NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Allison died Saturday. He was 86 years old.

Her family said in a statement that Allison died at home and was with her family.

Allison is one of the winningest drivers in NASCAR Cup Series history. His 85 victories rank fourth among all drivers; Only Richard Petty (200 wins), David Pearson (105) and Jeff Gordon (93) have more victories. Just a few weeks ago, Allison was tied for fourth place on the all-time wins list with Darrell Waltrip. When NASCAR gave him his 85th victory.

That win was for the 1971 Myers Brothers Memorial 250 at Bowman Gray Speedway. Because two different types of cars competed in this event, NASCAR has never officially announced the winner. On October 23, Allison took the win, with NASCAR saying it was the only race in series history without an official winner.

Allison wins only cup title at age 45

Allison won his only Cup Series championship in 1983 at the age of 45. Despite being one of NASCAR’s top drivers in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, Allison had no Cup Series title. Before 1983, he had finished second in the Cup Series standings five times and finished in the top four three times.

However, in 1983, he broke the record with six wins during the 30-race season. Driving the No. 22 Buick for DiGard Racing, Allison notched three consecutive wins in the final third of the season and posted 25 top-10 finishes.

Allison has won five more since winning the title, but has never finished in the top five in the standings again.

In 1979, Allison was part of the famous finale of the 1979 Daytona 500, which also included his brother Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough. Donnie Allison and Yarborough crashed while racing for the win on the final lap, and the two cars hit the wall in Turn 3.

Bobby Allison was a lap down and stopped at the scene of the crash to check on his brother. After Bobby arrived on the scene, Yarborough confronted Bobby and the most famous fight in NASCAR history began.

Allison’s crash at Talladega led to big changes

Allison’s racing life is also shaped by two horrific accidents and the untimely deaths of his two sons in racing-related incidents.

In 1987, Allison’s car flew into the Talladega fence after she slashed her car’s tire. The crash injured four spectators and became one of the most violent crashes in NASCAR history.

This also led to NASCAR implementing restrictor plates at Talladega and Daytona, and the mass racing we see at those tracks today. At Daytona and Talladega, cars were routinely going over 200 MPH, and NASCAR took action to restrict airflow in the cars’ engines to prevent them from accelerating too quickly and pulling away from each other.

A year later, Allison was part of another horrific wreck in Pocono. His car crashed into the exterior wall before crashing into the driver’s side. Allison suffered a serious head injury in the accident and last rites were even performed.

Allison had to go through an intensive rehabilitation program to regain some normal functions. He also suffered severe memory loss from the crash and said he could not remember the 1988 Daytona 500.

The race where he crossed the finish line first, ahead of his son Davey Allison, was the last victory of his career. This was also the first time a father and son finished first and second in a NASCAR Cup Series race.

Allison never started the Cup Series again after the Pocono crash. Meanwhile, Davey has emerged as one of the Cup Series’ best drivers. Davey won 19 races from 1987 to 1993 and finished third in the standings in both 1991 and 1992. However, midway through the 1993 season, Allison was killed when his helicopter crashed while landing in Talladega for a mid-season testing session.

Davey Allison’s death occurred less than a year after his brother Clifford died in a practice crash before the 1992 Busch Series race at Michigan.