Saturday 17th February 1979

Auto racer Don Williams was left in a coma as a result of a crash during the Sportsman 300 race at Daytona (US). The crash began when a car driven by Freddie Smith went into a spin and was struck by a car driven by Joe Frasson, which then burst into flames as he hit the wall. Frasson was then struck at full speed by Delma Cowart. Williams was behind Cowart and tried to avoid the pileup. His #68 Chevrolet Chevelle slammed into the wall and spun onto the infield amid a shower of flying debris. Williams suffered head and chest injuries as well as a fractured right arm and an aneurysm in the right eye. He died nearly ten years later (May 1989) without regaining consciousness.