Jeff Dennison, Director of Media and Public Relations for the Breaking Limits marketing group, was presented the Joe Littlejohn Award during the National Motorsport Press Associations annual awards ceremony last night in Charlotte, NC. The award is presented each year to a person(s) or organization in recognition of outstanding service to the NMPA. It is named after the former track owner from Spartanburg, S.C. Littlejohn is credited with two career NASCAR starts, but raced extensively prior to the formation of NASCAR. Dennison was recognized for his work with the NMPAs Most Popular Driver program, establishing a new web site that provided race fans with a year long opportunity to vote for their favorite drivers. Dave Moody of the Motor Racing Network was recognized at NMPAs Radio Broadcaster of the Year, after sweeping the top three positions in the Event Oriented Feature category. He claimed first place honors for an exclusive interview with NASCAR driver AJ Allmendinger following his suspension from the sport for a failed substance abuse test in July of last year. The second-place award was shared with Motor Racing Network producer Brian Nelson, for an interview conducted with driver Kurt Busch prior to the start of his comeback season with James Finchs Phoenix Racing team at Daytona International Speedway. Moody also took third place in the Event Oriented Feature category for his interview with United States Congressman Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) concerning a bill her co-authored to prohibit sponsorship of NASCAR and other sporting events by the United States military. His final award was a first place honor in the Spot News category, for his interview with NASCAR Managing Director of Communications David Higdon, who disputed allegations by Allmendinger and his representatives on the specifics of his test results. Other NMPA Award winners included: – Richard Petty Driver of the Year: Brad Keselowski (Penske Racing) – Ken Patterson Helping Others Award: Scott Cooper (Charlotte Motor Speedway) – NMPA Speedway Motorsports Spirit Award: Andy Hillenburg (Rockingham Speedway) – NMPA Radio Producer of the Year: Woody Cain (Motor Racing Network) – Charlie Harville Award: Paul Johnson (WCYB/WEMT TV) – NMPA Television Producer of the Year: Suzanne Clavette (NASCAR Race Hub on Speed) – George Cunningham Writer of the Year Award: Ryan McGee (ESPN.com) ( Godfather Motorsports )
