BREAKING: 2012 NASCAR HOF Class Announced

And the winners are:

From NASCAR their ownselves...

NASCAR announced today the 2012 class of inductees into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The five-person class, which will be officially inducted in a ceremony during the weekend of Jan. 20, 2012 at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C., consists of: Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip, Dale Inman, Richie Evans and Glen Wood.

Members of the 55-member NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel met today in a closed session in Charlotte, N.C., to vote on the induction class of 2012. The announcement was made by NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France in the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s “Great Hall.”

The class was determined by votes cast by the Voting Panel, which included a nationwide fan vote conducted through NASCAR.COM. The accounting firm of Ernst & Young presided over the tabulation of the votes.

As was the case for the first two classes of the NASCAR Hall of Fame, the results of this year’s voting were competitive. Yarborough led with 85 percent of the vote, followed by Waltrip (82%), Inman (78%), Evans (50%) and Wood (44%).

For those of you who don't know... Inman was Richard Petty's crew chief, Evans is NASCAR's King of the Modified Division and Wood is from the Wood Brothers...

Congrats to all the winners selected from the 25-finalist class...

NASCAR HOF Releases First 25 Nominees

((HT: NASCAR Media))

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) announced today a history-rich list of 25 nominees for the inaugural NASCAR Hall of Fame induction class. From that list, five inductees will be chosen via a process that includes a nationwide fan vote on NASCAR.COM; the inductees will be announced in October and honored next May at the new Hall of Fame facility in Charlotte, N.C.

The nominees, which include many of the sport’s legendary names, were selected by a 21-person nominating committee consisting of representatives from NASCAR, the NASCAR Hall of Fame and track owners from both major facilities and historic short tracks.

“This first list of potential inductees is impressive, to say the least,” said NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France. “Now comes the hard part — choosing only five to be inducted. Every single person on this list is worthy to be in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.”

The HOF’s first inductees will be determined by the Voting Panel, which has 50 members — the entire Nominating Committee, 14 media members, four manufacturer representatives and nine retired competitors (drivers, owners, crew chiefs — three each) and two recognized industry leaders. In addition, the fan vote will result in the Voting Panel’s 51st and final ballot.

Following are the 25 individuals who have been nominated:

* Bobby Allison, 1983 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and winner of 84 races
* Buck Baker, the first driver to win consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championships
* Red Byron, first NASCAR Sprint Cup champion, in 1949
* Richard Childress, 11-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series
* Dale Earnhardt, won record seven NASCAR Sprint Cup championships
* Richie Evans, nine-time NASCAR Modified champion
* Tim Flock, two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion
* Bill France Jr., NASCAR president, chairman and CEO (1972-2003)
* Bill France Sr., NASCAR founder and first president (1948-1972)
* Rick Hendrick, 11-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series
* Ned Jarrett, two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion
* Junior Johnson, 50 wins as a driver, 132 wins and six championships as an owner
* Bud Moore, 63 wins and two NASCAR Sprint Cup titles as a car owner
* Raymond Parks, NASCAR’s first champion car owner
* Benny Parsons, 1973 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion
* David Pearson, 105 victories and three NASCAR Sprint Cup championships
* Lee Petty, winner of the first Daytona 500 and first three-time series champion
* Richard Petty, 200 wins and seven NASCAR Sprint Cup titles — both records
* Fireball Roberts, won 33 NASCAR Sprint Cup races, including the 1962 Daytona 500
* Herb Thomas, first two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion, 1951 and ’53
* Curtis Turner, first to win Daytona 500, Southern 500, Coca-Cola 600 in same year
* Darrell Waltrip, winner of 84 races and three NASCAR Sprint Cup championships
* Joe Weatherly, two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion
* Glen Wood, as driver, laid foundation for Wood Brothers’ future team success
* Cale Yarborough, winner of three consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup titles, 1976-78

Waltrip & Allison Nominated For NASCAR Hall Of Fame

As the NASCAR Hall of Fame begins the process of inducting their inaugural class and 5 will get in we know 2 of the 25 nominees for that honor.

Legendary drivers Bobby Allison and Darrelll Waltrip are on the nominee list. The rest of the 25 will be revealed Thursday night on SPEED.

Allison won 84 Sprint Cup races, 3 Daytona 500's and the Cup Championship in 1983.

D.W. won 84 Sprint Cup races (just like Allison) 3 Cup Championships (1981, 1982 and 1985) and 1 Daytona 500 (1989).

Both had impressive careers and are legendary drivers but would Allison and Waltrip be one of the First Five in?

Those of us at the OSG HQ say the odds are against them but they will get in eventually.

First here is Bobby Allison's last Daytona 500 win in 1988 (Thanks CBS Sports/SPEED/Youtube.com)



And now here is Darrell Waltrip's only Daytona 500 victory the next year. (Thanks CBS Sports/SPEED/Youtube.com)