Inaugural Hall of Fame class announcement date set

Inaugural NASCAR Hall Of Fame Class To Be Announced October 14

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Sept 10, 2009) -- The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) has announced that "Voting Day" for the inaugural class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame will be Oct. 14 at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, N.C.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel, consisting of members of the Nominating Committee along with 29 others representing NASCAR, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, major race track ownership groups, retired drivers, owners and crew chiefs along with motorsports media representatives, will meet in a closed session to deliberate and vote on the 25 candidates eligible for this first class. The vote will be followed by a press conference announcing the inaugural class of 2010.

The class will be chosen from the 51 votes cast by the panel and the nationwide fan vote -- which ends Sept. 27 -- conducted through NASCAR.COM. The accounting firm of Ernst & Young will preside over the tabulation of the votes.

The hall's inaugural class will consist of five members and are scheduled to be enshrined into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in May 2010.

The nominees, which include many of the sport's legendary names and were announced in July, include: Bobby Allison, Buck Baker, Red Byron, Richard Childress, Dale Earnhardt, Richie Evans, Tim Flock, Bill France Jr., Bill France Sr., 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 NASCAR Hall of Fame broke ground in Charlotte on Jan. 25, 2007 and will open May 11, 2010. The facility honors the history and heritage of NASCAR and the many who have contributed to the success of NASCAR.

-credit: nascar