Most Popular Driver is……Bill Elliott: Continuing his dominance of fan popularity, Bill Elliott edged out fellow racer Dale Earnhardt Jr. to win the Grands! Biscuits NMPA NASCAR Most Popular Driver Award for 2002. Elliott and Earnhardt Jr. battled for the leader position in recent months as fans across the country placed more online votes than ever before as part of the only fan-based NASCAR award. Elliott, a 27-year racing veteran who drove for Dodge this season, has won the Most Popular Driver Award more times than any other driver – this marks his 16th victory. “Everyone knows that the fans are the real heart of NASCAR. I owe many thanks to them because my fans have stuck by me and kept me going all these years,” said Elliott, a Dawsonville, Ga., native. “I am so fortunate to be part of this great sport and be recognized by this award.” A record 3.3 million votes were cast by thousands of NASCAR fans, shattering all voting totals posted in previous years. Earnhardt Jr. actually led much of the season with Elliott’s votes coming on strong in the final months. A relatively narrow margin of votes separated Elliott from Earnhardt Jr. Jeff Gordon and 2002 Winston Cup winner Tony Stewart were a distant third and fourth respectively. Rounding out the top 10 (in descending order) was Mark Martin, Bobby Labonte, Michael Waltrip, Kyle Petty, Rusty Wallace and Kevin Harvick. More than 40 drivers received fan votes. Elliott, the 1988 Winston Cup champion, has won NASCAR’s two biggest races on the circuit, the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400. He was named one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers of all time and was the first Winston Cup driver on the cover of Sports Illustrated. The Most Popular Driver Award dates back to 1956. It began as a simple poll of the drivers and grew to incorporate all NASCAR Winston Cup competitors. Later, it included all NASCAR members. Today, it’s a prestigious award voted on by racing fans nationwide. Through the years, voters’ choices have ranged from the obvious to the surprising. The only driver close to matching Elliott’s 16 most popular wins is Richard Petty, who’s won nine times. Other past winners have included such notables as Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip.(Business Wire via Yahoo), sorry have not seen any vote breakdown for the top 10 and have not seen anything past the top ten listed here.(12-6-2002)
