Mon, 10 Dec 2007, 10:46 AM Ashley Force Named to Top Trends in Search List for Sports News by Yahoo!

Courtesy of NHRA Communications Photo copyright 2007 NHRA

Ashley Force

NHRA Funny Car driver Ashley Force has been named No. 10 in Yahoo!'s Top Trends in Search for 2007 in the sports news category, it was announced recently by the global Internet site that is among the most trafficked Web destination worldwide.

Force finished 10th behind a host of other major sports newsmakers for the year, including NASCAR, tennis stars Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams, the World Series winning Boston Red Sox, soccer stars David Beckham, Christiano Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, the Chicago Bears and the Super Bowl. Force was the only motorsports personality named to the list.

Force, who earned the Auto Club Road to the Future award which recognizes NHRA's rookie of the year, became the first female racer to advance to a final round in Funny Car in NHRA history. She drove her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to a 10th place finish in the NHRA POWERade Series points standings, the best season finish for a female driver in Funny Car history. Force, 25, is the daughter of 14-time NHRA Funny Car world champion John Force. They star in "Driving Force," a popular reality show that airs on the A&E Network.

After announcing her plans to compete in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series in January, Force's celebrity quickly took off. Earlier this year Force was named the "Hottest Athlete" in a nationwide poll conducted by AOL. To win that title she defeated New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and IRL driver Danica Patrick, among others, in head-to-head meetings where fan votes decided the winner. She also made appearances on ABC's Good Morning America and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and was featured in an article in Men's Journal.

In addition to sports news, Yahoo! also provided the Top 10 searches in news, environmental, tech, troubled celebrities, send-offs and call-backs, among others. To visit the site, click here http://buzz.yahoo.com/toptrends2007/

"Searches can give us insight into a culture in motion and Yahoo!'s Top Trends in Search in 2007 reflects the world's fascination with crossroads and breakthroughs," Heather Cabot, Yahoo! Web life editor, said in a press release. "People weren't just buzzing about celebrity. More than ever they sought to be environmentally responsible, were using the Web to find out about food and product safety and getting the scoop on the latest gadgets."

To come up with the Top Trends of 2007, Yahoo! analyzed search queries based on a number of factors, including absolute volume and growth versus previous periods, to see which themes and trends bubbled to the surface.

YAHOO! TOP TRENDS IN SEARCH FOR 2007

SPORTS NEWS

1. NASCAR
2. Maria Sharapova
3. Boston Red Sox
4. David Beckham
5. Serena Williams
6. Chicago Bears
7. Christiano Ronaldo
8. Super Bowl
9. Ronaldinho
10. Ashley Force

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