Richmond 1988 emotional at both ends of finish order

As the last race before the Chase for the Sprint Cup, Richmond International Raceway has a built-in excitement factor. But long before the Chase format was instituted, the racing at Richmond provided several intriguing storylines, particularly the 1988 Miller High Life 400.

The first involved a father-son relationship. The second provided some championship-changing excitement.

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With Bobby Allison giving the command for the drivers to start their engines from his hospital bed in Alabama, the stage was set for son Davey to pull off a storybook finish. He started from the pole and led more than half of the 400 laps.

But it was Ricky Rudd who passed Allison for the lead shortly after the field took the green for the final time on Lap 332, and Rudd appeared on his way to the win when the engine in his No. 26 Buick suddenly expired without warning.

"I wasn't even driving it hard," said Rudd, who wound up 26th.

That left things up to Allison, who carried a comfortable advantage over Dale Earnhardt the rest of the way and dedicated the victory to his dad.

"Man, I'm tickled to death," Allison said. "When I talked to him yesterday, he was all pumped up."

The younger member of the Alabama Gang admitted that hearing his father's voice over the public address system was a special moment.

"I was kind of prepared for it," Davey said. "So it didn't catch me off-guard as bad as it might have, but it still sent cold chills up and down my spine. I know it probably set a lot of people on fire around this place, too."

Things got a little heated in the championship chase as well.

Bill Elliott and Rusty Wallace had been locked in a titanic points duel throughout the summer of 1988, as Elliott won back-to-back races at Daytona and Pocono and closed to within a handful of points of Wallace. Elliott grabbed the top spot when he finished second to Earnhardt in Bristol, while Wallace finished ninth after a vicious practice accident that nearly cost him his life.

And after finishing 1-2 in the Southern 500 the week before, Elliott's lead over Wallace was a mere 26 points heading into the first race on the reconfigured Richmond oval -- expanded from a half-mile to a .75-mile tri-oval during the summer.

It didn't take long for the craziness to begin. On the opening lap, Richard Petty spun to bring out the caution, and Wallace, who started on the inside of the 11th row, slowed down. Unfortunately for him, Geoffrey Bodine -- who was directly behind Wallace on the start -- did not.

Bodine drilled Wallace's rear bumper as the two crossed under the start/finish line, severely damaging the No. 27 Pontiac and earning him a one-lap penalty from NASCAR for trying to pass cars under caution.

Bodine saw it differently.

"He pulled in front of me," Bodine said. "What they tell me is someone was going real slow in front of him. They say his team is mad at me, but 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."

Wallace, understandably, was livid. After trying without success to make repairs, he was forced to retire after 18 laps and was credited with a 35th-place finish. Coupled with Elliott's seventh-place effort, Wallace fell to third place in the standings behind Earnhardt.

"If we lose this championship, it's because of Geoff Bodine," Wallace declared afterward.

Elliott was still cautious about his chances of winning the championship.

"We're going to approach Dover the same way we've approached every other race this season," Elliott said. "We're going to do everything we can to win the race and, if we do that, the points will take care of themselves."

Earnhardt, 117 points behind after his runner-up finish, wasn't willing to hand over the title to Elliott just yet.

"I don't think we're out of it by a long shot," Earnhardt said. "And I can guarantee you that Rusty [Wallace] and his bunch doesn't feel they are out of it either. There is still a long, long way to go."

Elliott did hold on for his only Winston Cup championship, although Wallace would rebound the next season for his lone title.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.