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Blaise Alexander

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Blaise Robert Alexander Jr. also known as BR Alexander (March 26, 1976 – October 4, 2001) was an American professional stock car racer from Montoursville, Pennsylvania. He began racing at the age of 12 in go-karts, winning the coveted World Karting Association East Regional championship in 1992. In 1995, he moved south to Mooresville, North Carolina, and drove in the ARCA Racing Series. Named ARCA's rookie of the year in 1996, Alexander was a regular driver in that series while also driving in both the NASCAR Busch Series and Craftsman Truck Series.

Blaise Alexander
BornBlaise Robert Alexander Jr.
(1976-03-26)March 26, 1976
Montoursville, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedOctober 4, 2001(2001-10-04) (aged 25)
Lowe's Motor Speedway
Concord, North Carolina, U.S.
Cause of deathBasilar skull fracture caused by race car crash
Awards1996 ARCA Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
65 races run over 5 years
Best finish25th (2000)
First race1997 Kenwood Home & Car Audio 300 (California)
Last race2001 MBNA.com 200 (Dover)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 2 0
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career
2 races run over 1 year
Best finish53rd (1997)
First race1997 Loadhandler 200 (Bristol)
Last race1997 Parts America 150 (Watkins Glen)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 1 0

On October 4, 2001, during the ARCA EasyCare 100 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Alexander's car crashed into the outside retaining wall nearly head-on. He died from a basilar skull fracture, the fifth driver death from rapid-deceleration head-and-neck movements in 17 months, convincing NASCAR to mandate the HANS or Hutchens devices for all drivers, despite the accident happening in ARCA.

Early life

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Alexander was born on March 26, 1976, in Montoursville, Pennsylvania. He began his stock car career at age 12 in the World Karting Association and was the champion of the East Series in 1992. From that point, Alexander moved onto the Micro-Sprint racing series at tracks in different states including Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New York, posting a total of 48 wins in the series. In 1995, Alexander moved from Montoursville to Mooresville, North Carolina, to pursue a racing career.

Racing career

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ARCA

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Alexander drove a few races in the ARCA Re-Max Series in 1995. With a full season in 1996, Alexander won ARCA's Rookie of the Year Award. During his 1996 rookie season, Alexander pulled off a second-place finish at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Alexander achieved two more second-place finishes in 1997. Alexander won his first ARCA race in 1998 at Toledo Speedway and won a second race the same year at Pocono Raceway. He led in 18 ARCA races for a total of 490 laps led. Alexander's final win came in July 2001, at Michigan International Speedway. Alexander earned a total of four career pole awards, in races at Michigan, Watkins Glen, Toledo and Winchester.

NASCAR

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In 1997, still running fifteen races in ARCA, Alexander began driving in NASCAR in the Busch Series and the Craftsman Truck Series. He only raced twice in the truck series, and had modest success in Busch. Alexander signed to run for Team SABCO during the 2000 Busch season, posting two top-ten finishes and finishing 25th in points. After that year, he decided to return to the ARCA series in 2001.

Death

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At the EasyCare 100 at Lowe's Motor Speedway on October 4, 2001, Alexander was involved in a 2-car accident during lap 63 of the race. He was fighting for the lead position with Kerry Earnhardt for most of the race.[1] During the lap, Earnhardt had to dodge a lapped car by hitting his brakes, which caused Alexander's No. 75 to catch up to Earnhardt's No. 2. Alexander began to inch into the lead when Earnhardt's car made contact with Alexander's, sending Alexander's car head-on into the wall and then back into Earnhardt's car, causing Earnhardt to flip over onto his roof and slide into the grass. After the wreck, Earnhardt got away unharmed, while Alexander was knocked unconscious.[1] The ARCA race officials quickly threw out the red flag to send rescue workers onto the track to check on Alexander. Earnhardt had already gotten out of his car and wanted to go check on Alexander, a friend of his. Officials would not allow Earnhardt to see him and was taken to the infield care center. Alexander was pronounced dead at the infield care center at 10:20 PM. He was 25 years old.[1][2] Alexander was interred at the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in his hometown of Montoursville, Pennsylvania.[3]

Aftermath

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Alexander's death, caused by a basilar skull fracture sustained in the impact, was the sixth in two years. Other high-profile drivers killed in this period included Dale Earnhardt (Kerry Earnhardt's father, who was killed in February that same year), Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin Jr. and Tony Roper. As a result of Alexander's crash, NASCAR announced that the use of head and neck restraint devices would be required to keep drivers safe from these types of injuries, caused by rapid deceleration in wrecks. The use of such devices had been optional up until Alexander's death, though 41 out of 43 drivers in NASCAR's top series were already using them; only Tony Stewart and Jimmy Spencer had not worn them yet.

In response to these deaths, NASCAR eventually installed SAFER barriers on all NASCAR oval tracks. As of 2015, most tracks have the exterior walls covered with the barriers.

Legacy

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After his 1995 move to North Carolina, Alexander enjoyed a close friendship with fellow Busch rookie driver and eventual NASCAR superstar, Jimmie Johnson, as they competed against each other on the track, while supporting each other off it.[4] Other close relations included Spencer, who served as his mentor, and IndyCar driver P. J. Jones.[5]

Alexander's memory has been honored by Johnson in several public and private ways. He dedicated his first Cup win to Alexander during a televised interview in Victory Lane, sent condolences in a Victory Lane interview after the death of Alexander's mother, and supported various charity causes and events that Alexander initiated in his hometown area of Central Pennsylvania. Shortly after Alexander's death, one of Johnson's crewmen drew a flame pattern with Alexander's initials on his driver's front left bumper; the tribute was continued in the form of a decal on Johnson's Cup cars. There are quite a few Blaise Alexander automotive dealerships in Central Pennsylvania originally created from his family.[6]

Motorsports career results

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NASCAR

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(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Winston Cup Series

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NASCAR Winston Cup Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 NWCC Pts Ref
2000 LJ Racing 91 Chevy DAY CAR LVS ATL DAR BRI TEX MAR TAL CAL RCH CLT DOV MCH POC SON DAY NHA POC IND GLN MCH BRI DAR RCH NHA DOV MAR CLT TAL
DNQ 		CAR PHO HOM ATL
DNQ 		NA - [7]

Busch Series

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NASCAR Busch Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 NBSC Pts Ref
1997 Keystone Motorsports 20 Chevy DAY CAR RCH ATL LVS DAR HCY TEX BRI NSV TAL NHA NZH CLT DOV SBO GLN MLW MYB GTY IRP MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV CLT CAL
20 		CAR
24 		77th 194 [8]
Key Motorsports 11 Chevy HOM
DNQ
1998 Keystone Motorsports 20 Chevy DAY
DNQ 		CAR
23 		LVS
25 		NSV
21 		DAR
12 		BRI
35 		TEX
33 		HCY
DNQ 		TAL
14 		NHA
26 		NZH
38 		CLT
DNQ 		DOV
38 		RCH
DNQ 		PPR
27 		GLN
43 		MLW
27 		MYB
DNQ 		CAL
35 		SBO IRP MCH
20 		BRI
41 		DAR
37 		RCH
42 		DOV
26 		CLT
40 		GTY
33 		CAR
31 		ATL
39 		HOM
23 		32nd 1730 [9]
1999 Blaise Alexander Racing DAY
DNQ 		CAR LVS ATL DAR TEX NSV BRI TAL CAL NHA RCH NZH CLT
24 		DOV SBO GLN MLW MYB PPR GTY IRP MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV 91st 158 [10]
Sterling Marlin Racing 14 Chevy CLT
32 		CAR MEM PHO HOM
2000 SABCO Racing 81 Chevy DAY
DNQ 		CAR
30 		LVS
21 		ATL
7 		DAR
28 		BRI
23 		TEX
18 		NSV
28 		TAL
30 		CAL
38 		RCH
31 		NHA
40 		CLT
10 		DOV
31 		SBO
27 		MYB
34 		GLN
13 		MLW
18 		NZH
26 		PPR
22 		GTY
35 		IRP
16 		MCH
39 		BRI
41 		DAR
35 		RCH
18 		DOV
21 		CLT
30 		CAR
34 		MEM
31 		PHO
38 		HOM
28 		25th 2540 [11]
2001 HighLine Performance Group 8 Chevy DAY
30 		CAR
16 		LVS
43 		ATL
12 		DAR BRI TEX NSH TAL CAL RCH NHA NZH CLT DOV KEN MLW GLN CHI GTY PPR IRP 54th 558 [12]
Carroll Racing 08 Chevy MCH
11 		BRI DAR RCH DOV
28 		KAN CLT MEM PHO CAR HOM

Craftsman Truck Series

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NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 NCTC Pts Ref
1997 Blaise Alexander Racing 62 Chevy WDW TUS HOM
DNQ 		PHO POR EVG I70 NHA TEX BRI
14 		NZH MLW LVL CNS HPT IRP FLM NSV
DNQ 		GLN
9 		RCH MAR
DNQ 		SON MMR CAL PHO LVS 53rd 373 [13]

ARCA Re/Max Series

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(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

ARCA Re/Max Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 ARMC Pts Ref
1995 Blaise Alexander Racing 26 Chevy DAY
12 		ATL TAL
13 		FIF KIL FRS MCH I80 MCS FRS POC
5 		POC
33 		KIL FRS SBS LVL ISF DSF SLM WIN ATL
8 		33rd 1045 [14]
1996 DAY
27 		ATL
7 		SLM
9 		TAL
15 		FIF
7 		LVL
15 		CLT
2 		CLT
25 		KIL
3 		FRS
5 		POC
23 		MCH
6 		FRS
20 		TOL
11 		POC
4 		MCH
20 		INF
17 		SBS
3 		ISF
28 		DSF
27 		KIL
18 		SLM
3 		WIN
8 		CLT
35 		ATL
33 		5th 5325 [15]
1997 DAY
37 		ATL
17 		SLM
22 		CLT
39 		CLT
24 		POC
30 		MCH
6 		SBS TOL
2 		KIL
2 		FRS MIN
2 		POC
3 		MCH
7 		DSF GTW
6 		SLM
6 		WIN CLT
34 		TAL ISF ATL 9th 2655 [16]
1998 Keystone Motorsports 20 Chevy DAY
35 		ATL SLM CLT MEM MCH NA 0 [17]
Mike Brandt 66 Ford POC
9 		SBS TOL PPR POC KIL FRS ISF ATL DSF SLM TEX WIN CLT TAL ATL
1999 Baltes Racing 18 Chevy DAY ATL
3 		SLM 16th 2330 [18]
Blaise Alexander Racing 97 Chevy AND
3 		CLT
14 		MCH
2 		POC
11 		TOL
1 		SBS
25 		BLN POC
1* 		KIL FRS FLM
9 		ISF WIN
2 		DSF SLM CLT
4 		TAL ATL
26
2001 LJ Racing 91 Chevy DAY
8 		NSH 23rd 1820 [19]
Gerhart Racing 7 Pontiac WIN
28
LJ Racing 91 Pontiac SLM
6 		GTY KEN CLT KAN MCH
6 		POC
9 		MEM GLN
2 		KEN POC
2 		NSH ISF CHI DSF SLM TOL BLN
Bob Schacht Motorsports 75 Pontiac MCH
1 		CLT
2 		TAL ATL

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Smith, Marty (2001-10-11). "2001: A year to forget for Kerry Earnhardt". NASCAR. Archived from the original on 2012-02-14. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  2. ^ "BLAISE ALEXANDER (1976–2001) – ARCA Racing.com". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-10-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. ^ "BLAISE ALEXANDER – ARCA Racing.com". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-10-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ Smith, Marty (2002-10-11). "A year later, Johnson still affected by Alexander". NASCAR. Archived from the original on 2012-04-04. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  5. ^ "PJ Jones Interview". YouTube. December 5, 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  6. ^ Long, Dustin (November 22, 2019). "Friday 5: Jimmie Johnson's final Cup season also marks final tribute to friend". NBC Sports. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  7. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  8. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1997 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  9. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1998 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  10. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1999 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  11. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 2000 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  12. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 2001 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  13. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1997 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  14. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1995 ARCA Hooters SuperCar Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  15. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1996 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  16. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1997 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  17. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1998 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  18. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 1999 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  19. ^ "Blaise Alexander – 2001 ARCA Re/Max Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
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