Best Driver ESPY Award

The Best Driver ESPY Award, known alternatively as the Best Auto Racing Driver ESPY Award, is an annual award honoring the achievements of an individual from the world of motorsports.[1] It was first awarded as part of the ESPY Awards in 1993.[1] The Best Driver ESPY Award trophy, designed by sculptor Lawrence Nowlan,[2] has been presented annually to the racing driver adjudged to have performed the best in a given calendar year.[1] Since 2004, the winner has been chosen by online voting through three to five choices selected by the ESPN Select Nominating Committee.[3] Before that, determination of the winners was made by an panel of experts.[4] Through the 2001 iteration of the ESPY Awards, ceremonies were conducted in February of each year to honor achievements over the previous calendar year; awards presented thereafter are conferred in July and reflect performance from the June previous.[n 1][5]

Best Driver ESPY Award
Awarded forbest racing driver
LocationLos Angeles (2019)
Presented byESPN
First awarded1993
Currently held byKyle Busch (USA)
Websitewww.espn.co.uk/espys/

The inaugural winner of the award was British driver Nigel Mansell who finished the 1992 season with a then record-breaking nine wins and fourteen pole positions en route to winning his sole Formula One World Drivers' Championship.[6][7] Mansell moved to the Championship Auto Racing Teams the following year, and won the series title at the first attempt,[8] earning him a second ESPY Award in 1994.[6] Mansell is one of six drivers to have won the award more than once. As of 2017, multiple NASCAR Cup Series champions Jeff Gordon (1996, 1998, 1999, 2007) and his teammate Jimmie Johnson (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011) have won the most awards with four each. NASCAR drivers have won more awards than any other motorsports series, with eighteen victories and eighteen nominations, followed by Formula One with four wins and thirteen nominations. It was not awarded in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9] The 2019 winner of the Best Driver ESPY Award was the NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch, his second win after receiving the award in 2016.[10]

Winners and nominees
Best Driver ESPY Award winners and nominees
Year Image Driver Nationality Racing series Type of vehicle Other nominees Ref
1993 Nigel Mansell  GBR Formula One Open wheel N/A [6]
1994 Nigel Mansell  GBR CART Open wheel N/A [6]
1995 Al Unser Jr.  USA CART Open wheel Dale Earnhardt ( USA) – NASCAR
Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One		 [6][11]
1996 Jeff Gordon  USA NASCAR Stock car Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One
Jacques Villeneuve ( CAN) – CART		 [12]
1997
–
 Jimmy Vasser  USA CART Open wheel Terry Labonte ( USA) – NASCAR
Damon Hill ( GBR) – Formula One		 [13]
1998 Jeff Gordon  USA NASCAR Stock car N/A [14]
1999 Jeff Gordon  USA NASCAR Stock car Dale Earnhardt ( USA) – NASCAR
Mark Martin ( USA) – NASCAR		 [15][16]
2000 Dale Jarrett  USA NASCAR Stock car John Force ( USA) – NHRA
Juan Pablo Montoya ( COL) – CART		 [17]
2001 Bobby Labonte  USA NASCAR Stock car Gil de Ferran ( BRA) – CART
John Force ( USA) – NHRA
Buddy Lazier ( USA) – IndyCar		 [18]
2002 Michael Schumacher  GER Formula One Open wheel Hélio Castroneves ( BRA) – CART
Gil de Ferran ( BRA) – CART
John Force ( USA) – NHRA
Jeff Gordon ( USA) – NASCAR
Kevin Harvick ( USA) – NASCAR
Sam Hornish Jr. ( USA) – IndyCar		 [19]
2003 Tony Stewart  USA NASCAR Stock car John Force ( USA) – NHRA
Gil de Ferran ( BRA) IndyCar
Sam Hornish Jr. ( USA) – IndyCar
Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One		 [20]
2004 Dale Earnhardt Jr.  USA NASCAR Stock car Scott Dixon ( NZL) – IndyCar
Matt Kenseth ( USA) – NASCAR
Tony Pedregon ( USA) – NHRA
Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One		 [21]
2005 Michael Schumacher  GER Formula One Open wheel Greg Anderson ( USA) – NHRA
Kurt Busch ( USA) – NASCAR
Dan Wheldon ( GBR) – IndyCar		 [22]
2006 Tony Stewart  USA NASCAR Stock car Jimmie Johnson ( USA) – NASCAR
Sam Hornish Jr. ( USA) – IndyCar
Melanie Troxel ( USA) – NHRA
Dan Wheldon ( GBR) – IndyCar		 [23][24]
2007 Jeff Gordon  USA NASCAR Stock car Dario Franchitti ( GBR) – IndyCar
Kevin Harvick ( USA) – NASCAR
Jimmie Johnson ( USA) – NASCAR
Tony Schumacher ( USA) – NHRA		 [25]
2008 Jimmie Johnson  USA NASCAR Stock car Kyle Busch ( USA) – NASCAR
Scott Dixon ( NZL) – IndyCar
Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One
Tony Schumacher ( USA) – NHRA		 [26]
2009 Jimmie Johnson  USA NASCAR Stock car Hélio Castroneves ( BRA) – IndyCar
Scott Dixon ( NZL) – IndyCar
Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One
Tony Schumacher ( USA) – NHRA		 [27]
2010 Jimmie Johnson  USA NASCAR Stock car Kyle Busch ( USA) – NASCAR
Dario Franchitti ( GBR) – IndyCar
Ron Hornaday Jr. ( USA) – NASCAR
Tony Schumacher ( USA) – NHRA		 [28]
2011 Jimmie Johnson  USA NASCAR Stock car Greg Anderson ( USA) – NHRA
John Force ( USA) – NHRA
Dario Franchitti ( GBR) – IndyCar		 [29]
2012 Tony Stewart  USA NASCAR Stock car Dario Franchitti ( GBR) – IndyCar
Sebastian Vettel ( GER) – Formula One
Del Worsham ( USA) – NHRA		 [30]
2013 Ryan Hunter-Reay  USA IndyCar Series Open wheel Tony Kanaan ( BRA) – IndyCar
Brad Keselowski ( USA) – NASCAR
Sebastian Vettel ( GER) – Formula One		 [31]
2014 Ryan Hunter-Reay  USA IndyCar Series Open wheel Scott Dixon ( NZL) – IndyCar
Dale Earnhardt Jr. ( USA) – NASCAR
John Force ( USA) – NHRA		 [32]
2015 Kevin Harvick  USA NASCAR Stock car Erica Enders-Stevens ( USA) – NHRA
Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One
Juan Pablo Montoya ( COL) – IndyCar
Will Power ( AUS) – IndyCar		 [33]
2016 Kyle Busch  USA NASCAR Stock car Scott Dixon ( NZL) – IndyCar
Erica Enders-Stevens ( USA) – NHRA
Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One
Alexander Rossi ( USA) – IndyCar		 [34]
2017 Lewis Hamilton  GBR Formula One Open Wheel Ron Capps ( USA) – NHRA
Jimmie Johnson ( USA) – NASCAR
Simon Pagenaud ( FRA) – IndyCar
Martin Truex Jr. ( USA) – NASCAR		 [35]
2018 Martin Truex Jr.  USA NASCAR Stock car racing Brittany Force ( USA) – NHRA
Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One
Josef Newgarden ( USA) – IndyCar Series		 [36]
2019 Kyle Busch  USA NASCAR Stock car racing Scott Dixon ( NZL) – IndyCar Series
Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One
Steve Torrance – ( USA) – NHRA		 [10][37]
2020 Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic [9]

Statistics

See also

Notes
  1. Because of the rescheduling of the ESPY Awards ceremony, the award presented in 2002 was given in consideration of performance betwixt February 2001 and June 2002.[5]

References
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  2. Avard, Christian (August 2, 2013). "Sculptor commissioned to complete Joe Frazier statue has died". Barre Montpelier Times Argus. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved January 21, 2018.
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  13. Sun Staff and Wire Reports (February 11, 1997). "Sports Briefs: LV's Vasser wins auto racing ESPY". Las Vegas Sun. Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
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  26. Heath, Mitch (July 17, 2008). "Jimmie Johnson Wins ESPN ESPY". Bleacher Report. Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
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