DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Longtime The Associated Press reporter Mike Harris was named recipient of the 2025 Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence becoming the 13th winner of the prestigious award.
Harris joined the AP in 1969 and became lead motorsports reporter in 1980, a role he held until retirement in July 2009.
“Mike Harris was a trusted voice inside the NASCAR garage for decades,” said Jim France, NASCAR chairman and CEO. “Mike’s nationwide reach coincided with NASCAR’s enormous popularity growth, and his coverage and feature stories for the world’s largest news-gathering organization brought NASCAR and our drivers into the homes of millions of fans across the country. Mike is a true professional, a gentleman and a legend in his field.”
Harris began his full-time journalism career in 1967 with The Rockford (Ill.) Morning Star and Register-Republic before joining the AP Chicago Bureau in Feb. 1969. He covered a variety of sports and served as Indiana Sports Editor prior to finding his home in motorsports.
Harris is the 1985 recipient of the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence (previously called the Henry T. McLemore Award). In 1987 and 1994 he won the Jim Hunter Writer of the Year Award given by the Eastern Motorsport Press Association.
The Squier-Hall Award is voted upon by a panel of NASCAR and NASCAR Hall of Fame executives, active and retired media members and former NASCAR competitors and industry leaders. Harris will be honored during NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony festivities on Feb. 7, 2025 and featured in an exhibit in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
The Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence was named after legendary NASCAR media figures Ken Squier and Barney Hall, the first two recipients of the award.
The other seven nominees for the award were:
Russ Catlin, one of the best-known early racing writers and historians; editor of Speed Age Magazine
George Cunningham, long-time beat writer for The Charlotte Observer, Atlanta Constitution and NASCAR Scene; is the namesake for the annual NMPA award for Excellence in Writing
Jim Foster, helped create the Motor Racing Network (MRN) after 15 years covering NASCAR as a newspaper reporter
Bob Montgomery, co-founder and announcer for the Universal Racing Network
Bob Moore, spent more than 20 years as a NASCAR beat writer including stints with the Daytona Beach News-Journal and The Charlotte Observer
Hank Schoolfield, a jack of all trades bringing NASCAR racing to rans across the Southeast through newspapers, magazines and radio
Deb Williams, the first woman to receive the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence.