Chase Elliott wins NASCAR Cup Series "Most Popular Driver" award for the fourth consecutive season

 

Rich Barnes/USA Today Sports

    For the fourth consecutive season, Hendrick Motorsports' driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro, Chase Elliott has won the NASCAR Cup Series "Most Popular Driver" award.

Elliott, who entered the 2021 race season as the defending NASCAR Cup Series Champion, saw a very slight drop off in performance, as he lost the championship to his teammate Kyle Larson. Fortunately for Elliott, consistency and continued growth within his fan base meant that the driver of the No. 9 would continue his tour of great popularity.

Chase Elliott's winning streak of this prized NASCAR award represents a family tradition, one that has not yet been exceeded. Chase Elliott's father Bill Elliott was named the NASCAR Cup Series' "Most Popular Driver" on 16 separate occasions (1984-88, 1991-2000, 2002). It is likely that Chase Elliott's popularity has relation to his father's, although Chase's success as a driver ought to be considered.

NASCAR's father and son duo, Bill and Chase Elliott, pictured in 2016 during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series era (Photo by: Hendrick Motorsports)

NASCAR's "Most Popular Driver" awards, which exist primarily for the Cup, Xfinity, and Camping World Truck Series stand out in the world of sports. NASCAR's many fans have the ability to cast votes towards their favorite driver in each series, making the size of a driver's fan base an important function of the award. In 2021, fans were able to case one vote per-day in each series, allowing devoted fans an increased incentive to vote. 

Growing a fan base of Elliott's size is not an easy task to accomplish, though in 2021 Elliott received quite a bit of help from fellow driver Kevin Harvick. The two drivers who had previously been somewhat friendly found bones to pick after an on track altercation at the Bristol Night Race in the Fall. Both Elliott and Harvick faced hardship due to this bad blood, but by the perception of many fans Elliott was the 'less guilty' participant. Chase Elliott's perseverance, and words of anger towards Harvick, was likely helpful towards the growth of his fan-base.

Throughout his entire racing career Chase Elliott has scored 20 Most Popular Driver awards, but he definitely has much to accomplish if he expects to exceed his father's many awards specifically in the NASCAR Cup Series. 

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