Bobby Allison was a fixture in Victory Lane at Richmond. Credit: Autostock

Enduring Performance: 1988 Miller High Life 400

Perhaps it was the voice of father Bobby -- a driver synonymous with victory at the half-mile Richmond Fairgrounds -- that got Davey Allison dialed in on the new three-quarter mile Richmond International Raceway in the 1988 Miller 400.

Perhaps it was all the static about the tires, as many teams qualified on the new Hoosiers with the idea of switching to the longer-lasting Goodyears as the race wore on.

Results 1988 Miller High Life 400 Pos. Driver Make 1. D. Allison Ford 2. D. Earnhardt Chevrolet 3. T. Labonte Chevrolet 4. M. Martin Ford 5. A. Kulwicki Ford Complete results, click here

In any case, the younger Allison came in loud and clear, leading 262 of the 400 laps to win for the first time at Richmond, carrying on the family tradition. Allison beat Dale Earnhardt to the line by more than three seconds in becoming the first driver to reach $1 million in earnings by his 52nd start.

At the same time, Rusty Wallace's championship hopes were disconnected in a first-lap bell-ringer with Geoffrey Bodine.

Still recovering from head injuries suffered three months earlier at Pocono -- a crash that would put an end to his racing career -- Bobby Allison was able to give the command for drivers to start their engines from his room in Alabama. His voice was piped in via long-distance phone lines over the track's public address system, much to the delight of the 36 drivers and some 60,000 fans.

Davey Allison, who had finishes of 12th, 26th and 29th in his three previous Richmond appearances, apparently caught on quickly to the new configuration, winning the pole with a lap of 122.85 mph, more than 28 mph faster than Neil Bonnett's pole-winning speed in February.

Six other drivers led the race, including Earnhardt for 78 circuits, but it was Allison's day to dominate at the track where his father won seven times and posted 28 top-10s in 38 career starts.

"We just got the car dialed in," Allison said. "And we probably gambled right on the tires.

"We thought if we started on the pole with 'em, then we could lead the first lap and get five bonus points. We didn't think it was gonna be very long before we had a caution anyway -- then we could get in and change to Goodyears."

Allison was able to switch his tires after one lap when the new track surface claimed its first victim in the form of Wallace, who came into Richmond just 26 points behind Bill Elliott in the championship chase.

Bodine, starting 23rd, suddenly found his windshield filled with the rear of Wallace's slowing Pontiac -- and nowhere to go.

Wallace, who started directly in front of Bodine, couldn't understand how the other driver didn't know the caution had come out.

"I don't know what happened," a fuming Wallace said. "Geoff must be suffering some sort of brain fade."

Bodine disagreed.

"They say the caution was out, but I didn't see it, and no one told me over the radio," he said. "I had a head of steam up and ran over him.

"I can understand why they would be upset, but if they see the films, I think they will owe me an apology."

The impact and resulting damage left Wallace 35th, and coupled with Elliott's seventh-place finish, dropped him 119 points out of the lead.

Wallace would go on to win four of the last five races on the schedule and post seven consecutive top-five finishes to close out the season, but he never was able to regain the points he lost at Richmond.

Wallace lost the 1988 championship to Elliott by 24 points.

However, Rusty earned a measure of revenge the following season when he captured the title by 12 points over Earnhardt, thanks to a pair of victories at Richmond.

Allison would go on to continued success at Richmond, never finishing worse than 20th from that point on. His final Cup victory came there in the 1993 Pontiac Excitement 400. He would die in a helicopter accident in the Talladega infield 14 weeks later.