So reports the Associated Press, which says that “‘significant changes’ to the Hall of Fame selection process and eligibility rules” are coming for the May 2014 vote. What these new procedures will be won’t be announced until next month, though NASCAR did say today that the reigning Sprint Cup champion will have a vote on who gets into the hall. (That brings the number of voters to 56.)
Here at the Meck Deck we’ve long expected that NASCAR would have to make significant changes in the selection process. NASCAR racing is a rather concentrated sport, with a relatively small number of individuals having won a large percentage of races. At the rate at which the HOF has been electing top-series drivers, enshrinement would soon not be that much of an honor. Voters have also so far been uninterested in selecting people of the business side of NASCAR (series officials, race owners, promoters) for the hall.
