Chase Elliott Emulates Father's Gesture, Withdraws from NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Vote
Hendrick Motorsports driver steps aside to honor late Kyle Busch, mirroring Bill Elliott's 2001 tribute.
Chase Elliott, the reigning eight-time winner of NASCAR's Most Popular Driver award, has removed himself from consideration for this year's honor. This selfless act echoes a similar gesture made by his father, the legendary Bill Elliott, in 2001 following the death of Dale Earnhardt.
The Hendrick Motorsports driver's decision aims to clear the path for the late Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup Series champion who passed away earlier this year, to posthumously receive the fan-voted award. Elliott's name is notably absent from the online ballot, which is now open for voting.
In May, Elliott publicly expressed his desire for Busch to win the award. "I just feel like he deserves to win the award, truthfully," Elliott stated. "I just think it's one of those things that Kyle is a guy who really deserves an award like that. He's a guy that's had a lot of fans throughout the course of his career."
This move by Chase Elliott mirrors that of his father, Bill Elliott, who withdrew from the ballot in 2001 after Dale Earnhardt's fatal crash at the Daytona 500. At the time, Bill Elliott had dominated the award, winning it 15 times between 1984 and 2000. Earnhardt, a seven-time champion, had never received the honor. Following Earnhardt's death, Bill Elliott encouraged his fans to vote for Earnhardt, who subsequently won the award posthumously.
Other NASCAR drivers have joined in urging fans to support Busch. Kyle Larson, Elliott's teammate, has openly encouraged his fanbase to vote for Busch. Carson Hocevar, another driver, also took to social media, asking his fans not to vote for him but instead to cast their votes for Busch.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., who himself won the Most Popular Driver award for 15 consecutive years before Bill Elliott took over, commented on the situation on his podcast. He noted Chase Elliott's graciousness and supported the idea of fans rallying behind Busch. "I'd love to see the fans rally behind him and vote him Most Popular Driver because, I'm telling you, he'd get a kick out of that," Earnhardt Jr. said. "He talked about it more than people would ever know."
Voting for the NASCAR Most Popular Driver award began on Friday and will continue through November 9, the day after the Cup Series season finale. The winner is scheduled to be announced on November 10.