Smith Improving, Still Critical After Crash in Talladega Race

Stock car driver Stanley Smith’s paralysis showed signs of ending Monday, but he remained in critical condition with a skull fracture suffered during the DieHard 500.

David Smitherman, a spokesman at Carraway Methodist Medical Center, said Smith, 43, is regaining movement on his right side.

“From a medical standpoint, he is a little more stable,” he said.

Smith, who operates a drywall business in Chelsea, Ala., was airlifted after the crash at Talladega Superspeedway to the same hospital where driver Davey Allison died July 13 after his helicopter crashed on the track infield.

On Sunday, Smith’s Chevrolet was struck in the front and rear in a crash that also sent Jimmy Horton’s car rolling over the wall and down an earthen embankment on the outside of the track. Horton and the other five drivers involved in the wreck were not injured.

It was the first Winston Cup race of the season and the 28th of his career for Smith, who made his NASCAR debut in this same race in July of 1990.

The father of three, aged 16 to 22, Smith was the 1989 Winston All-Pro Challenge champion. He also has raced in NASCAR’s Busch Grand National and modified series.

The crash involving Smith came shortly before the halfway mark of the 188-lap event, won by Dale Earnhardt in a photo finish over Ernie Irvan.