Some analysts have suggested that a small position in gold would offset a big loss in other assets. A stock crash opens a pandora's box of ugly economic possibilities. Credit excesses get liquidated and the economy slows into a recession or depression. The dollar weakens. All asset classes lose value.
Interest rates go way up because of a falling dollar.
Bankruptcies fan liquidity fears in bond funds. We could go on and on. Suffice to say that a stock crash will dramatically change the economic landscape and gold will be back in the limelight. Although stocks have rebounded, the fundamental imbalances remain. Values are skewed, credit and margin debt is excessive, inflation is back and interest rates are rising.