There was no Gluckometer in Phoenix – at least the actual decibelmeter itself. So in lieu of measuring the crowd noise scientifically last weekend, SB Nation asked some aspiring NASCAR writers to help out: Toby Christie of RubbingsRacing.com, Michael Myers of Queers4Gears.com and Farrah Kaye, who contributes to several sites.
We asked each of them to rate the drivers on a 1-10 basis using an old-fashioned tool: Their ears. After receiving their rankings (1 being the least, 10 being the most), the scores were added up and averaged out, which gives us this week's Gluckometer ranking.
Phoenix-area native Michael McDowell, in the No. 10 position, appears on this list for the first time ever thanks to a hearty reception from his hometown fans.
Driver | Avg | Type of Noise | Comment/Explanation | |||
1 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 9.7 | Cheers | Most popular driver | ||
2 | Jimmie Johnson | 8.3 | Cheer/boo mix | Four-time champ | ||
3 | Kyle Busch | 8.2 | Boos | Busch Brother | ||
4 | Mark Martin | 7.5 | Cheers | Popular driver | ||
5 | Tony Stewart | 6.5 | Mostly cheers | Popular driver | ||
6 | Juan Montoya | 6.2 | Boos | Still hasn't won over fans | ||
T7 | Kurt Busch | 6.0 | Mostly boos | Busch Brother | ||
T7 | Carl Edwards | 6.0 | Cheer/boo mix | Keselowski fallout | ||
T7 | Jeff Gordon | 6.0 | Mostly cheers | Popular driver | ||
10 | Michael McDowell | 5.2 | Cheers | Hometown driver |