- published: 15 Dec 2011
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Robert Arthur "Bobby" Allison (born December 3, 1937) is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver and was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers. His two sons, Clifford and Davey Allison, followed him into racing, and both died within a year of each other.
Allison was born December 3, 1937 in Miami, Florida. He entered his first race as a senior at Archbishop Curley-Notre Dame High School in Miami, but was asked to quit by his father. After high school in 1955, Allison took his brother, Donnie, and some friends along on a quest for more lucrative racing than was available in south Florida. His searching led him to the Montgomery Speedway in Montgomery, Alabama, where he was told of a race that very night in Midfield, Alabama near Birmingham. Allison entered and won that race, along with two other races that week. He had found his lucrative racing. The brothers set up shop in Hueytown, Alabama with another friend (Red Farmer), and they began answering to the name Alabama Gang. Bobby Allison worked as a mechanic and an engine tester, but eventually became a driver and won the national championship in the modified special division in 1962.