After much anticipation, the selection process for the NASCAR Hall of Fame has finally been announced. Scheduled to open to the public in Charlotte, N.C. in 2010, the NASCAR Hall of Fame will be like no other.

NASCAR announced Thursday that each year five inductees will be selected to enter the Hall of Fame. The induction process will consist of voting panel made up of NASCAR industry leaders, manufacturer representatives, former competitors, media representatives and of course fans. The voting panel will choose from a list of no more than 25 candidates. Inductees will be selected primarily on their accomplishments and contributions to the sport.

In order to be eligible for consideration, former drivers must have competed in NASCAR competition for a minimum of 10 years and be retired from racing a minimum of three years. For those not behind the wheel, they must have worked at least 10 years in the sport. That being said, some candidates with shorter careers may be considered depending on special circumstances.

"With the excitement already building about the physical layout of the Hall of Fame, this will add to the excitement on another front, regarding this impressive, historic project," said NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France. "We have established an orderly induction process that is inclusive, involving various industry constituencies - most importantly, the fans."

Once the 20-member nominating committee selects its list of candidates, the voting will entail a total of 48 ballots. Twenty ballots will be from the nominating committee; 27 ballots will come from a group consisting of former drivers, former owners, former crew chiefs, manufacturer representatives and media; one ballot will represent the results of a nationwide fan vote.

The goal is to have the inaugural list of Hall of Fame candidates announced by this June. Voting is scheduled to be completed by September 15th, with the five inductees announced in October.

The first induction ceremony is planned for May 2010, when NASCAR returns to Charlotte for the Sprint All-Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600.

Along with the first class of inductees, NASCAR's Board of Directors will commemorate NASCAR's "Founding Members" by including them in a special permanent exhibit in the Hall of Fame. The "Founding Members" are those individuals that helped build NASCAR from the beginning, allowing the sport to enjoy the success it has today. Those members will also be eligible for Hall of Fame induction.

Below is how the nominating committee and the voting committee will be set up:

Nominating Committee - 20 members
- Seven NASCAR representatives.
- NASCAR Hall of Fame Executive Director.
- NASCAR Hall of Fame Historian.
- Two track owners from International Speedway Corporation.
- Two track owners from Speedway Motorsports Incorporated.
- Track owner from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
- Track owner from Dover International Speedway.
- Track owner from Pocono Raceway.
- Four track owners from historic short tracks: Bowman-Gray Speedway in Winston-Salem, N.C.; Greenville-Pickens Speedway in Greenville, S.C.; Riverhead Raceway in Riverhead, N.Y; and Toyota Speedway at Irwindale in Irwindale, Calif.

Voting Committee - 47 members plus one fan vote
- 20 members of the nominating committee.
- 14 media representatives: Three each from the National Motorsports 
Press Association, the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Eastern 
Motorsports Press Association; one each from FOX, Turner, ESPN, Motor 
Racing Network and Performance Racing Network.
- One representative each from Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford and Toyota.
- Three retired drivers.
- Three retired owners.
- Three retired crew chiefs.
- Fan vote.