No motivation to be the top I think other than satisfaction. I was an honor student but no way did I deserve to be validictorian. I barely worked other than cramming at the last minute. The valadictorian and salutorian duked it out for top spot for years.
It can be a resume enhancement for getting into a tougher college.
I was in one class with our Salutatorian and none with our Valedictorian during the entire four years....lol. Guess you can tell I was nowhere near the top of the class. I actually graduated 68 out of 209. Not great but at the time I thought it wasn’t bad....wow. Now after living a bit I think it is horrible. lol.