Bobby Allison Bio

Three victories in the Daytona 500 pushed Bobby Allison from being one of racing’s all-time greats to one of the sports true legends.

As a member of the famed “Alabama Gang,” named when Bobby, his brother Donnie and Red Farmer set up shop just west of Birmingham in the mid-1950s, Allison won 84 races in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series — which ties him for third on the all-time list with Darrell Waltrip.

Allison took checkered flags in the “The Great American Race” in 1978, 1982 and 1988, when his one-two finish with his son, Davey, provided one of the brightest memories in Victory Lane after the Daytona 500.

While 84 victories is more than enough to set any NASCAR driver head and shoulders above most, Allison’s part in 1979 Daytona 500 helped make NASCAR a national phenomenon. While Bobby rolled a lap down when Donnie and Cale Yarborough battled for the lead and crashed each other heading onto the final turns, Bobby stopped and climbed from his car to join the argument, which concluded the first live television broadcast of a 500 mile race in the United States.

The ensuing melee cemented NASCAR’s place on the national sports scene and serves as one of Allsion’s most enduring legacies as a driver who absolutely refused to give in to anyone.