The dramatic sights and sounds of thunderous crashes and grinding sheet metal lurk around every turn at Talladega Superspeedway as the drivers each hope they will be the one to skate through the melee.
Bill France wanted to build a track that was bigger and better than Daytona International Speedway. He built the 2.66-mile track with 33-degree banking on an old abandoned airfield and opened it September 13, 1969.
Talladega Superspeedway was originally named Alabama International Speedway. It is rumored to be built on an old Indian burial ground.
The track allowed cars to reach dangerously high speeds, which led to the implementation of restrictor plates for certain cars in 1970. The race cars that had 358 cubic-inch engines were exempt.
Following a horrific crash with Bobby Allison at the Alabama track in 1987, NASCAR mandated the use of restrictor plates at Talladega and Daytona in 1988.
Restrictor plate racing reduces horsepower considerably and leads to tightly packed groups of cars. With one wrong move resulting in the famous "Big One" involving many wrecked cars.
Adding to the drama of the cars running close together is the fact they are able to easily run four-wide as opposed to basically three-wide racing on the high banks of Daytona International Speedway.
Dale Earnhardt mastered racing at Talladega with a record 10 wins, a record 23 top-five finishes and a record of 1377 laps led.
Some of the most spectacular races in the history of NASCAR have taken place at Talladega. Most drivers walked away, while others were not as lucky.
Wild finishes with crashing cars and inches separating the winner from the runner-up are typical of racing at Talladega Superspeedway.
The violent crashes have resulted in injured fans in the grandstand when cars have gone airborne at Talladega. Safety changes, including roof flaps, have been mandated to keep the cars on the ground—or at least close to it.
In this slideshow, we will take a look at 10 of the races that, for a variety of reasons, hold a special place in the history of the track.
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