Dale Earnhardt toughest driver: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (NASCAR Awards 2002).

For the second straight season, drivers chose Junior for the award that bears his late father's name. Earnhardt, who edged Sterling Marlin by one vote, calls the honor "cool" and says he is determined to build a team that would make his father proud.

"We've got to get better as far as our pit stops," he says. "On pit road, we're awful. We're getting better on communicating and getting the car dialed in a little better. I think our team has a lot to prove to itself."

Like his father, who never complained of ailments, Junior drove hurt for several weeks after a hard crash with Kevin Harvick in April at California. But it was obvious the crash affected ...