Earnhardt Jr. again NASCAR's biggest star

It's a sad commentary for any sport when it's star is a wanker

Junior Nation has spoken once again. For the seventh consecutive year, fans of Dale Earnhardt Jr. have voted their driver the NASCARÂ® NMPA Chex Most Popular Driver. In winning the 2009 award, he joins Bill Elliott and Richard Petty as the only drivers to win the award at least seven times.

Earnhardt Jr. received the NASCARÂ® NMPA Chex Most Popular Driver Award today at the National Motorsports Press Association's Myers Brothers Media Luncheon in Las Vegas. The only drivers to win the trophy more times than "Little E" are Elliott with 16 and Petty with nine. Only Elliott has more consecutive wins with 10.

Throughout the race season, fans voted daily for more than 40 of their favorite NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers online at www.chexmostpopulardriver.com. The NASCARÂ® NMPA Chex Most Popular Driver Award has been given annually since 1956 and today is the only award for NASCAR's top drivers given by the fans.

"I like winning this award because it is voted on by the fans," said Earnhardt Jr. "It means a lot and it's a compliment from the fans. It shows how loyal our fans are especially after the season we had.

"You look at Richard Petty and Bill Elliott and I've always felt that if you win this award once then you are in good company. I'm real proud of it. The fans have hung in there and gave me one heck of a Christmas gift."

"In a year where drivers reached out to fans in more ways, this shows the depth and loyalty of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s fan base,'' said Dustin Long, President of the National Motorsports Press Association. "We're thankful to the fans who vote and continue to make this award a part of the sport's rich history."

This year's NASCARÂ® NMPA Chex Most Popular Driver Award campaign incorporated a new top-10 finalist format, where the field was narrowed to the top-10 vote-getters with 10 race weeks remaining in the season. The top-10 finalists in alphabetical order were Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart and Michael Waltrip.

ChexÂ® Cereal has been on breakfast tables for over 60 years and has been a proud sponsor of the NASCAR NMPA Most Popular Driver Award since 2005. Voters are not only encouraged to vote every day for their favorite driver, but are also reminded to start their engines with Chex cereal and enjoy race day with their favorite Chex recipes from www.Chex.com.