You don’t have to be a Larry Dixon, Top Fuel or even a drag racing fan to feel very bleeped-off right now.

You just have to have a basic sense of respect for the sport.

Jimmie Johnson was announced Wednesday as Driver of the Year, as determined by an 18-member national media panel. The five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion received 10 votes. John Force got seven nods and Kyle Busch one.

Dixon didn’t get a single vote. Not one.

This is a much bigger deal than Santa leaving NHRAers a lump of coal.

It is an outrage.
 



You don’t have to be a Larry Dixon, Top Fuel or even a drag racing fan to feel very bleeped-off right now.

You just have to have a basic sense of respect for the sport.

Jimmie Johnson was announced Wednesday as Driver of the Year, as determined by an 18-member national media panel. The five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion received 10 votes. John Force got seven nods and Kyle Busch one.

Dixon didn’t get a single vote. Not one.

This is a much bigger deal than Santa leaving NHRAers a lump of coal.

It is an outrage.

This certainly speaks no disrespect of Johnson, who joins Jeff Gordon as a record four-time DoY. It’s a nice recognition for Force, a previous DoY, after his 15th Funny Car title and signals yet again that America loves a comeback story – and a celebrity. It’s a small bow to Busch, who won a record 24 races in NASCAR’s three national series, but no championship.

Dixon?

Only 12 victories in 23 starts. A perfect 12-for-12 in final rounds. An overall mark of 62-11 – a .849 winning percentage. Eight poles.

None of which was sufficient to be deemed worthy of a single DoY vote.

Let me call that for what it is: A lack of respect.

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Here’s why this is a Big Deal: The DoY award goes back more than four decades and past winners include legendary names like Mario Andretti, Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. In truth, the DoY doesn’t carry the prestige it once did, when it was sponsored by Olsonite Corp., and PR legend Jim Chapman orchestrated a lavish December luncheon at New York City’s famed “21” Club. I was an invited guest at many of those gatherings and can attest that industry titans like Bill France Jr. and Tony Hulman and Wally Parks and John Bishop would be at the head table, no matter what series the DoY called home. The trophy and $10,000 prize were secondary to the class of the ceremony.

These days, many organizations name their own Top Driver, but the DoY still enjoys the history – and the straight-forward title that gives it legitimacy among people who otherwise don’t know the difference between a carburetor and fuel injection. This, even though a few panelists haven’t set foot inside a drag strip. Of course, some Heisman Trophy voters never see the winner play a down.

It would be nice if I could tell you the DoY is determined strictly on performance. That I cannot do. There is a political – and, yes, even a PR – element to it. And, as troubled as I am with the voters, this is where I call-out NHRA and Full Throttle and Al-Anabi and Toyota.

Three times, I had the thrill of having one of my drivers win DoY: Mario Andretti in 1984, Michael Andretti in 1991, and Nigel Mansell in 1993. Back in those days, I made it my personal business to personally know every one of the 10 or 12 panelists. They were at the top of my VIP media list. I spoke to them. I provided comprehensive season-in-review information, stats and quotes. I offered one-on-one interviews. At the ceremony, I had each photographed with Mario, Michael or Nigel. A print of that photo, complete with personalized message and autograph, was in the mail soon thereafter.

That’s how you play the game.

The lesson to be learned – again – is that too many journalists don’t give drag racers their due. John Force doesn’t fit this template because, well, he’s John Force. But what are the spin doctors doing to turn this situation around for everyone else?

Regardless, Dixon can enjoy the holidays in the comforting warmth of the knowledge he had one of the greatest seasons in the history of all of motorsports. He did his job.

But, in the matter of the 2010 Driver of the Year award, some others didn’t do theirs. Bah humbug.



 

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