97forever
Team Owner
1985.A long time ago now.Must seem almost like the dark-ages to the young fans that have found Nascar WC racing since young Jeff Gordon and Earnhardt JR. came along!
But older fans will remember it as a transitional year on the circuit.A year that would produce one of Nascar's biggest ever superstars.And one of Nascar's most 'legislated'drivers of all time.
Bill Elliott had been around a while,winning his first race two years earlier,and 3 in '84,Elliott and his team were still getting the feel of the most dynamic racing vehicle stock car racing had ever seen:The still-new and awkward looking Ford 'aero'T-bird.
Easy to forget these days but this car pioneered the modern-era aero-design.[maybe with a nod to the winged and swept late sixties fords and mopars].If I am remembering correctly only a handful of Ford's even competed in Nascar WC at that time.
Chevy and their Bowtie brigade,led IMO by Darrell Waltrip at that time,were not used to outside-of -GM competition.Mopar was gone and only Ford with a small handful of cars stood between an all GM Nascar.But ol' Ford-lovin Bill was about to change all that.In a real big way.
The '85 t-bird Bill drove was only a couple of years into the design.Round and sleek,detractors would compare it to a 'jellybean'.And whether you loved the look or hated it:it was different.A stark contrast to the boxy GM cars that competed at the time.
With this new sleek design-and to the cries and protestations of the GM camp-Bill and engine builder and brother Ernie literally took Nascar by complete surprise.By the end of the year,Bill had won 11 times in his 'jellybean't-bird.Ford smashed Chevy and ended up with 50% of the wins that year....against ALL the GM brands combined.14 total wins for the T-bird and 11 of those by Bill!
And while Bill let the big prize,the title,slip thru his grip that year,he still made a huge impact.It is well documented elsewhere how he made amazing runs that year.Coming from laps down,becoming the first REAL superstar of the eighties.The poles and the wins were pretty impressive alone,but the way he just decimated the field was even more so.
I remember the interviews and debate in racing publications back then.Believe me,Gordon fans,Jeff has never been scrutinized like Bill was back then!And not just by the other drivers:Nascar itself spent much time and money taking Elliott's motors apart-and always coming up empty.To this very day,and if anyone knows please correct me,not ONE explanation was given by Nascar as to how excactly Bill managed this.How!How did this hillbilly so rattle the mighty GM stranglehold on Nascar....
Ironically,the best answer came from within the Chevy camp itself from Waddell Wilson,top Chevy engine builder.Car 'shape'[aero terms were still crude in 85]Wilson reasoned.The powerful but boxy Chevy's would fly down straightaways on the un-restricted superspeedways...and almost slam the brakes in the turns!Remember,these were shoe boxes by today's standards:wide open was more theory than practice.Until Bill and the t-bird.Waddell finally noticed that Waltrip had as much speed as Bill-until the corners approached.Darrell/Chevy would run almost as good as the 'bird...but would lose a ton of ground in the corners.Enough ground to give the 'Bird,and Bill quite an advantage.This was the theory that Wilson had anyway,and how valid it is I frankly don't know.Or really care.
Because when the year was over an old hurting Ford fan like me saw the GM guys sweat for a while.Bill had 11 wins and that seemed like it mattered a lot more from a fan perspective than the title did.Nascar searched and sought...and found nothing.Bill and his T-bird had kicked the Generals butt....and a legend really was born.
All of this is just my opinion,of course,but the facts and records for Bill stand.Nascar would stop his domination of course...couldn't have a Georgia hillbilly "a-stinkin'up th show"could we!lol
But older fans will remember it as a transitional year on the circuit.A year that would produce one of Nascar's biggest ever superstars.And one of Nascar's most 'legislated'drivers of all time.
Bill Elliott had been around a while,winning his first race two years earlier,and 3 in '84,Elliott and his team were still getting the feel of the most dynamic racing vehicle stock car racing had ever seen:The still-new and awkward looking Ford 'aero'T-bird.
Easy to forget these days but this car pioneered the modern-era aero-design.[maybe with a nod to the winged and swept late sixties fords and mopars].If I am remembering correctly only a handful of Ford's even competed in Nascar WC at that time.
Chevy and their Bowtie brigade,led IMO by Darrell Waltrip at that time,were not used to outside-of -GM competition.Mopar was gone and only Ford with a small handful of cars stood between an all GM Nascar.But ol' Ford-lovin Bill was about to change all that.In a real big way.
The '85 t-bird Bill drove was only a couple of years into the design.Round and sleek,detractors would compare it to a 'jellybean'.And whether you loved the look or hated it:it was different.A stark contrast to the boxy GM cars that competed at the time.
With this new sleek design-and to the cries and protestations of the GM camp-Bill and engine builder and brother Ernie literally took Nascar by complete surprise.By the end of the year,Bill had won 11 times in his 'jellybean't-bird.Ford smashed Chevy and ended up with 50% of the wins that year....against ALL the GM brands combined.14 total wins for the T-bird and 11 of those by Bill!
And while Bill let the big prize,the title,slip thru his grip that year,he still made a huge impact.It is well documented elsewhere how he made amazing runs that year.Coming from laps down,becoming the first REAL superstar of the eighties.The poles and the wins were pretty impressive alone,but the way he just decimated the field was even more so.
I remember the interviews and debate in racing publications back then.Believe me,Gordon fans,Jeff has never been scrutinized like Bill was back then!And not just by the other drivers:Nascar itself spent much time and money taking Elliott's motors apart-and always coming up empty.To this very day,and if anyone knows please correct me,not ONE explanation was given by Nascar as to how excactly Bill managed this.How!How did this hillbilly so rattle the mighty GM stranglehold on Nascar....
Ironically,the best answer came from within the Chevy camp itself from Waddell Wilson,top Chevy engine builder.Car 'shape'[aero terms were still crude in 85]Wilson reasoned.The powerful but boxy Chevy's would fly down straightaways on the un-restricted superspeedways...and almost slam the brakes in the turns!Remember,these were shoe boxes by today's standards:wide open was more theory than practice.Until Bill and the t-bird.Waddell finally noticed that Waltrip had as much speed as Bill-until the corners approached.Darrell/Chevy would run almost as good as the 'bird...but would lose a ton of ground in the corners.Enough ground to give the 'Bird,and Bill quite an advantage.This was the theory that Wilson had anyway,and how valid it is I frankly don't know.Or really care.
Because when the year was over an old hurting Ford fan like me saw the GM guys sweat for a while.Bill had 11 wins and that seemed like it mattered a lot more from a fan perspective than the title did.Nascar searched and sought...and found nothing.Bill and his T-bird had kicked the Generals butt....and a legend really was born.
All of this is just my opinion,of course,but the facts and records for Bill stand.Nascar would stop his domination of course...couldn't have a Georgia hillbilly "a-stinkin'up th show"could we!lol
