With more than 1 million votes cast, Dale Earnhardt Jr. holds the lead in the yearlong Chex NMPA NASCAR Most Popular Driver Award. Actual numbers were not announced, but Earnhardt, who has won the award each of the past two years, is followed in the balloting at www.mostpopulardriver.com by Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick, Rusty Wallace, Tony Stewart, Michael Waltrip, Dale Jarrett, Mark Martin and series points leader Jimmie Johnson. The voting continues until Nov. 21, the day after the season-ending race at Homestead.(ESPN.com/AP)(4-23-2005)
