Daily NASCAR

by Holly CainDAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The second slate of NASCAR Hall of Fame nominees was released Thursday night and includes five new names among the 25-person list, including Richard Petty’s longtime crew chief, Dale Inman, and the late longtime R.J. Reynolds executive T. Wayne Robertson, who guided the tobacco company’s involvement through the Winston Cup years as the sport began peaking in popularity.

The five new nominees are: Inman, an eight-time champion crew chief (including one title with Terry Labonte); Robertson; six-time NASCAR Modified Series champ Jerry Cook; 1965 Daytona 500 winner Fred Lorenzen and two-time Nationwide Series champion Jack Ingram.

They join a list of 20 previous nominees: Bobby Allison, Buck Baker, Red Byron, Richard Childress, Richie Evans, Tim Flock, Rick Hendrick, Ned Jarrett, Bud Moore, Raymond Parks, Benny Parsons, David Pearson, Lee Petty, Fireball Roberts, Herb Thomas, Curtis Turner, Darrell Waltrip, Joe Weatherly, Glen Wood and Cale Yarborough.

Share The inaugural class of five inductees — Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Junior Johnson, Bill France Sr. and Bill France Jr. — was inducted in a ceremony at NASCAR’s new Hall of Fame and Museum in downtown Charlotte on May 23.

A voting panel of 53 plus a “fan vote” will decide which five of the 25 nominees will be inducted as the second Hall of Fame class. The announcement will be made this October with the induction coming next May.

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Joe Weatherley pits at the Southeastern 500 in 1962.

Denny Hamlin is the first driver from Virginia since the late Joe Weatherly, in 1961, to win at Richmond and Martinsville in the same season. A North Carolinian, Richard Petty, pulled off the sweep six times: in 1967, ‘68, ‘70, ‘71, ‘72 and ‘73. Weatherly, the Cup (then Grand National) campion in 1962-63, was from Norfolk, Va. Hamlin is from Chesterfield.

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This morning in downtown Charlotte, a broad-based selection committee will cast the ballots determining the first five inductees into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. No one will know who won until a representative of an accounting firm hands an envelope to NASCAR chairman Brian France this afternoon.

Then, at approximately 4:30 p.m., in the Charlotte Convention Center, France will let the world know.

The panel has 50 members, with a 51st ballot originating in a fan vote that has been conducted for months. Earlier this year, a nominating committee arrived at the 25 individuals whose names were placed on the ballot. The voting panel that convenes this morning is made up of the 21 nominating committee members, 14 media members, four manufacturer representatives, nine retired competitors and two "recognized industry leaders."

One obvious advantage of this selection process, convened in the morning and announced in the late afternoon, is that there will be no leaks.

"No, it wasn’t my idea," said Winston Kelley, the Hall of Fame’s executive director. "That’s more of a NASCAR question because they came up with the process.

"I like the process a lot. I had indirect input but was not around the table. … It’s hard to keep a secret of this magnitude for any length of time."

The potential nominees are Bobby Allison, Buck Baker, Red Byron, Richard Childress, Dale Earnhardt, Richie Evans, Tim Flock, William C. (Bill Jr.) France, William H.G. (Big Bill) France, Rick Hendrick, Ned Jarrett, Junior Johnson, Bud Moore, Raymond Parks, Benny Parsons, David Pearson, Lee Petty, Richard Petty, Fireball Roberts, Herb Thomas, Curtis Turner, Darrell Waltrip, Joe Weatherly, Glen Wood and Cale Yarborough.

The elite inaugural class will have to wait for induction until May 23, 2010, the day after the Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The Hall of Fame will open on May 11.

Kelley, a longtime member of Motor Racing Network’s broadcast team, is overseeing the construction of a facility that, in his words, is "part museum, part entertainment attraction and part theater."

"We’ve got something for everybody," he said, "whether die-hard fan or ‘don’t know much about the sport.’ You’re playing to both levels: people who know a great deal of history but also those who are coming to learn about NASCAR.

"You’re trying to communicate with and entertain a wide variety of audiences."

Kelley has visited 11 other facilities since 2006. A NASCAR committee made the rounds. Among those facilities were halls of fame honoring country music, rock and roll, other major sports and the U.S. Constitution.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame will draw influence from many other facilities, but Kelley said it will have an identity of its own.

"There is no other facility identical to ours," he said. "There were elements to each one we visited that we liked. You have to take your subject and apply it to your audience."

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1. What were David Pearson’s car numbers when he won his three championships?

2. What was Joe Weatherly’s number when he won championships in 1962-63?

3. Richard Petty’s number was 43. What was the number of his father, Lee?

4. What number did Fred Lorenzen carry for most of his career?

5. When Bobby Isaac won a championship in 1970, what number adorned his Dodge?

6. What number was most often associated with Buck Baker?

7. What was Wendell Scott’s number?

8. At the moment, who is the only driver in Cup history with exactly eight career victories?

9. Before Jimmie Johnson, what NASCAR driver was most notably associated with No. 48?

10. What number was on Rusty Wallace’s Pontiac when he won a championship in 1989?

11. What was Bobby Allison’s number when he won a championship in 1983?

12. What number was most notably associated with Harry Gant?

Answers

1. 6 (1966) and 17 (1968-69).

2. 8.

3. 42.

4. 28.

5. 71.

6. 87.

7. 34.

8. James Hylton.

9. 123.

10. 27.

11. 22.

12. 33.
 

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