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.
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.
The Rookie of the Year award for NASCAR's premier series was first presented to a driver named Blackie Pitt by Houston Lawing, NASCAR's Public Relations director, in 1954.[ citation needed ] An official award started with the 1958 season.[ citation needed ]
From the 1958 through the 1973 seasons, NASCAR did not have an official points system to determine the Rookie of the Year, so NASCAR's officials merely gathered together to select a winner.[ citation needed ]As of 2018 [update] , the rookie of the year points are the same as the championship points.[ citation needed ]
The award is currently sponsored by Sunoco. Drivers competing for the award must display the Sunoco contingency decal.[ citation needed ]
Eligibility for Rookie of the Year has changed several times over the history of NASCAR. As of 2021 [update] , a driver must be competing for driver championship points in the series and that the driver must not have competed in more than seven events in any prior season in that series. A driver can also only compete for the Rookie of the Year honors once per series. However, these rules are not officially written in the NASCAR rulebook and NASCAR makes the final decision on eligibility. [1]
Below is a list of all winners, and known runners-up. [4] [5] (Note: some of the drivers listed here are not confirmed as ROTY contenders, and competed in more than the maximum number of races to be eligible for ROTY honors.)
| * indicates ROTY who later became the Series Champion |
| * | Declared for ROTY, but did not make minimum seven (five before 2001) races, thus could be eligible in a later year. |
| ± | Marked drivers during Daytona 500 practice or qualifying events were killed during their rookie seasons and were unable to complete the schedule. |
| Ø | Moroso died after race 25 of 29 during his rookie season in a vehicular incident where he and his girlfriend were driving home from the September North Wilkesboro round, receiving the award posthumously. Toxicology reports noted Moroso had a BAC more than twice the legal limit (was .22 BAC), leading to a NASCAR rule change later that states a driver must finish the season in good standing. Under modern rules, a driver who is found to be under current indictment of a crime (including DUI/DWI) would be ineligible for the award, in addition to facing an indefinite suspension from the sport. [6] |
| ♦ | Hylton finished second in the overall 1966 championship, the highest ever finish for an eligible rookie. |
| æ | Pitt did not receive an official award. |
| § | Dick Hutcherson won nine times and finished second in the championship standings in 1965, but was not considered to be eligible due to being a champion in the IMCA. |
| * indicates ROTY who later became the Series Champion |
| * indicates ROTY who later became the Series Champion |
Kelly Renae "Girl" Sutton is a former NASCAR driver. Sutton started 54 races, mostly in her family-owned No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado, in the Craftsman Truck Series. She was the only stock-car racer, male or female, known to race with multiple sclerosis before Trevor Bayne's diagnosis in 2013.
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.
Andrew Joseph Lally is an American former professional auto racing driver. He competed full-time in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, driving the Audi R8 for Magnus Racing and part-time in the Michelin Pilot Challenge, driving the Hyundai Elantra TCR Touring Car for StarCom Racing.
Young's Motorsports is an American professional stock car racing team that competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and the ARCA Menards Series. In the Xfinity Series, they field the No. 42 Chevrolet Camaro full-time for Anthony Alfredo. In the Truck Series, they field the No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado full-time, primarily for Nathan Byrd and the No. 20 part-time for Stefan Parsons. In the ARCA Menards Series, they field the No. 02 Chevrolet SS part-time for TBA.
Niece Motorsports is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Owned by Al Niece, it currently fields the No. 41 Chevrolet Silverado part-time for multiple drivers, the No. 42 Chevrolet Silverado full-time for Matt Mills, the No. 44 Chevrolet Silverado full-time for Christian Rose, the No. 45 Chevrolet Silverado full-time for Kaden Honeycutt. Niece Motorsports formerly had a technical alliance with GMS Racing that started back in 2018.
Tricon Garage, formerly known as David Gilliland Racing, DGR-Crosley, and Team DGR, is an American professional stock car racing team that competes in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in early 2017 when racing team owners David Gilliland and Bo LeMastus came together to form a collaborative effort from their respective teams, David Gilliland Racing and Crosley Sports Group, known as DGR-Crosley. DGR-Crosley fielded Toyotas in 2018 and 2019 before announcing its switch to Ford starting in 2020. The team reverted to the David Gilliland Racing name in 2021 as Johnny Gray became a co-owner. Former co-owner and driver Bo LeMastus remained with the team in a marketing and sponsorship capacity.
Lawless Alan is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the ARCA Menards Series, driving the No. 20 Toyota for Venturini Motorsports and competes part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 1 Toyota Tundra for Tricon Garage. He previously competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Antoinette Marie Breidinger is an American professional stock car racing driver and model. She competes full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 5 Toyota Tundra for Tricon Garage. She has also competed in the ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East, and ARCA Menards Series West.
Jesshill Michael Gregory Love is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 2 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing.
Kristofer Cole Wright is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro for Our Motorsports. He has also previously competed in sports car racing, open-wheel racing, the Euroformula Open Championship, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and ARCA Menards Series. Wright is also the 2018 IMSA Prototype Challenge LMP3 class champion.
The 2023 ARCA Menards Series was the 71st season of the ARCA Menards Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. The season began at Daytona International Speedway with the BRANDT 200 on February 18 and ended with the Shore Lunch 200 at Toledo Speedway on October 7.
Dean Kenneth Thompson is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 26 Toyota GR Supra for Sam Hunt Racing. He has previously competed in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, the ARCA Menards Series and the ARCA Menards Series West.
Charles Connor Mosack is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 81 Chevrolet Silverado for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing.
Kaden Wade Honeycutt is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 45 Chevrolet Silverado for Niece Motorsports and also competes part-time Dirt Super Late Model's, driving the No. 10 Longhorn Chassis for own team, Kaden Honeycutt Racing.
The 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series was the 29th season of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. The season started with the NextEra Energy 250 on February 17 at Daytona International Speedway, and ended with the Craftsman 150 on November 3 at Phoenix Raceway.
The 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series was the 30th season of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. The season started on February 16 with the Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona International Speedway and ended with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship Race on November 8 at Phoenix Raceway.
The 2024 ARCA Menards Series was the 72nd season of the ARCA Menards Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. The season began at Daytona International Speedway with the Hard Rock Bet 200 on February 16 and ended with the Owens Corning 200 at Toledo Speedway on October 5.
The 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will be the 31st season of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. The season will start on February 14 with the Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona International Speedway and will end with the Craftsman 150 on October 31 at Phoenix Raceway.
Giovanni Ruggiero is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 17 Toyota Tundra for Tricon Garage and part-time in the ARCA Menards Series and ARCA Menards Series East, driving the No. 18 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. He is a member of Toyota Racing Development.
The 2025 Daytona 500 is an upcoming NASCAR Cup Series race and the 67th running of the event. It will be held on Sunday, February 16, 2025, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It will be the first race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series.
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