Moving On

The 1986 season was disappointing compared to the previous year, with Bill only claiming two victories. But 1987 was better, and it was the year Bill set the fastest one-lap speed record at 212.809 mph in the Winston 500. That record will probably stay on the books since NASCAR now enforces speed restrictions. That was also the year that Dale Earnhardt really drew attention, and his team put a lot of pressure on the Elliott's. Nonetheless, Bill was named the "American Driver of the Year" in 1985 and 1987 by the nation's Motorsports media.

Finally, in 1988, Bill got his Winston Cup Championship. He beat Rusty Wallace, his challenger all season, by 24 points. He was only one of three Ford drivers (Dale Jarrett, Alan Kulwicki) to win the championship since 1969. Elliott had finished second in the point standings in 1985 and 1987, then later in 1992. He lost the series championship to Kulwicki by 10 points in 1992, the narrowest winning margin in Winston Cup history.

Pit workers had very dangerous jobs in the 1980s and early 1990s, mainly because there were no speed limits on pit roads. Tragically, the Elliott's lost a teammate and neighbor because of this. In 1990, tire changer Mike Rich was hit when Ricky Rudd's car, entering the pits with locked brakes, careened into the side of Elliott's. "That was a bad deal," said Bill. "I don't know that anybody took it harder than anybody else. To have one of your friends get killed and still have to finish the race.."

After that, Bill's racing stats were unusually mediocre. In 1991, Coors decided to pull out of racing, which left Melling wondering if he wanted to stay in the game. Junior Johnson, a powerful man in NASCAR with a Budweiser tie, needed a first-rate driver. So Bill went from one beer sponsor to another, though ironically, he doesn't drink beer. Unfortunately, Bill didn't win a single race that year, and neither did Johnson's other driver, Hut Stricklin. NASCAR had made changes that, once again, left Bill's team at a disadvantage.

When Bill's three-year contract with Johnson was in its third year, he began to talk with McDonald's. In 1995, Bill formed a new team in Dawsonville with the famous yellow arches displayed on his car. That season was decent, with Bill grabbing four top fives and two poles. But 1996 proved almost disastrous, with an injury at the beginning that forced Bill to miss seven races. The following year was better, when Bill came in fourth at the Daytona 500 and won $1.6 million.

During the next couple years, the Elliotts were fighting a losing battle against company-owned teams; their time and money were limited. Bill sums up: "'97 was such a good year for us, '98 was mediocre, and '99 went in the toilet. It's discouraging, but I look at it from the standpoint of it's easier for me to accept because I've been on that side of the fence and I know what it takes to race, even running 15th."