NASCAR: Dale Earnhardt advances to GOAT poll championship
By Asher Fair
Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt Sr. is set to advance to the championship of the NASCAR “GOAT” poll against Richard Petty.
Dale Earnhardt Sr. became the second of two NASCAR drivers who will advance to the fourth and final round, the championship round, of the NASCAR “GOAT” poll, a poll in which fans can vote for who they believe is the sport’s greatest driver of all-time.
Earnhardt entered the 16-driver bracket as the #3 seed. Seeding for these 16 drivers was determined by a mathematical formula that is based on two variables: championships and race victories. Championship count as 10 points each and race victories count as one point each.
Earnhardt earned 76 victories and an all-time record seven championships (tied with two other drivers; Richard Petty and Jimmie Johnson) throughout his NASCAR Cup Series career to earn a total of 146 points using this formula.
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He was seeded behind only Petty and Johnson, who entered the bracket as the #1 seed and the #2 seed, respectively. In addition to winning seven championships, Petty earned 200 victories while Johnson has earned 83 victories, giving them 270 points and 153 points using this formula, respectively.
In the first round, the round of 16, Earnhardt was matched up against #14 Rusty Wallace, who earned 55 victories and won one championship throughout his NASCAR Cup Series career. Earnhardt got 87% of the vote in this matchup while Wallace got the other 13%.
In the second round, the round of 8, Earnhardt was matched up against #6 Darrell Waltrip, who defeated #11 Ned Jarrett in the round of 16. Waltrip earned 84 victories and won three championships over the course of his NASCAR Cup Series career. Earnhardt got 88% of the vote in this matchup while Waltrip got the other 12%.
Finally, in the third round, the round of 4, Earnhardt was matched up against #2 Jimmie Johnson, who defeated #15 Kyle Busch in the round of 16 and #7 Cale Yarborough in the round of 8. Johnson, as stated above, has earned 83 victories and won seven championships over the course of his NASCAR Cup Series career. Earnhardt got 78% of the vote in this matchup while Johnson got the other 22%.
Earnhardt’s opponent in the championship is set to be #1 Richard Petty, who defeated #16 Tim Flock in the round of 16, #8 Bobby Allison in the round of 8 and #5 Jeff Gordon in the round of 4.
Be sure to head over to our Facebook page to vote for either Earnhardt or Petty as the greatest NASCAR driver of all-time, and be sure to click on the link below for more information.
Will be starting the first round of polls shortly.Here are the seeds for the Formula 1, IndyCar and NASCAR…
Posted by Beyond the Flag on Monday, January 14, 2019
Top 10 NASCAR drivers of all-time. dark. Next
Be sure to vote in the NASCAR “GOAT” championship poll between Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr. This championship poll is scheduled to begin at 6:00 a.m. ET tomorrow, Thursday, January 31. It is scheduled to remain active until 6:00 a.m. ET on Friday, February 1.