NASCAR drivers nominated for ESPY Awards

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – There are five NASCAR-related nominations for this year’s 16th annual ESPY Awards. Kyle Busch, this season’s hottest driver, is involved in three of the five.

An interesting aside: One of those nominations resulted from Busch losing a race.

At last summer’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway, Jamie McMurray edged Busch for the victory by a margin of only .005-seconds, the second-closest margin since NASCAR instituted electronic scoring in 1993. That spectacular under-the-lights ending has been nominated in the “Best Finish” category.

Busch also is nominated in the “Best Breakthrough Athlete” category and, not surprisingly, in the “Best Driver” category.

Two-time defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and NASCAR rookie Dario Franchitti also are nominated for Best Driver. Franchitti’s nomination was based primarily on his splendid 2007 season in open-wheel racing, when he won the Indianapolis 500 and the IndyCar Series championship.

The “2008 ESPYs co-presented by HUMMER and Under Armour” will be held July 16 at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles. This marks the first time for the show at the Nokia Theatre, following a six-year run at the Kodak Theatre. The show – hosted annually by ESPN – will be televised on Sunday, July 20 at 9 p.m. (ET) on ESPN and ESPN HD, hosted by Justin Timberlake.

All awards are determined by an online fan vote.

In the Best Finish category, the McMurray-Busch finish is up against the following competition:

— Western Kentucky’s first round NCAA basketball tournament win over Drake, on a last-second 3-pointer;

— The San Antonio Spurs beating the Phoenix Suns in two overtimes, on a basket with 1.8 seconds left;

— The Pittsburgh Penquins’ three-overtime NHL victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

In the Best Breakthrough Athlete category, Busch – the current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point leader – is joined by:

— Minnesota Vikings’ running back Adrian Peterson;

— Davidson College basketball standout Stephen Curry;

— Ana Ivanovic, currently the No.1-ranked women’s tennis player in the world.

And in the Best Driver category, Busch, Johnson and Franchitti are joined by:

— Lewis Hamilton of Formula One;

— 2008 Indianapolis 500 champion Scott Dixon;