The NASCAR Rookie of the Year Award is presented to the first-year driver that has the best season in a NASCAR season. Each of NASCAR's national and regional touring series selects a RotY winner each year.
Darian Kent Grubb is a NASCAR mechanic, engineer, and crew chief who is currently employed at Trackhouse Racing as the Director of Performance and the crew chief of the team's part-time No. 91 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 driven by multiple drivers as part of the team's PROJECT91 program. He has collected 1 championship and 24 wins as a crew chief.
Shane Robert van Gisbergen, also known by his initials SVG, is a New Zealand professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 88 Chevrolet ZL1 for Trackhouse Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports. He is known for his time racing in the Supercars Championship, last driving the No. 97 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 car for Triple Eight Race Engineering. He is a three-time Supercars Champion, winning driver's titles in 2016, 2021, and 2022. With a total of 80 wins and 46 pole positions, van Gisbergen is 4th on the all-time wins list in the Supercars Championship. He has won the Bathurst 1000 three times, in 2020, 2022, and 2023.
Kaulig Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series. The team is owned by Matt Kaulig, an owner of team sponsor LeafFilter. Kaulig Racing fields two Cup Series Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 teams: the No. 10 full-time for Ty Dillon, and the No. 16 full-time for A. J. Allmendinger. It also fields three full-time Xfinity Chevrolet Camaro teams: the No. 10 for Daniel Dye, the No. 11 for Josh Williams, and the No. 16 for Christian Eckes. The team has a technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing, and formerly operated out of the NTS Motorsports facility.
The 2018 Daytona 500, the 60th running of the event, was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on February 18, 2018, contested over 207 laps—extended from 200 laps due to an overtime finish—on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) asphalt superspeedway. It was the first race of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, and also marked the first race for the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 as Chevrolet's car for this season, replacing the SS. Austin Dillon of Richard Childress Racing won the race after contact with Aric Almirola on the final lap resulted in a single-car accident for the latter. Bubba Wallace making his first Daytona 500 start finished second while Denny Hamlin came in third. This was the last Daytona 500 starts for Danica Patrick, Trevor Bayne, Kasey Kahne, David Gilliland, Mark Thompson, BK Racing, Furniture Row Racing and D. J. Kennington.
The 2020 Daytona 500, the 62nd running of the event, was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on February 16–17, 2020. It was contested over 209 laps—extended from 200 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) asphalt superspeedway. It was the first race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.
The 2020 GEICO 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on June 22, 2020, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 191 laps -- extended from 188 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 2.66 mile (4.28 km) superspeedway, it was the 13th race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.
The 2020 YellaWood 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on October 4, 2020 at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 200 laps -- extended from 188 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 2.66 mile (4.2 km) superspeedway, it was the 31st race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, the fifth race of the Playoffs, and the second race of the Round of 12.
The 2021 Daytona 500, the 63rd running of the event, was a NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on February 14–15, 2021 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Contested over 200 laps on the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) asphalt superspeedway, it was the first race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. In one of the biggest surprise upsets in Daytona 500 history, Michael McDowell, driving for Front Row Motorsports, won after Team Penske teammates Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski wrecked battling for the lead on the final lap. McDowell was a 100–1 underdog, making his 358th Cup Series start and driving for a team with only two previous Cup Series victories.
The 2020 Unhinged 300 was a NASCAR Xfinity Series race held on June 20, 2020 at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 113 laps on the 2.66-mile (4.28 km) superspeedway, it was the 11th race of the 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series season and the season's third Dash 4 Cash race. Kaulig Racing's Justin Haley picked up his first career Xfinity Series victory.
Trackhouse Racing is an American motorsports organization that competes full time in the NASCAR Cup Series and MotoGP and part time in the IMSA SportsCar Championship.
The 2021 GEICO 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race was held on April 25, 2021, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 191 laps – extended from 188 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 2.66 mile (4.28 km) superspeedway, it was the 10th race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, as well as the second of the four crown jewel races. Brad Keselowski won the race, his 35th career victory, sixth win at Talladega, and his last win with Team Penske in the No. 2 as he moved to co-own RFK Racing, as well as drive the No. 6 in 2022.
The 2021 YellaWood 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on October 4, 2021, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Originally scheduled for 188 laps on the 2.66 mi (4.28 km) asphalt superspeedway, the race was shortened to 117 laps by rain. It was the 31st race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, the fifth race of the Playoffs, and the second race of the Round of 12. The race was postponed from Sunday, October 3 to Monday, October 4, due to rain. Bubba Wallace took his first victory in the NASCAR Cup Series. It was the first time since the development of the 2014 NASCAR Playoffs format that a driver not in either level of playoffs had won a race, and the first non-playoff driver to win a race since the 2013 Talladega playoff race, as well the first win for an African-American driver in the Cup Series since Wendell Scott's win in 1963.
The 2022 Daytona 500 was the first stock car race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series and the 64th running of the event. The race was held on Sunday, February 20, 2022, in Daytona Beach, Florida at Daytona International Speedway, a 2.5-mile (4.0 km) asphalt superspeedway. In a green-white-checker finish, rookie Austin Cindric, driving for Team Penske, led 21 of the final 45 laps and held off challenges from teammate Ryan Blaney, RFK Racing's Brad Keselowski and eventual second-place finisher Bubba Wallace of 23XI Racing to win his first career NASCAR Cup Series race. Chase Briscoe of Stewart-Haas Racing finished third. Team Penske dedicated their Daytona 500 win to legendary sportscaster Bob Jenkins after the race. Jenkins used to broadcast NASCAR Races on ESPN from 1981 to 2000.
The 2022 GEICO 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on April 24, 2022, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 188 laps on the 2.66 mile (4.28 km) superspeedway, it was the 10th race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season.
The 2022 YellaWood 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on October 2, 2022, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested for 188 laps on the 2.66 mi (4.28 km) asphalt superspeedway, it was the 31st race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season, fifth race of the Playoffs and second race of the Round of 12. Chase Elliott won the race, his fifth of the season, and 18th of his career.
The 2023 Daytona 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race and the 65th running of the event. It was held on Sunday, February 19, 2023, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It was the first race of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series. Jimmie Johnson returned to the Cup Series for Legacy Motor Club in this race. This was the longest Daytona 500 in history going 530 miles.
The 2024 Fresh From Florida 250 was the 1st stock car race of the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and the 25th iteration of the event. The race was held on Friday, February 16, 2024, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) permanent tri-oval shaped asphalt superspeedway. The race was originally scheduled to be contested over 100 laps, but was extended to 101 laps due to a NASCAR overtime finish. In a wild race that saw several crashes, Nick Sanchez, driving for Rev Racing, would win his first career NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race when a multi-truck accident occurred on the final lap with him in the lead when the caution was thrown. Sanchez was a consistent presence during the race, leading a race-high 26 laps, despite his involvement in an earlier accident. To fill out the podium, Corey Heim, driving for Tricon Garage, and Rajah Caruth, driving for Spire Motorsports, would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series will be the 77th season for NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 54th season for the modern-era Cup Series. The season will start with the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium on February 2 at Bowman Gray Stadium, followed by The Duel at Daytona on February 13, and the 67th running of the Daytona 500 on February 16, both at Daytona International Speedway. The season will end with the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway on November 2.
The 2024 YellaWood 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on October 6, 2024, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 195 laps -- extended from 188 laps due to an overtime finish on the 2.66 mi (4.28 km) asphalt superspeedway, it was the 31st race of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season, the fifth race of the playoffs, and the second race of the Round of 12. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won the race, his first since the 2023 Daytona 500. Brad Keselowski finished 2nd, and William Byron finished 3rd. Kyle Larson and Erik Jones rounded out the top five, and Christopher Bell, Justin Haley, Austin Dillon, Bubba Wallace, and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top ten.
