Craven wins online popularity contest

Newburgh Winston Cup driver Ricky Craven was the last man standing in the CBS Sportsline Race of Champions online contest as he beat out Gil de Ferran of the Indy Racing League series.

Five months ago, the contest pitted 25 drivers from NASCAR in one column against 25 open-wheel drivers in another one. Each week, fans logging onto the Web site had an opportunity to vote off a driver from each column.

It eventually came down to Craven against de Ferran and Craven triumphed.

“I am absolutely the most fortunate driver in America right now to have the type of support I enjoy with my loyal fans. They worked so hard on this contest to see that I won,” said Craven. “I’ve been following the results weekly and so has my sponsor, Tide and Procter and Gamble. They are obviously thrilled as well. This contest that CBS Sportsline put together was all about the fans. I think it shows their commitment to racing and their passions for their favorite drivers. I’ve said for the last 18 months that I am driving for the greatest group of people in racing … and now it’s very clear that I have the fans to match.”

Craven will return to Maine on Thursday to sign autographs at Ricky Craven Motorsports North in Belfast, 5-8 p.m. Store manager Lauri Matheson said they also hope to have the Tide Ford No. 32 car that Craven piloted to his first and only Winston Cup win at Martinsville last season. Craven will autograph the car if it is available. If not, she said they are hoping to bring the car to the store in October.