Despite many NASCAR fans mourning the passing of three-time NASCAR Cup Champion and Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough, one of his old rivals still feels wronged by something that happened between the two on the racetrack. Donnie Allison will be entering the NASCAR Hall of Fame in a matter of weeks, but he has yet to forgive Yarborough for the now famous fight at the end of the 1979 Daytona 500.
The two fought neck-and-neck throughout that race, which sadly only has Allison left to recall the first-hand moments from that day.
Allison made an appearance on Sirius XM NASCAR radio to discuss his upcoming enshrinement in the NASCAR Hall of Fame and talked about the famous fight.
? "He kept me from winning the Daytona 500."
2024 @NASCARHall inductee Donnie Allison ????? isn't over how the 1979 Great American Race ended with the late Cale Yarborough. pic.twitter.com/q608ouaiOD
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) January 4, 2024
Allison didn't mince his words about how long it took him to recover from the fisticuffs that ultimately unfolded between himself and Yarborough after they wrecked from the lead on the final lap.
"No, no," Allison said of the wreck. "You know he kept me from winning the Daytona 500. Really for the third time, I should have won it. I'm sitting in the infield wrecked in Turn 4 three-quarters of a mile from the start/finish line. ... I got out of the car after the wreck, and we had a few choice words and Bobby [Allison, Donnie's brother] showed up and Cale went over, and I was standing 20-25 feet away.
"Cale hit Bobby through the window and I ran and grabbed Cale by the arm and said you want to fight, I'm the guy you need to be fighting with," Allison recalled.
Hence Yarborough ended up getting into it with both Allison brothers.
Allison was adamant that some of the reporting that has been shared about what actually happened on that day has been overblown. He said that he and Yarborough had talked several times after the incident.
Despite all that, it's clear that even with the loss of Yarborough, Allison hasn't quite forgiven him for the incident that kept him out of Daytona's victory circle for a third time but became one of NASCAR's most famous moments and helped make the series breakout of the Southeast and into the national consciousness.
