Blaise Alexander | |||||||
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Born | Blaise Robert Alexander Jr. March 26, 1976 Montoursville, Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||||||
Died | October 4, 2001 Lowe's Motor Speedway Concord, North Carolina, U.S. | (aged 25)||||||
Cause of death | Basilar skull fracture caused by race car crash | ||||||
Awards | 1996 ARCA Rookie of the Year | ||||||
NASCAR Xfinity Series career | |||||||
65 races run over 5 years | |||||||
Best finish | 25th (2000) | ||||||
First race | 1997 Kenwood Home & Car Audio 300 (California) | ||||||
Last race | 2001 MBNA.com 200 (Dover) | ||||||
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NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career | |||||||
2 races run over 1 year | |||||||
Best finish | 53rd (1997) | ||||||
First race | 1997 Loadhandler 200 (Bristol) | ||||||
Last race | 1997 Parts America 150 (Watkins Glen) | ||||||
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Blaise Robert Alexander Jr. also known as BR Alexander (March 26, 1976 – October 4, 2001) was an American professional stock car racer from Montoursville, Pennsylvania. He began racing at the age of 12 in go-karts, winning the coveted World Karting Association East Regional championship in 1992. In 1995, he moved south to Mooresville, North Carolina, and drove in the ARCA Racing Series. Named ARCA's rookie of the year in 1996, Alexander was a regular driver in that series while also driving in both the NASCAR Busch Series and Craftsman Truck Series.
On October 4, 2001, during the ARCA EasyCare 100 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Alexander's car crashed into the outside retaining wall nearly head-on. He died from a basilar skull fracture, the fifth driver death from rapid-deceleration head-and-neck movements in 17 months, convincing NASCAR to mandate the HANS or Hutchens devices for all drivers, despite the accident happening in ARCA.