first_busch_race death_date cup_poles cup_wins first_cup_race birth_date total_busch_races busch_wins achievements cup_top_tens image busch_poles name death_cause caption busch_top_tens birth_place total_cup_races awards years_in_busch last_busch_race last_cup_win first_cup_win last_cup_race best_cup_pos years_in_cup best_busch_pos article_title
1984 red carpet 200 -lrb- milwaukee -rrb- 1 april 1993 24 5 1985 wrangler sanforset 400 -lrb- richmond -rrb- 14 december 1954 6 0 1992 winston cup drivers ' and owners ' champion 75 alankulwickisearspoint1991.jpg 1 alan dennis kulwicki airplane crash near blountville , tennessee alan kulwicki at sears point racetrack in 1991 3 greenfield , wisconsin 207 1986 nascar rookie of the year 2 1985 milwaukee sentinel 200 -lrb- milwaukee -rrb- 1992 champion spark plug 500 -lrb- pocono -rrb- 1988 checker 500 -lrb- phoenix -rrb- 1993 transouth 500 -lrb- darlington -rrb- 1st - 1992 9 50th -lrb- 1984 busch grand national series -rrb- alan kulwicki

alan kulwicki

alan dennis kulwicki -lrb- december 14 , 1954 -- april 1 , 1993 -rrb- , nicknamed `` special k '' and the `` polish prince '' , was an american nascar winston cup series -lrb- now sprint cup series -rrb- racecar driver .
he started racing at local short tracks in wisconsin before moving up to regional stock car touring series .
kulwicki arrived at nascar , the highest and most expensive level of stock car racing in the united states , with no sponsor , a limited budget , and only a racecar and a borrowed pickup truck .
despite starting with meager equipment and finances , he earned the 1986 nascar rookie of the year award over drivers racing for well-funded teams .
after kulwicki won his first race at phoenix international raceway , he debuted what would become his trademark `` polish victory lap '' .
kulwicki won the 1992 winston cup championship by what was then the closest margin in nascar history .
he died early in 1993 in a light aircraft accident , and therefore never defended his championship .
he has been inducted into numerous racing halls of fame and was named one of nascar 's 50 greatest drivers .
kulwicki was known for being a perfectionist and doing things his own way .
an engineer by trade , his scientific approach to nascar racing inspires the way teams are now run .
despite lucrative offers from top car owners , he insisted on driving for his own race team , ak racing , during most of his nascar career .
described by his publicist as `` a real hard type of person to get to know '' , he remained a bachelor throughout his life .
