Tight Race Fuels 2012 Sprint Fan Vote

    Biffle Secures Spot with Texas Win; Earnhardt Jr. & Truex Jr. Not in Field

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. – May 3, 2012 – The green flag drops on the 2012 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race in just 16 days, yet six drivers currently in the top 20 in points are on the outside looking in. Jeff Burton (20th), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2nd), Joey Logano (15th), Jamie McMurray (18th), Juan Pablo Montoya (16th) and Martin Truex Jr. (5th) might need to rely on the Sprint Fan Vote to earn their way into the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

While NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points-leader Greg Biffle punched his card into the race field with his victory at Texas Motor Speedway in April, hundreds of thousands of NASCAR fans are casting votes for their favorite Sprint Fan Vote eligible drivers. And some names on the ballot might surprise even the most diehard NASCAR fan.

The top 10 drivers in the Sprint Fan Vote standings (in alphabetical order) are: A.J. Allmendinger, Aric Almirola, Burton, Earnhardt Jr., Bill Elliott, Bobby Labonte, Logano, McMurray, Truex Jr. and Kenny Wallace.

Voting will continue until 5 p.m. (EDT) Saturday, May 19. Fans can vote by visiting Sprint.com/Speed, using the NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile application on Sprint Android devices or by texting “VOTE” to 229466 on any wireless carrier (standard text messaging and data rates apply). As an added incentive for Sprint customers, votes submitted from a Sprint, Nextel, Boost or Virgin Mobile device will count double toward an eligible driver’s total.

Voting is also open at NASCAR.com/AllStar or by visiting the Sprint Experience, Sprint’s mobile-marketing display located in the midway at all NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.

To be eligible for the Sprint All-Star Fan Vote, drivers must be approved by NASCAR for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competition and have met all other eligibility requirements. Those requirements include finishing in the Top 50 of the final 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship point standings or an attempt to qualify for the 2012 Daytona 500.

The driver who accumulates the most votes and finishes the Sprint Showdown qualifying race on the lead lap with a car in “raceable” condition (as determined by NASCAR competition) will earn a spot in the prestigious NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race field.

Drivers eligible for the 2012 Sprint Fan Vote:

A.J. Allmendinger, Aric Almirola, T.J. Bell, Dave Blaney, Geoffrey Bodine, Jeff Burton, Landon Cassill, Chris Cook, Erik Darnell, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bill Elliott, David Gilliland, Robby Gordon, Brian Keselowski, Bobby Labonte, Terry Labonte, Andy Lally, Stephen Leicht, Joey Logano, Michael McDowell, Jamie McMurray, Casey Mears, Juan Pablo Montoya, Joe Nemechek, Steve Park, Andy Pilgrim, Tony Raines, David Reutimann, Robert Richardson, Boris Said, Ken Schrader, Brian Simo, David Stremme, Martin Truex Jr., Brian Vickers, Kenny Wallace, Mike Wallace, Michael Waltrip and J.J. Yeley.

- Courtesy of Sprint