Bill Leighton Jr.'s holiday included a visit with Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman in Lincoln.

Leighton, 26, of Omaha was congratulated by Gov. Heineman for winning the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Nebraska state championship for the second straight year. Leighton also won dirt Late Model division track championships Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb. and I-80 Speedway at Nebraska Raceway Park in Greenwood, Neb. in 2009.

“Gov. Heineman remembered me from last year,” Leighton said. “You see your state’s Governor on TV all the time, and you never think you’ll meet him in person. This year it was like seeing an old buddy. He’s a pretty popular Governor.”

Leighton’s 2009 visit with Gov. Heineman was delayed a week by a snow storm.

“We had a snow storm again Wednesday, but we were determined to make it this week,” Leighton said. “It’s interesting to be in the Capitol Building and the Governor’s office. It’s a different point of view. We took some pictures of the huge Christmas tree in the Capitol Building, too.”

Leighton’s 2009 racing record in 33 starts included nine wins, 27 top fives and 30 top 10s. He finished fourth in the final national ranking in 2009, improving on his 47th place ranking in 2008.

“We’ve been moving up in the national standings over the last two seasons, so hopefully we can move up in the national standings again in 2010.” 

The NASCAR Nebraska champion was determined by the driver’s best 18 finishes at NASCAR –sanctioned tracks in Nebraska.

The crowning of champions in a U.S. state or Canadian province continues a tradition of honoring the best short-track racers which dates back to the earliest days of NASCAR.

Just 28 drivers out of the thousands of participants in NASCAR’s grassroots, local-racing program – which encompasses tracks throughout the United States and Canada – earned a similar honor.

Leighton was honored in November at the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards Banquet at the Concord (N.C.) Convention Center along with the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national champion, U.S. state and Canadian provincial champions, track champions and special award winners last month.

Since its inception, NASCAR’s national short-track racing series has served as a springboard in the careers of many top drivers. NASCAR stars Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, Kurt and Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Bobby Labonte, Jamie McMurray, Elliott Sadler and Brian Vickers all began their careers racing their NASCAR-sanctioned local short tracks.