In 1994, Dale Earnhardt breezed to his seventh and final NASCAR Cup Series championship title. But it might not have been so easy for ‘The Intimidator’ had it not been for an infamous crash that year at Michigan International Speedway. Ernie Irvan was Earnhardt’s closest title challenger until that point in the season. He had won three races, putting Earnhardt in a real spot of bother. However, fate had something else stored for the then-Yates Racing driver.
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Irvan crashed in practice at Michigan that year as he collided head-on into the wall at turn 2. A doctor at the track performed an emergency tracheotomy in the car after the driver suffered a cracked skull and collapsed lungs. When he was transported to a hospital via helicopter, the doctors there only gave him a 10% chance of surviving. Fans believed it to be the end of the talented driver. But perhaps no one saw what came later.
On this date in 1994:
Ernie Irvan was injured during a practice crash at Michigan, leaving him with a 10% chance of surviving the night.
What followed was possibly the most miraculous/amazing comeback story ever seen. pic.twitter.com/iIcFqm6lsE— NASCAR Memories (@NASCARMemories) August 20, 2021
The then-driver of the #28 car scripted a comeback story for the ages. Not only did he recover in less time than most expected him to, he was on the track behind the wheel of a car within just 14 months. Irvan’s first Cup Series start after the accident came at the North Wilkesboro Speedway in 1995 where he finished a magnificent P6. He then returned to full-time racing in 1996 and won at New Hampshire and Richmond.
But perhaps his last Cup Series win was his greatest. 1997 was his final season with Yates Racing and he won only one race that year. It was at the track where he had almost lost his life, the Michigan International Speedway. He led 33 laps in the event and took the checkered flag for the 15th time in his career. Had it not been for the crash in ‘94, he might have become a champion of the sport.
June 15, 1997 marked another heroic milestone in Irvan’s comeback story.
He conquered the track that he almost lost his life at.
Irvan led 33 laps and took the checkered flag for the 15th and final time in his Cup Series career. pic.twitter.com/kMDoP7fKON
— NASCAR Classics (@NASCARClassics) August 20, 2024
Irvan’s potential cannot be understated. At a time when ‘The Intimidator‘ was running riot, the #28 driver gave him a title challenge few people were ever able to. Had the Michigan crash not happened, many believed the Yates Racing driver had the form and the race craft to stop Earnhardt from matching Richard Petty’s record.
However, the accident did not stop him from becoming a NASCAR legend remembered by avid fans to this day. As a result of his achievements in the sport, NASCAR included him in their 50 Greatest Drivers list in 1998, a well-deserved honor.
