CHARLOTTE – Four drivers and a leading speedway builder were voted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame Wednesday.

Drivers Terry Labonte, Curtis Turner, Jerry Cook and Bobby Isaac were selected along with former Speedway Motorsports Inc. chairman Bruton Smith.

The five new hall members were chosen by a panel of 57 voters, including NASCAR officials, news media and former drivers, crew chiefs and team owners.

The new members will be inducted in Charlotte Jan. 22. They will increase the hall membership to 35.

Harold Brasington, who built Darlington Raceway, was named the winner of the Landmark Award for contributions to NASCAR. He will also be honored next January.

Cook was in attendance at the hall building Wednesday for the announcement. Labonte and Smith were not. Turner and Isaac are deceased.

Smith led the voting with 68 percent of ballots cast. Following were Labonte with 61, Turner with 60, Cook with 47 and Isaac with 44. Of the 15 nominees who were not selected, drivers Red Byron and Benny Parsons and team owner Rick Hendrick had the most votes.

“It will truly be an honor to be remembered at the Hall of Fame along with people like Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty, Glen Wood, Junior Johnson, Darrell Waltrip and so many others who helped build this sport,” Smith said in a statement released by Charlotte Motor Speedway. “That’s what I’ve tried to do my entire life. I’m a frustrated builder who had a knack for promoting races, and it’s been fun to always try to push the sport to greater heights for the fans.”

Ironically, Smith and Turner were chosen for the hall together. They teamed to build Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1960. Smith’s track empire now includes facilities in Bristol, Tenn.; Hampton, Ga.; Sparta, Ky.; Loudon, N.H., Sonoma, Calif.; Fort Worth, Texas and Las Vegas.

An innovator among track operators, Smith is credited with introducing the concept of condominiums at speedway sites and of bringing more modern facilities on line. He brought Bristol Motor Speedway and turned it from a short track into a modern sports stadium that seats 160,000.

Smith often has been at odds with NASCAR’s ruling France family, in particular over the topic of race dates and schedules. Their feuds sometimes reached the level of public disputes as Smith and his SMI group competed with the Frances’ International Speedway Corp.

Margaret Sue Turner Wright, Turner’s daughter, attended Wednesday’s announcement and seemed to be one of the happiest people in the room. She said she has anticipated her father’s selection for several years.

“I was here last year and was disappointed, so I tried not to get too up this year,” she said. “I’m thrilled that this has happened. It’s a great thing for the family.”

Turner, a NASCAR pioneer, was a fierce competitor, particularly on dirt tracks. He was killed in a plane crash in 1970.

Cook had come close to election in recent years. A six-time Modified champion and a long-time NASCAR official, he joins fellow Modified king Richie Evans in the hall.

“This was kind of like the championships for me,” Cook said. “I was second several times before I finally made it. It feels great.”

Labonte won Cup championships in 1984 and 1996 and is one of only six drivers with titles in two decades. He won 22 Cup races.

Labonte, a Texas native, was in a hotel in Dallas when he heard about his selection.

“I was watching TV, and all of a sudden my phone started blowing up,” he said. “It’s quite an honor to be in that group of people. There are a lot of people in the hall that I looked up to. I never really thought about being part of the hall of fame.”

Bobby Labonte, Terry’s younger brother and the 2000 NASCAR Cup champion, said in statement Wednesday that it was a really proud day for the Labonte family.

“I think back to when we were kids racing quarter midgets, and I always just wanted to do what Terry was doing and be like him,” Bobby Labonte said. “He kind of blazed the trail as he advanced through different series, and I was fortunate to follow in his footsteps. I never would’ve thought way back then that we’d both grow up to be Sprint Cup champions and now one of us is in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. It’s a pretty special day.”

Isaac, who died in 1977, won the Cup championship in 1970 and scored 37 career wins. He won 19 poles in a single season – 1969.

Isaac is perhaps best remembered for success in winged Dodge racers built by crew chief Harry Hyde, who also was among the hall nominees this year.

PHOTOS: 2016 NASCAR Hall of Fame Class