Elliott Is Unanimous Pick as Driver of Year

Bill Elliott, who won 11 stock car super-speedway races and more than $2 million in purse money despite losing the NASCAR Winston Cup championship to Darrell Waltrip, is the Eljer Driver of the Year.

Elliott was the unanimous selection of a panel of 10 leading motor sportswriters. He was only the second unanimous choice in the 19-year history of the voting. Mario Andretti was the first, in 1984.

“It’s hard for me to imagine being in the same league as Mario Andretti and the other great drivers who have won this award,” Elliott said from his home in Dawsonville, Ga. “It sends chills down my spine to think about it. I feel especially honored in being the unanimous selection.”

Elliott is the seventh NASCAR driver to win the award since it was originated. Others were Bobby Allison, 1972 and 1983; Waltrip, 1982, 1981 and 1979; Cale Yarborough, 1977; David Pearson, 1976 and 1973; Richard Petty, 1971, and the late Lee Roy Yarbrough, 1969.

Waltrip, who edged Elliott for the championship because of more consistently high finishes during the 28-race season, was not surprised at losing the award to Elliott.

“Like I say, what goes around comes around,” Waltrip philosophized. “It was the other way around in 1979, when Richard (Petty) won the Winston Cup and I was Driver of the Year. What my winning the championship meant is that instead of just one guy (Elliott) having a great year, two guys had a great year. But the way he put the spotlight on our sport when he won that million bucks was great. He certainly deserves all he gets.”

The high point of Elliott’s season came Sept. 1 when he won the Southern 500 at Darlington, S.C., and claimed the $1-million bonus from Winston for winning three of NASCAR’s four major 500-mile races.

The award winner is selected from all major forms of motor racing competition, including NASCAR, Indy cars, IMSA and SCCA sports cars, drag racing and North American events in Formula One.

Balloting is conducted on a quarterly basis, and Elliott was the No. 1 selection on three of the four occasions. Indy car driver Bobby Rahal was the top man in the fourth-quarter balloting.

Elliott will receive $10,000 and the Eljer Trophy at a luncheon Dec. 6 at the 21 Club in New York.

SPRINT CARS--Former motorcycle racer Eddie Wirth is expected to win his first Kraco-California Racing Assn. championship Saturday night in the eighth annual Don Peabody race at Ascot Park. It is the final event of a 46-race season and Wirth has a 58-point lead over Mike Sweeney. He needs only to qualify and start the 50-lap main event to clinch the title. Interestingly, Wirth holds the Ascot one-lap record for sprint cars, set this year, and the two-lap record for TT motorcycles, set in 1966. Bubby Jones, winner of three of the last four Peabody races, will drive the Kazarian Bros. Gas-Chem car, which was retired most of the season. Also entered are three-time CRA champion Dean Thompson, who said after winning last Saturday night that he is retiring at the close of this season; World of Outlaw drivers Ron Shuman of Mesa, Ariz., and Dave Blaney of Hartford, Ohio, plus veteran Lealand McSpadden of Tempe, Ariz. . . . CRA officials have voted to run nonwinged cars again in 1986 despite a growing trend toward winged machines elsewhere in the country. . . . Gary Sokola has been re-elected CRA president.

SUPER MODIFIEDS--Chuck Gurney of Livermore has clinched the U.S. Auto Club’s national championship with 353 points to 260 for runner-up Wally Pankratz of Yorba Linda but both are entered in the season finale Sunday at Phoenix Raceway. Gurney will also drive in the 40-lap stock car feature against NASCAR veteran Bobby Allison and three-time Phoenix winner Jim Thirkettle of Sylmar.

STOCK CARS--Ron Bouchard will replace Richard Petty as driver for Mike Curb’s NASCAR team Pontiacs next season. Petty is returning to his own team with cousin Dale Inman back as his crew chief. Inman handled pit chores for Terry Labonte when he won the 1984 Winston Cup championship. Petty and Inman were together during the Petty reign when he won seven national championships.

MOTORCYCLES--The 11th running of the Barstow to Las Vegas hare and hound desert race will start at 7:30 a.m. Saturday Nov. 30 with 1,200 riders taking off on a 180-mile run to the Nevada city. Former desert riding great Malcolm Smith is honorary director. The race will start at 7:30 a.m. off Interstate 15 at Harvard Road, 25 miles east of Barstow.

SPEED RECORDS--Don Carr, in the Carr & Kaplan AA fuel lakester, had high speed of 277 m.p.h. in the SoCal Timing Assn.’s year-end meeting at El Mirage Dry Lake.

MORE AWARDS--World motorcycle road racing champion Freddie Spencer of Shreveport, La., has been named Italy’s Athlete of the Year for winning both the 250cc and 500cc championships in the same season. Last year’s winner was Olympic sprinter-long jumper Carl Lewis. . . . Scott Atchison of Bakersfield, winner of the Sports Car Club of America’s Formula Ford championship, was named recipient of the Mark Donohue Outstanding Performance Award at the SCCA runoffs. . . . Saugus Speedway champions Ken Sapper, modified; Larry Adams, sportsman; and Jim Gardella, street stock, received diamond championship rings at the Olimpic Racing Assn. awards banquet.