomplishments, he raced in four Indy 500’s, his best finish 10th in 1972.
Darrell Waltrip – Surely ol’ DW will have enough to say to justify an entire evening for his induction. In many ways, Waltrip was the first true racer of the modern era understanding the wide marketing and promotional possibilities of the sport. Nicknamed among other things, “Jaws,” for always having something to say, Waltrip earned three Winston Cup championships for owner, Junior Johnson and stands tied for third in victories with Bobby Allusion. He contributes much to the sport having served as a color analyst for Fox TV since 2001.
There are many possibilities for the fifth inductee. Surely, Lee Petty, Richard’s father and holder of three championships will be hard to resist if the award goes to another driver. We’ll discuss other significant NASCAR figures who we believe should be enshrined in later seasons.
In October, the next five inductees for NASCAR’s Hall of Fame will be announced but who should be admitted?
In the early stages of honoring a sport’s finest, the true legends are so obvious, but over time, certain benchmarks seem to evolve but there will always be exceptions. Looking at the honored legends at Cooperstown, New York and Canton, Ohio testify to that.
We feel four of the next five are absolutely clear. These are drivers whose success on the track stood far above all those except the three already admitted. We feel their accomplishments speak for themselves, but we’ll remind our readers of a few details.
David Pearson – Pearson had 105 wins second to Richard Petty. Pearson won three championships during King Richard’s reign, 1966, 1968, and 1969.
Bobby Allison – Allison is tied in victories with 84 wins with Darrell Waltrip. He won one championship in 1982. The end of his career was marked by two horrific accidents. His first accident was a vicious incident at Talladega when his car airlifted off the track during the May, 1987 race traveling over 200 mph injuring several fans. This led to the beginning of restrictor plates as mandatory at Talladega and Daytona. In February, 1988 Allison was involved in one of NASCAR’s most touching personal moments when the senior Allison held off his son, Davey to win the Daytona 500. Later that season, June 19, 1988, Allison was involved in a near fatal accident causing memory loss and other complications at Pocono forcing the end of his brilliant career. He’d later lose two sons, Clifford and Davey, both racers: Clifford 1992 practicing for a Busch series race and Davey was killed in a helicopter accident at Talladega the following summer.
Cale Yarborough – Yarborough is 5th in overall wins just behind Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip tied with 84. Yarborough was the first driver to win three consecutive championships until that feat was equaled by Jimmie Johnson in 2008 with Johnson’s streak still continuing with four championships. Yarborough was a master of the Daytona 500 winning the February classic four times. During his career, he raced for both the legendary Wood Brothers (remember – legendary is mandatory in citing the Wood Brothers) and Junior Johnson. Besides his NASCAR accomplishments, he raced in four Indy 500’s, his best finish 10th in 1972.
Darrell Waltrip – Surely ol’ DW will have enough to say to justify an entire evening for his induction. In many ways, Waltrip was the first true racer of the modern era understanding the wide marketing and promotional possibilities of the sport. Nicknamed among other things, “Jaws,” for always having something to say, Waltrip earned three Winston Cup championships for owner, Junior Johnson and stands tied for third in victories with Bobby Allusion. He contributes much to the sport having served as a color analyst for Fox TV since 2001.
There are many possibilities for the fifth inductee. Surely, Lee Petty, Richard’s father and holder of three championships will be hard to resist if the award goes to another driver. We’ll discuss other significant NASCAR figures who we believe should be enshrined in later seasons.
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