The Scene Vault: Greg Sacks’ 1985 Firecracker 400 Upset

By Rick Houston

There may have been upsets throughout the course of NASCAR history that were as big as Greg Sacks’ 1985 Firecracker 400 win, but none were bigger.

Sacks was behind the wheel of a research and development car fielded by DiGard Racing in that’s summer annual Daytona event. The team had been put together shortly before the race, its crew a patchwork conglomeration that consisted of some members who’d never seen a Winston Cup event in person before.

Crew chief Gary Nelson was given a blank slate, his charge to come up with something that could compete with Bill Elliott, who’d dominated the Winston Cup superspeedways early that season. Although what Nelson actually had done to the car remains a mystery all these years later, it worked.

Sacks won.

What didn’t work was the dynamic with Bobby Allison, the team’s regular driver. Allison had never liked the concept of a multicar team, and left DiGard immediately after Daytona.

This is DiGard Racing owner Bill Gardner’s side of the story.


For more than 32 years, Grand National/Winston Cup/NASCAR Scene writers and photographers were there to record NASCAR history as it was being made. Join hosts Rick Houston and Steve Waid each week on The Scene Vault Podcast Presented by Q Ware as they take a look back at the extraordinary people, places and events woven into the rich tapestry that is our sport.

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