DARLINGTON, S.C. (November 8, 2022) — Voting for the 2022 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) NASCAR Most Popular Driver Award presented by Hooters opens Tuesday, November 8, at 12 p.m. ET.
Fans can vote for a single driver once daily at www.nascar.com/mostpopulardriver or on the NASCAR Mobile app.
Votes shared by fans on Facebook and/or Twitter count double. To be eligible, drivers must have declared for NASCAR Cup Series points, and drivers must have been eligible for championship contention during the 2022 season, per NASCAR.
Voting closes for the NMPA Most Popular Driver Award on Wednesday, November 30, at 12 p.m. ET.
The 2022 NMPA Most Popular Driver will be announced during the NASCAR Cup Series Awards program on Thursday, December 1. The award was first presented to Curtis Turner in 1949 after NASCAR’s inaugural season. It has been administered by the NMPA and presented annually by the organization since 1983 and remains the only major NASCAR award determined solely by fan vote.
NMPA Hall of Fame member and 1988 Cup Series champion Bill Elliott holds the record for most popular driver award wins with 16—1984-1988, 1991-2000 and 2002. Dale Earnhardt Jr., elected to the NMPA Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2020, won the award for 15 consecutive seasons from 2003-2017.
Chase Elliott has received the honor for the past four years.
Formed in 1965, the National Motorsports Press Association consists of qualified media members who report on the sport of auto racing through affiliations with print, radio, television and/or internet news-gathering organizations. In addition to the NMPA Most Popular Driver Award, the NMPA presents an array of significant honors in auto racing, including The Richard Petty Driver of the Year Award, The Myers Brothers Award, the NMPA Pocono Spirit Award, and the Wood Brothers Award of Excellence.
Additional information about the NMPA can be found at nmpaonline.com.