From: Michael Powell 

HORNISH NOMINATED FOR FOURTH QUARTER DRIVER OF THE YEAR

Fisher, Luyendyk Jr. named IRL Crew’s Most Popular Drivers

INDIANAPOLIS, Monday, Nov. 10, 2003 – Two-time IRL IndyCar Series champion
Sam Hornish Jr. has been nominated for the Speed Channel Presents Driver of
the Year 2003 Fourth Quarter award. 

Hornish, who finished fifth in the 2003 IndyCar Series point standings,
earned victories in the Delphi Indy 300 Sept. 7 at Chicagoland Speedway and
the Toyota Indy 400 Sept. 21 at California Speedway. He was named the
Driver of the Year for the First Quarter in 2002.

The Driver of the Year award is in its 37th year. Awards are given out
quarterly during the racing season, before the end of the year award is
given. 

The awards are determined by an independent vote of an 18-member panel of
auto-racing journalists and broadcasters, with an additional vote based on
the cumulative tally of fan voting at www.speedtv.com.

The winner of the fourth quarter award will be given a trophy and a Maurice
Lacroix Swiss Watch, the official watch of the Driver of the Year. Later in
the year, a separate vote will take place to determine the 2003 Driver of
the Year. 

In other post-season award news, Sarah Fisher was named the 2003 IRL
IndyCar Series Most Popular Driver, while Arie Luyendyk Jr. received the
honor for the Menards Infiniti Pro Series. Officials from the IRL Crew, the
official fan organization of the IRL, presented the awards during the
organization’s “Salute to the IRL” banquet Nov. 8 in Indianapolis.

Fisher now has won the award for three consecutive seasons, while the
Menards Infiniti Pro Series trophy was awarded for the first time. 

The winners were determined by fan voting at all IRL events with the IRL
Crew facilitating the balloting.

The 2004 IRL IndyCar Series season begins with the Toyota Indy 300 on Feb.
29, 2004 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The race will be broadcast live on
ESPN. The 2003 Menards Infiniti Pro Series season begins Feb. 29, 2004 at
HMS. 

 


--- Internet Rex 2.29