Motorsport Memorial -

Davey Allison

Complete name: David Carl Allison

Birth date: 25.Feb.1961

Birth Place: Hollywood, Broward County, FL, United States

Death date: 13.Jul.1993

Death Place: Birmingham, Jefferson County, AL, United States

Nationality: United States

Gender: male

Notes:
A member of one of stock-car racing's most prominent families, Davey Allison steered his family's car-racing legacy to NASCAR stardom of his own. He competed in the Grand National/Winston Cup circuit from 1985 to 1993, being remembered for being one of NASCAR’s 50 greatest drivers, for his 1992 Daytona 500 win, and for the exceptional talent he displayed while behind the wheel of his famous #28 Texaco-Havoline Ford.

Born in Hollywood, Florida, in 1961, David Carl "Davey" Allison was the son of a racing legend, the 1983 NASCAR Series Champion Bobby Allison and the nephew of Bobby's younger brother and also NASCAR and Indy 500 driver, Donnie Allison. Following his father and uncle from track to track while growing up, Davey was immersed in the sport from an early age. The family moved to Hueytown, Alabama, and within a couple of years of success on the short track circuit, Donnie, Bobby and his sons Davey and Clifford, plus other drivers, including Neil Bonnett and Red Farmer, formed the "Alabama Gang", making their way to the big NASCAR leagues. Always determined to get into the family business, Davey naturally began to race as well.

Hueytown, part of the Birmingham metropolitan area in western Jefferson County, Alabama, known as home of the famous NASCAR Alabama Gang.
The Allison Bonnett Memorial Drive, in Heuytown, Alabama.
Photo courtesy of Carlo Fertitta. Reproduced under kind permission, all rights reserved.

Davey Allison made his debut in 1979 and, after racing in numerous series and rising through the ranks, Davey Allison progressed to the NASCAR Busch series and in 1985, he started competing in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. His first start occurred in the 1985 Talladega 500, where he finished 10th in Hoss Ellington's Chevrolet. In 1987, Allison was selected to replace Cale Yarborough for the Ranier-Lundy racing team, going on to win his first Winston Cup race at Talladega, the first rookie since Ron Bouchard in 1981 to do so. And he won a second time at Dover a couple of weeks later.

During his NASCAR Winston Cup career, Davey Allison produced 92 top-ten finishes over 191 starts, winning a total of $6,726,974, taking 19 victories, the most notable being the 1992 Daytona 500, the sport's premier race. He finished third in the Cup Series standings in 1991 and 1992. Four years earlier, Davey finished second, just two car-lengths behind his father, Bobby Allison who won the 1988 Daytona 500. Just five months later, Bobby Allison quit racing after a nearly fatal accident in June 1988 at Pocono, Pennsylvania. It was just the second time in NASCAR history a father-son duo finished 1-2. Richard Petty and father Lee Petty did so in 1960 at Heidelberg, Pennsylvania.

Davey Allison was only 32 when he was fatally injured, on Monday, 12 July 1993. His recently purchased helicopter he was piloting slammed into a track infield at Talladega Superspeedway. That day, he planned to fly to Talladega to watch fellow competitor and friend David Bonnett, Neil’s son, practice before his Busch Series debut. While attempting to land in a small parking lot, the helicopter went out of control before touching down. It suddenly shot back up 25 feet off the ground and began spinning before crashing on its left side, where Allison was sitting. He was rushed to Carraway Methodist Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama., where he underwent surgery, but succumbed to his head injuries on Tuesday morning, 13 July 1993, without regaining consciousness.

His death was met with widespread mourning in the NASCAR community, as the gifted young driver’s premature death cut short a career that was just starting to take off. In 1993 Davey Allison was enjoying another solid season, with six top-five finishes, including a victory at Richmond.

According to the National Transportation Safety Board report, Allison’s inexperience as a pilot with that particular style of helicopter cost him his life. The only passenger aboard the helicopter, former stock car driver and Davey Allison's crew chief Red Farmer, survived the crash.

In addition to his parents, Bobby and Judy (née Bjorkman) Allison, Davey Allison was survived by his wife, Elizabeth; a three-year-old daughter, Krista Marie; a 23-month-old son, Robert Grey, and two sisters. His three-year-younger brother, Clifford Allison, who raced in the NASCAR Busch series, was killed just one year earlier, on 13 August 1992, while running practice laps at Michigan International Speedway. According to his family, following Clifford’s death, Davey became more spiritual. As young boys, the brothers raced each other around their father’s garage on tricycles, before graduating to bicycles and go-karts. Davey Allison is buried in Highland Memorial Gardens in Bessemer, Jefferson County, Alabama. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1998.

Davey Allison's grave in the Highland Memorial Gardens, Bessemer, Alabama, and the bench dedicated to him, erected near his tomb by his children, Robbie and Krista.
Photo courtesy of Carlo Fertitta. Reproduced under kind permission, all rights reserved.

Career Summary:

Sources:

Newspaper The New York Times (New York City, NY, United States), issue of 14 July 1993, page D-20, article "Davey Allison, Stock-Car Driver, Dies at 32 After Helicopter Crash" by Joseph Siano.
Website Davey Allison, article "The Davey Allison Story", page http://www.daveyallison.net/dastory.html .
Website AP News Archive, page http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1993/Notable-Sports-Deaths-in-1993/id-083009aa8dc86537d2fe3e0555f7c7b5 .
Website Racing Reference, page https://www.racing-reference.info/driver/Davey_Allison/ .
Website Nascar.com, article "Davey Allison through the years", page https://www.nascar.com/gallery/davey-allison-through-the-years/#photo-12 .
Website Sportscasting, article "How a Violent Helicopter Crash Killed NASCAR Star and Daytona 500 Winner Davey Allison and Shocked the Sports World" by Kyle Dalton, page https://www.sportscasting.com/how-a-violent-helicopter-crash-killed-nascar-star-and-daytona-500-winner-davey-allison-and-shocked-the-sports-world/ .
Website Find-A-Grave: Davey Allison.
E-mail by Carlo Fertitta, dated 16 March 2023 (four messages).