NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Award

NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Award is awarded to the most popular NASCAR driver in the Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and Craftsman Truck Series every year since 1956. It started as a poll of the drivers and then all NASCAR Cup Series competitors; today, it is voted for by fans across the United States.

The award is presented by the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA). Sponsored by Hamburger Helper in 2010, it was also sponsored by Wheaties in 2011. The ceremony presenting the award is called the NASCAR Awards Banquet, and it is held in Nashville, Tennessee in November of each year.

The winner of the most awards is Bill Elliott with 16 in the NASCAR Cup Series. Elliott Sadler has the most with four awards in the Xfinity Series, and Johnny Benson Jr. has the most awards at three in the Craftsman Truck Series.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has the second-most awards (15) and holds the longest streak, winning the award in 2003 and every year until his retirement in 2017.[1][2]

Recipients

Cup Series
Bill Elliott has the most Most Popular Driver Awards in the Cup Series with 16.
Year Driver Team Notes
1949 Curtis Turner Hubert Westmoreland, Curtis Turner, Frank Christian Voted on by a panel
1950 Not awarded
1951
1952 Lee Petty Petty Enterprises National award, covering every NASCAR series.
Lee Petty won the series championship in 1954.
1953
1954 Petty Enterprises, Gary Drake
1955 Tim Flock Carl Kiekhaefer, Hubert Westmoreland
1956 Curtis Turner Charlie Schwam
1957 Fireball Roberts Pete DePaolo, Fireball Roberts, Dick Beaty, Buck Baker
1958 Glen Wood Wood Brothers Racing
1959 Jack Smith Jack Smith
1960 Rex White Beau Morgan, Rex White, Scotty Cain, L. D. Austin Won the series championship
1961 Joe Weatherly Doc White, Bud Moore Engineering, Elmo Henderson
1962 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises
1963 Fred Lorenzen Holman-Moody, Wood Brothers Racing, Stewart McKinney
1964 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Won the series championship.
Won that season's Daytona 500.
1965 Fred Lorenzen Holman-Moody Won that season's Daytona 500.
1966 Darel Dieringer Toy Bolton, Bud Moore Engineering, Petty Enterprises,
Reid Shaw, Betty Lilly, Junior Johnson & Associates
1967 Cale Yarborough Wood Brothers Racing, Neil Castles, Bud Moore Engineering
1968 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises
1969 Bobby Isaac Nord Krauskopf
1970 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises
1971 Bobby Allison Bobby Allison, Holman-Moody
1972 Richard Howard
1973 Bobby Allison
1974 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Won the series championship.
Won that season's Daytona 500.
1975 Won the season championship.
1976
1977
1978
1979 David Pearson Wood Brothers Racing, Rod Osterlund Part time driver
1980 Bobby Allison Bud Moore Engineering
1981 Ranier-Lundy
1982 DiGard Motorsports Won that season's Daytona 500.
1983 Won the series championship
1984 Bill Elliott Melling Racing
1985 Won that season's Daytona 500
1986
1987 Won that season's Daytona 500.
1988 Won the series championship
1989 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Won that season's Daytona 500
1990 Missed six races due to injuries.
1991 Bill Elliott Melling Racing
1992 Junior Johnson & Associates
1993
1994
1995 Bill Elliott Racing
1996 Missed seven races due to injuries.
1997
1998 Missed one race due to the death of his father.
1999
2000 Missed two races due to injuries.
2001 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Awarded posthumously.
2002 Bill Elliott Evernham Motorsports Withdrew his own name from future ballots following this year
2003 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
2004 Won that season's Daytona 500.
2005
2006
2007
2008 Hendrick Motorsports
2009
2010
2011
2012 Missed two races due to injury.
2013
2014 Won that season's Daytona 500.
2015
2016 Missed final 18 races due to injury.
2017
2018 Chase Elliott Won first three career races at Watkins Glen, Dover 2, and Kansas 2.
2019
2020 Won the series championship
2021
2022 Won the regular season championship

Xfinity Series
Elliott Sadler has the most Most Popular Driver Awards in the Xfinity Series with four.
Year Driver Team Notes
1982 Jack Ingram Ingram Racing Won the series championship
1983 Sam Ard Thomas Brothers Racing Won the series championship
1984
1985 Jimmy Hensley
1986 Brett Bodine
1987 Jimmy Hensley Sam Ard Racing
1988 Larry Pearson Pearson Racing
1989 Rob Moroso Moroso Racing Won the series championship
1990 Bobby Labonte Labonte Motorsports
1991 Kenny Wallace Rusty Wallace Racing
1992 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Won the series championship
1993
1994 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing
1995 Chad Little Mark Rypien Motorsports
1996 David Green American Equipment Racing
1997 Mike McLaughlin Frank Cicci Racing
1998 Buckshot Jones Buckshot Racing
1999 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Won the series championship
2000 Ron Hornaday Jr.
2001 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Won the series championship
2002 Greg Biffle Roush Racing Won the series championship
2003 Scott Riggs ppc Racing
2004 Martin Truex Jr. Chance 2 Motorsports Won the series championship
2005
2006 Kenny Wallace ppc Racing
2007 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Won the series championship
2008 Brad Keselowski JR Motorsports
2009
2010 Penske Racing Won the series championship
2011 Elliott Sadler Kevin Harvick Incorporated
2012 Danica Patrick JR Motorsports The first female driver to win the Xfinity Series MPD.
The first female driver to win the MPD award overall.
2013 Regan Smith
2014 Chase Elliott Won the series championship
2015
2016 Elliott Sadler
2017
2018
2019 Justin Allgaier
2020
2021
2022 Noah Gragson

Craftsman Truck Series
Johnny Benson Jr. has the most Most Popular Driver Awards in the Truck Series with three.
Year Driver Team Notes
1995 Butch Miller Liberty Racing
1996 Jimmy Hensley Grandaddy Racing
1997 Ron Hornaday Jr. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
1998 Stacy Compton Impact Motorsports
1999 Dennis Setzer K Automotive Racing
2000 Greg Biffle Roush Racing Won the series championship
2001 Joe Ruttman Bobby Hamilton Racing
2002 David Starr Spears Motorsports
2003 Brendan Gaughan Orleans Racing
2004 Steve Park
2005 Ron Hornaday Jr. Kevin Harvick Incorporated
2006 Johnny Benson Jr. Bill Davis Racing
2007
2008 Won the series championship
2009 Ricky Carmichael Kevin Harvick Incorporated, Turner Motorsports
2010 Narain Karthikeyan Wyler Racing The first non-American driver to win the award
2011 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Won the series championship
2012 Nelson Piquet Jr. Turner Motorsports First South American winner
2013 Ty Dillon Richard Childress Racing
2014 Ryan Blaney Brad Keselowski Racing
2015 John Hunter Nemechek SWM-NEMCO Motorsports
2016 Tyler Reddick Brad Keselowski Racing
2017 Chase Briscoe
2018 Noah Gragson Kyle Busch Motorsports
2019 Ross Chastain Niece Motorsports
2020 Zane Smith GMS Racing
2021 Hailie Deegan David Gilliland Racing The first female driver to win the Truck Series MPD.
The second female driver to win the MPD overall.
2022

Mexico Series
Year Driver Team Notes
2009 Jorge Arteaga FCV Racing
2010
2011
2012 Pepe Montaño
2013
2014 Rodrigo Marbán Patricia Marbán
2015

Multiple winners
Driver Cup Xfinity Truck Mexico Total
Bill Elliott 16 0 0 0 16
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 15 1 0 0 16
Bobby Allison 8 0 0 0 8
Richard Petty 8 0 0 0 8
Chase Elliott* 5 2 0 0 7
Elliott Sadler 0 4 0 0 4
Lee Petty 3 0 0 0 3
Brad Keselowski* 0 3 0 0 3
Jimmy Hensley 0 2 1 0 3
Ron Hornaday Jr. 0 1 2 0 3
Johnny Benson Jr. 0 0 3 0 3
Jorge Arteaga 0 0 0 3 3
Kenny Wallace 0 3 0 0 3
Justin Allgaier* 0 3 0 0 3
Fred Lorenzen 2 0 0 0 2
Sam Ard 0 2 0 0 2
Joe Nemechek 0 2 0 0 2
Curtis Turner 2 0 0 0 2
Martin Truex Jr.* 0 2 0 0 2
Greg Biffle 0 1 1 0 2
Pepe Montano 0 0 0 2 2
Hailie Deegan* 0 0 2 0 2
Noah Gragson* 0 1 1 0 2
* – still active as of 2022.

References
  1. Wilhelm, Chase (December 2, 2016). "Dale Jr. wins NASCAR's Most Popular Driver, reveals wedding date". Foxsports.com. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  2. "Dale Earnhardt Jr. wins NASCAR Most Popular Driver award for 15th time". USA Today. Associated Press. November 30, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
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