Talladega Frights: NASCAR's Dangerous 1993 Season 

Jimmy Horton had the best racing quote in history after his crash in '93. "You know you're in trouble when the first person to get to you after a wreck is carrying a beer"

Fun Fact: Wallace's crash at Talladega was an inspiration for "The King" crash of the final race of the Pixar movie Cars.

1993 was arguably the worst season in Modern NASCAR history. The losses of Alan Kulwicki and Davey Allison brought a morbid tone to the season, not to mention all of the injuries and horrible crashes throughout.

Neil Bonnett casually goes back to his other gig with Ken Squier & Ned Jarrett to call the finish of same race what a bad ass hihi🤠

R.I.P. Neil Bonnett.

Stanley Smith suffered a basilar skull fracture in that Talladega crash. The same injury that took Dale Earnhardt's life.

Stanley Smith had a basilar skull fracture. He somehow survived like Ernie Irvan.

David Bonnett wasn't testing/ practicing. It was Neil Bonnett that was testing and Red and Davey came to see. Neil was getting ready for his comeback at Dega that year.

That satellite feed of stan being pulled out of the car is one of the most gruesome things ive ever seen in racing. Definitely not for the faint of heart. How he survived after losing that much blood is beyond me. The white firesuit didnt help to lessen the graphicness obviously

David Bonnett didn’t actually make his Busch series debut at Talladega in July 1993. He had his first two starts in 1992 at Volusia County and Rockingham. David had four more Busch series starts in 1993, but two of them were prior to the July 1993 race at Talladega. Unless the records on Racing Reference are wrong, the website claims that David didn’t even attempt to qualify for Talladega’s July 1993 race. He didn’t make his first Talladega start until 1995.

2009 was pretty wild too... Carl Edwards goes into fence, newman flips over onto harvick's hood, mark martin flips over too.. lots of crazines.. I personally remember 2005 being a real eye opener for the WILD big ones in each race

Rusty got spun by earnhardt, not jarrett as the vid says. Dale went to check on rusty after because he thought he killed him

It was a helicopter not a plane. I thought you just misspoke the first time but then repeated it at the end. I remember where I was when the news came in about the accident. Same way I remember waking up for school, normally to an alarm but instead my mom knocking on my door and telling me Allan Kulwicki was killed on a plane crash (that same year before the Spring BMS race). Crazy how two of.the previous years championship contenders (in the tightest points battle under that legacy points system) were killed in air accidents.

Imagine how amazing of a career Davey would have had if we hadn't lost him that day....

Another thing that most people don’t realize is that Stan Smith survived a Basal Skull Fracture in that wreck. If you find the satellite version of the race you can see the track workers attending to him in the car. I will say it’s amazing he survived

I remember watching all these races and that whole year was tough

The reason why the 1993 NASCAR Winston Cup Series was the most dangerous season was because the cars DIDN'T have roof flaps. With the deaths of Alan Kulwicki and Davey Allison added to it, plus two wrecks at the restrictor plate tracks for Rusty Wallace and that wild wreck by Neil Bonnet at Talladega, it's a no brainer that it was a dangerous season.

What about Ricky craven going into the catch fence in 95 or 96? That was horrific.

Absolutely the most dangerous & exciting!

Red Farmer didnt get out of that helicopter crash “unscathed” he broke his collar bone and had other broken bones

Red Farmer was NOT left unscathed in that helicopter crash that took Davey from us. For one, he had a broken collarbone. Ever have one?? I have, hurts like hell....

Those 93 races that year were so instant classics. I remember being there during qualifying for both races I remember the May race the pole speed was nearly 200. The only thing I remember from the July race was how bad hot it was.

I’ve been to battlefields, and the feeling I get every time I go to Dega is eerily similar to that feeling I get at battlefields, except it’s similar, not the same. I can sense sorrow at Dega, but at battlefields I sense sorrow and agony.

Don’t forget how dangerous 1996 was. Ricky Craven and Dale Earnhardt’s crashes inspired the vertical windshield safety bar to be implemented on roll cages.

Stan Smith was the harbinger of a things to come. As basilar skull fractures killed Rodney Orr and Neil Bonnett and derailed Ernie Irvan’s career in 94.

R.I.P Neil Bonnett (1946-1994, 47 years) R.I.P Dale Earnhardt (1951-2001, 49 years)

Rusty was spun by Dale Sr not Jarrett

If you want to know how bad of shape Stanley Smith is in after the crash watch race footage of when the track worker goes to the window of Smith's car, he literally gets chills and recoils at the sight of Smith. BSF's can leave people bleeding from the eyes, nose, ears, mouth, I imagine that poor guy hasn't forgotten the sight.

Bobby Allison April 30, 1987 on my 3rd birthday when his car pop his right rear tire sending the car backwards and getting airborne into the catch fence. The day that NASCAR almost ended. The year after in 88 is when NASCAR mandate a restrictor plate to slow the cars down.

Dale Sr. turned Rusty because he was mad and needed points but it's Dale so he gets a pass...

Hate to be that guy, but planes and helicopters are two very different things

Dale Earnhardt crashed Rusty…….it was not Dale Jarrett, come on man

Its remarkable that no one died during this race. Glad you brought this up being 30 years ago, 1993 as a whole was one of the worst seasons NASCAR has probably ever had

I’m very surprised it’s on the NASCAR Classics website

Well done

I thought this video was only going to be about the later talladega race I didn't know rusty Wallace flipped in talladega 93

Madness

Am I wrong to feel like shit for being born in September of 1993? I never got to see Alan and Davey. They were dead before I was born. Sad....😢

Back when NASCAR was legendary, but super dangerous, and when *any* accident caused brief trepidation until confirmation the driver was okay, or otherwise, investigating his (or her, yes, there were a few) condition. That crash with Stanley Smith was the canary in the coal mine for basilar skull fractures. The cars were just beginning to get faster, but the safety was not keeping up. I feel at that point, there had been so many basilar skull fractures, most of which resulted in death, that a connection could have been made long before Dale Earnhardt passed away in 2001 what was happening and the safety could have been implemented by the mid 1990s. Also, a minor quibble, as pretty much everyone makes this mistake, but notice in that same crash the #40 of Kenny Wallace sliding off the outside wall, too, making 6 cars involved in the crash (#1, #32, #40, #49, and #53 got the worst of it, and #37 Loy Allen, Jr. simply spun to miss the crash, and did so). Sometimes I wonder if that catch fence in T1 at Dega is actually a good thing. There aren't any fans over there, and Jimmy Horton was unhurt. When Craven hit the fence in 1996, he was injured, but didn't step out of the car. Everybody remembers Bonnett's for the simple facts that he was Earnhardt's best buddy and driving an RCR-prepared car and even a #3 livery. What still gets me about that crash, is the next day in the paper, my dad showed me a photo of the 31 going into the fence, in the air. That has stayed with me and ever since, I haven't seen that photo anywhere.

Rusty was hooked by Dale Earnhardt that's why Earnhardt stopped at his car after the race

That was my favorite Ernie Irvan race win other than at Daytona 500.

Smith had a Basilar Skull Fracture after hitting the wall.

Although in between races sucked to me those where the best balanced horsepower/handling cars that was to me the prime cars and racing just my opinion I loved the cars from those 90-93 seasons

Rusty blocked Dale Earnhardt on the last lap and spun off and flipped, not Dale Jarrett..

I’m glad we have proper safety now

3:47 ummm no Dale Jarrett had nothing to do with Rusty's flip. Earnhardt dumped him.

Ritchie Petty...lol..

Come on Bud, you can fit some more sponsor SPAM, but I guess it is okay you took the Mellow route.

you didnt even mention alan kulwicki

What plane?

Didnt Chris Gerke die in an arca race in 93?

Talladega Frights: NASCAR's Dangerous 1993 Season

Please do your homework before you make a video the Jimmy Horton incident happened in a arca race the first time they raced in 1993 not in the cup race. You keep saying plane it was a helicopter that Davey died in I was there in 1993 for the first race it rained for like 2 minutes with 10 to go it was super hot so the track really didn't get wet

E

A helicopter is in no way shape nor form a plane

Idk how a chopper crash falls in with a dangerous 93 season. That was a crash because someone didn't have the skill to land, that wasn't due anything related to (racing). I am not picking on him so don't get all pissy.