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NASCAR 2024 Rookie Mid-season Review

As the 2024 regular season for NASCAR’s top three national touring series approaches its final set of events before the Playoffs commence, the battle for the Rookie-of-the-Year title intensifies as a handful of rising stars attempt to ascend the racing ladder and establish their marks as future NASCAR stars.

With 22 races complete and 14 remaining on the 2024 Cup Series schedule, Josh Berry holds a slim advantage of five points over Carson Hocevar in the rookie Cup standings while Zane Smith and Kaz Grala both trail by triple digits.

For the majority of the season, the battle for this year’s Cup rookie title has been primarily between Berry and Hocevar, both of whom are also campaigning in their first full-time campaign in NASCAR’s premier series.

Berry, a native of Hendersonville, Tennessee, is piloting the No. 4 Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry for Stewart-Haas Racing, where he succeeded the 2014 Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick following two full-time campaigns in the Xfinity Series. Meanwhile, Hocevar, a native of Portage, Michigan, is driving the No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 entry for Spire Motorsports after spending the previous three seasons in the Craftsman Truck Series with Niece Motorsports.

After finishing no higher than 11th while also being plagued by seven finishes of 20th or worse through the first 12 scheduled events, Berry rebounded by notching four top-10 results over the next seven races, including two stellar third-place results, that enabled him to move atop the rookie standings.

Berry, however, is coming off four consecutive finishes of 20th or worse that have him currently situated in 22nd place in the regular-season standings. Berry’s misfortunes have allowed Hocevar to remain within striking distance of toppling Berry for the title. Hocevar, however, has rallied from being involved in an early multi-car wreck during the 66th running of the Daytona 500 to post three top-20 results, including two 15th-place runs, over his next three starts. He has since accumulated 10 additional top-20 runs, including two top-10 finishes, over his next 18 starts and is coming off a 12th-place run at Indianapolis.

Berry has accumulated the most top-10 results of this year’s rookie class at four and is two spots ahead of Hocevar in 22nd place in the regular-season standings as Hocevar holds the best average-finishing result at 19.4 thanks to his consistent runs of top-20 results.

Despite both rookies being strapped in “must-win” situations to make the 2024 Playoffs, their year-long battle of who will claim the season-ending prestigious honor of Cup Series Rookie of the Year remains to be determined.

Meanwhile, Zane Smith, the 2022 Truck Series champion from Huntington Beach, California, driver of the No. 71 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Spire Motorsports, trails both Berry and Hocevar in 33rd place in the standings and the rookie lead by 140 points. Despite notching a career-best second place at Nashville Superspeedway in June, Smith has an average-finishing result of 26th place as he has finished outside the top-20 mark 14 times, which leaves him grinding his gears and striving for more to be more competitive and consistent. In comparison to Berry and Hocevar, Smith’s plans for the 2025 season are unknown, though he is expected to remain on the radar for a ride for years to come.

Kaz Grala, a fourth Cup rookie candidate of the 2024 season from Boston, Massachusetts, is mired in 35th place in this year’s standings and he trails the rookie lead by 222 points. Thus far, he has racked up three top-20 results in 16 of 26-planned events as he continues to hone his development from the Truck and Xfinity Series divisions to NASCAR’s premier series. Amid Grala’s contention to claim the rookie title, his plans for next season remain undetermined.

Transitioning to the Xfinity Series, Jesse Love and Shane van Gisbergen are the top two rookie competitors through 20 scheduled events. With six races remaining until the Playoff field is determined, Love and van Gisbergen are set to square off against one another for both the rookie and the driver’s title as both are guaranteed Playoff berths by winning in their first Xfinity campaign.

The Xfinity rookie candidate who commenced the season on a strong note was Love, the reigning ARCA Menards Series champion who is piloting the No. 2 Chevrolet Camaro entry for Richard Childress Racing. Starting in February, Love roared out of the gate to become the first rookie driver to record poles in the first two scheduled races. Despite having his first opportunity of winning spoiled amid a fuel-mileage overtime shootout at Atlanta Motor Speedway in February, the Menlo Park, Californian redeemed himself seven races later by emerging triumphant for the first time at Talladega Superspeedway.

Before his first career victory, Love had racked up two top-five results and five top-10 results as he was also ranked in the top five in the regular-season rankings. While he is currently ranked in seventh place in the Xfinity standings amid two additional top-five results in his previous 11 starts, Love leads the rookie standings by 87 points as he continues to pursue more victories and momentum before contending for his first Xfinity title. Should Love claim this year’s Xfinity Rookie-of-the-Year title, he would join an elite class of competitors who have done so while driving for Richard Childress Racing, including teammate Austin Hill, Austin Dillon and Kevin Harvick.

Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Since June, however, van Gisbergen, driver of the No. 97 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing, has marched his way into the spotlight that started when he recorded his first career win at Portland International Speedway. The three-time Supercars champion from Auckland, New Zealand, would proceed to claim his second series victory in back-to-back weeks at Sonoma Raceway before grabbing a third career victory at the Chicago Street Course, the venue where he won in his Cup Series debut a year ago and leaped into NASCAR stardom.

Amid his road-course dominance that currently has him ranked with the most victories amongst Xfinity regulars, the New Zealander continues to search for more pace to be more competitive on oval-shaped circuits. Despite coming off a strong fourth-place run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which marks his third top-six result on oval-shaped circuits this season, van Gisbergen has 11 ovals mixed with two additional road-course events remaining to leap-frog Love as the top rookie competitor of the 2024 season.

The third-ranked Xfinity rookie candidate is Leland Honeyman, a native of Phoenix, Arizona, who is 310 points behind in a season where he has notched an average-finishing result of 23.3, a career-best fourth-place run at Talladega in April and is mired in 19th place in the standings. The 2024 season marks Honeyman’s first full-time campaign in the Xfinity circuit as he is driving the No. 42 Chevrolet Camaro for Young’s Motorsports, but needing to gain more ground to be within striking distance of both Love and van Gisbergen at this season’s conclusion.

Hailie Deegan, a native of Temecula, California, entered this season as a full-time rookie candidate with AM Racing. But, she was replaced by Joey Logano in early July amid a 17-race stretch where she finished no higher than 12th and was strapped with an average finishing result of 26.8. Following the replacement, Deegan has since parted ways and currently has no additional NASCAR plans scheduled for the remainder of the 2024 season.

Dawson Cram, a native of San Diego, California, had initially entered this season as a full-time Xfinity rookie candidate with JD Motorsports. Through July, however, he did not compete in five events, all being road-course venues and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and recently drove a single event for Mike Harmon Racing and Faction46 between the Xfinity and Truck Series, respectively. In addition, JD Motorsports filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and laid off staff members in July, with the No. 4 Chevrolet owners’ points acquired by Alpha Prime Racing. With Cram appearing to declare for points for the remainder of this year’s Truck season, his plans for the remainder of this season remain to be determined.

With a single regular-season event remaining on this year’s Craftsman Truck Series schedule, eight overall, the series’ rookie title appears to be within the firm grasp of Layne Riggs, who holds a triple-digit advantage between his main rivals Conner Jones and Thad Moffitt amid a mediocre campaign.

Riggs, a native of Bahama, North Carolina, who joined forces with Front Row Motorsports for his first full-time Truck campaign in the No. 38 Ford F-150, has only racked up three top-five results and four top-10 finishes through 15-scheduled starts. Mired within the strong results are nine finishes of 20th or worse as he has had several strong starts spoiled by on-track incidents. While the results currently have him ranked in 16th place in the driver’s standings, he trails the top-10 cutline to make this year’s Playoffs by 75 points, which places him in a “must-win” situation to make this year’s Truck Playoffs. Despite having a steady advantage in the rookie standings, the next goal for Riggs is to implement a consistent conclusion to the 2024 season while setting his sights on a stronger start for 2025 and beyond.

Photo by Chad Wells for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Riggs’ closest rival for the title is Conner Jones, a native of Fredericksburg, Virginia, who is embarking on a 13-race schedule with ThorSport Racing after spending the previous season campaigning in his first nine series’ starts. Through eight starts, Jones has recorded three top-15 finishes and five top-20 results, with his best result being an 11th-place run at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. In addition to trailing Riggs in the rookie standings by 173 points, Jones’ current average-finishing result is 20.3, which is four spots higher than the result he concluded with following the 2023 season (24.7). With four races remaining in his part-time campaign this season, the sky remains the limit for Jones to gain his first top-10 result in the series.

Meanwhile, Thad Moffitt, a native of Trinity, North Carolina, trails the rookie lead by 188 points in a season where he graduated to the Truck Series level, initially on a full-time basis with Faction46. Over the last two races, however, Moffitt has been competing with Young’s Motorsports following the shutdown of Faction46 due to financial issues. Prior to the previous two races, Moffitt was absent from competing at Nashville Superspeedway in late June due to a medical issue. These factors are pieces to the puzzle of a struggling season for Moffitt, who has finished no higher than 18th and has been mired with finishes outside the top 20 during his remaining 14 starts. Having made steady ground with consistent runs as an ARCA Menards Series competitor, the task at hand for Moffitt to be competitive within NASCAR’s top three national touring series, beginning with the Truck Series, remains tall and long for him to achieve.

With the closing stretch of the 2024 NASCAR season inbound following a two-week break due to the Paris Olympics Games, the Craftsman Truck Series season resumes on August 10 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1 at Richmond Raceway for the Clean Harbors 250, which serves as this year’s regular-season finale. The Cup Series season also resumes at Richmond Raceway for the Cook Out 400 on August 11 at 6 p.m. ET on USA Network while the Xfinity Series season returns to action at Michigan International Speedway for the Cabo Wabo 250 on August 17 at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA Network.

August 7, 2024
Custer wraps up 2020 Cup Rookie-of-the-Year title

Following a seven-month regular-season voyage and an eventful regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway on August 29, the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff field is set as 16 competitors will compete for this year’s Cup title in a 10-race postseason stretch, beginning next weekend at Darlington Raceway in September. Of the 16 competitors that have qualified for the Playoffs, one competitor is also celebrating a major achievement to this season. That competitor is Cole Custer, who was named this year’s Cup Rookie-of-the-Year recipient.

The 22-year-old native from Ladera Ranch, California, wrapped up the title by being the only rookie Cup candidate of this season to make the Playoffs and since he will emerge as the highest-finishing rookie candidate in the standings. The Cup Rookie-of-the-Year Award marks the first time Custer has achieved the award within NASCAR’s three major division series after he came into this season competing against fellow Truck and Xfinity Series competitors Tyler Reddick, Christopher Bell, John Hunter Nemechek and Brennan Poole. Quin Houff was also part of this year’s rookie battle.

Following a productive path through NASCAR’s touring series, including finishing the 2018 and 2019 Xfinity Series seasons as the championship runner-up behind Reddick, Custer was promoted to a full-time driving role in the 2020 Cup Series season and in the No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing led by veteran crew chief Mike Shiplett. By then, Custer had already made three previous starts in NASCAR’s premier series in 2018. In addition, Reddick, Bell, Nemechek, Poole and Houff were also set to compete for the first time in the Cup circuit as full-time competitors.

For the first 15 races of his rookie season, Custer achieved one top-10 result (ninth place at Phoenix Raceway in March) and was ranked in 26th place in the regular-season standings. The turning point for Custer and his team came the following race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July, where Custer notched his first top-five career result in fifth place. The following race at Kentucky Speedway, he made a bold four-wide move against teammate Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Blaney on the final lap to storm to his first Cup career victory in his 20th series start. Custer’s victory at Kentucky guaranteed himself a spot in this year’s Playoffs.

For the remaining nine regular-season events, Custer went on to record three additional top-10 results while Reddick, Bell, Nemechek, Poole and Houff were unable to record a win to make the Playoffs and challenge Custer for the rookie title through the season finale at Phoenix in November.

With his accomplishment, Custer is the sixth competitor from the NASCAR Next initiative to earn the Cup Rookie-of-the-Year Award, an accomplishment that has also been made by Kyle Larson, Brett Moffitt, Chase Elliott, Erik Jones and William Byron. He also became the first competitor to achieve the Cup Rookie-of-the-Year title while driving for Stewart-Haas Racing as his three SHR teammates (Aric Almirola, Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick) have also made this year’s Playoffs.

Based on his victory at Kentucky and points he earned throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, Custer will start the Playoffs ranked in a three-way tie with teammate Aric Almirola and Austin Dillon for 10th place in the standings with 2,005 points. He and Matt DiBenedetto are the lone newcomers to qualify for the Cup Playoffs as title contenders.

Custer’s first run to a Cup championship in the Playoffs will begin on Sunday, September 6, at Darlington Raceway for the Cook Out Southern 500, which will occur at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

August 30, 2020
2020 NASCAR Cup Rookie of the Year mid-season review

Five months after the first green flag of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season waved, the series has reached its halfway mark of this year. During the first 18 races of the 36-race schedule, a lot has occurred within the sport both on and off the track. From Ryan Newman’s harrowing accident on the final lap of the Daytona 500 to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that paused the on-track racing from nearly two months, from the sport returning at Darlington Raceway in May to running doubleheaders and four to five division series races a week, this season has been like none other in recent years. Among the storylines that have been ongoing throughout this year’s racing season has been the battle for this year’s Rookie-of-the-Year title between six up-and-coming competitors working their way to emerge as the next future stars of the Cup Series.

Through the first 18 Cup races of this season, Tyler Reddick continues to lead the way in the rookie standings. Even though he is currently 17th in the regular-season standings and is 14 points shy of moving into the top-16 cutline to qualify for the Playoffs, Reddick has recorded a stage win at Talladega Superspeedway in June, the most top-10 results (six) and the best average result (17.17) among his five fellow rookie contenders. He is coming off a career-best result of second place at Texas Motor Speedway, where he finished behind teammate and race winner Austin Dillon following a late strategic call for fuel only. His previous best result was fourth place at Homestead-Miami Speedway in June. In addition to his stats, another factor the Corning, California, native has displayed through the first half of this season is the speed to keep pace and contend against NASCAR’s elite on a weekly basis. With eight races remaining until the Playoffs is set, Reddick and his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team led by crew chief Randall Burnett look to carry the speed and competitiveness throughout this season and from winning the previous two Xfinity Series championships towards contending for the 2020 Cup title.

Trailing behind Reddick is Christopher Bell. For Bell, it has been an up-and-down first half of his rookie Cup campaign that has seen a major improvement entering the second half of the season. For the first five races of the year, the Oklahoma native and the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota Camry team finished no higher than 21st, sustained two DNFs and were ranked 32nd in the regular-season standings. Since the second Darlington race in May through last weekend’s race at Texas, Bell has recorded five top-10 results and has worked his way up to 21st in the standings. His highlight run was at Pocono Raceway in June, the first of two Pocono races of the weekend, where he rallied from starting 36th to record a career-best fourth-place result ahead of former boss Kyle Busch. He is, however, 102 points below the top-16 cutline to make the Playoffs and needs to generate more strong results to come within reach of the Playoffs mark. With Bell and Leavine Family Racing’s future uncertain beyond 2020, the combo aims to strive for more and emerge as a competitive single-car organization for this season and beyond.

Also trailing Reddick for the lead in the rookie standings is Cole Custer. While Reddick leads this year’s rookie class, the thing that Custer has, and the others rookies do not have, is a win. That was the case in July, when Custer made a bold, four-wide pass for the lead on the final lap against top names like Ryan Blaney, Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. to score his first NASCAR Cup career win in his 20th series start and in an upset fashion. The victory not only made Custer as the first rookie contender to win a Cup race since 2016, but it also guaranteed the Californian and his No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang team a spot to this year’s Playoffs with an opportunity to contend for a Cup title. Prior to the win, Custer’s season started off on a low note with a lone top-10 result (ninth) at Phoenix in March along with seven results outside the top 20 in the first 16 races of the season. The turning point came at Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the Fourth of July weekend, where he recorded his first top-five finish in NASCAR’s premier series. A week later, ironically, Custer won his first Cup race at Kentucky. Despite being involved in a multi-car wreck last weekend at Texas, Custer and his team appear to adapt to this year’s weekly approach of starting in a position based on a random draw and diving into competitive race trim on race day. With the Playoffs a month away from commencing, Custer and his team have time to continue to gain more momentum and contend for more wins and points that would make the Californian not only a potential Rookie-of-the-Year winner, but also as a title threat for this season.

Next up is John Hunter Nemechek. A third-generation driver from Mooresville, North Carolina, the opportunity for Nemechek to move to the Cup level came in the final three races of the 2019 season, when he took over the Front Row Motorsports Ford entry driven by Matt Tifft. When Tifft suffered a seizure and opted to focus on his health, Nemechek was named one of two full-time competitors for FRM. He started off his rookie season strong by finishing 11th in the Daytona 500 before he recorded finishes outside the top 20 the following three races. He rebounded on a strong note at Darlington in May by finishing ninth for his first top-10 career result in the Cup level. He finished in the top 20 in four of the next seven races before recording a career-best finish of eighth at Talladega, a result where Nemechek was in race-winning position before being involved in an incident approaching the finish line. Thus far, he has finished in the top 20 nine times and he is currently 25th in the regular-season standings, 120 points below the cutline. With the recent string of consistent finishes inside the top 15 to 20 results and the momentum building for Front Row Motorsports, Nemechek looks to place an FRM entry into their first postseason appearance since 2016 and extend the on-track success previously displayed by his father, Joe.

Behind him is Brennan Poole. Like Bell, this season marks Poole’s first season ever racing in the Cup level, an opportunity that he announced last December when signing with Premium Motorsports. Unlike Bell, Poole has struggled in keeping pace with his fellow rookie contenders. His lone highlight was finishing 16th in the season-opening Daytona 500 in his first Cup race. For the next 17 races, he has finished no higher than 24th, which occurred at Bristol Motor Speedway in May. With the Texas native 32nd in the regular-season standings, he needs to grab a win and work his way into the top 30 in the standings to have any shot towards making this year’s Playoffs.

Last but not least is Quin Houff, who was promoted to a full-time driving role in StarCom Racing’s No. 00 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for the 2020 and 2021 Cup seasons. Since his start this season, however, Houff has finished no higher than 23rd, which he finished at Indianapolis. He has also recorded five DNFs this season, including last weekend at Texas, where a last-minute turn to slow and come to pit road resulted with him clipping the cars of Bell and Matt DiBenedetto before wrecking himself out of the race. It was a move that was met by sharp criticism by Brad Keselowski. He is 34th in the regular-season standings and like Poole, he needs to grab a win and generate consistent results towards the front to work his way into the top 30 in the standings and have any shot for this year’s Playoffs.

While Reddick leads the 2020 Cup Rookie-of-the-Year standings through the first half of this season, Harrison Burton leads the current Xfinity Series rookie standings while Christian Eckes leads the current Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series rookie standings.

The Cup rookie contenders will embark on an 18-race stretch to conclude this year’s racing season and strive for more on-track success for the future, beginning on Thursday, July 23, for the Super Start Batteries 400 at Kansas Speedway. The race will air at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

July 23, 2020
Briscoe locks up 2019 Rookie of The Year

The 2019 Xfinity Series season was a great season to look back on for Chase Briscoe and the No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing team, especially after winning Rookie of the Year honors. There were a couple of rocky starts at Daytona and Atlanta, finishing 12th and 15th, respectively. However, from Las Vegas to Dover, the team finished mainly in the top five. There were some issues later such as Charlotte in May when Briscoe finished 19th, one lap down. There were a few more including Chicago in July with a 15th place result and a DNF at Daytona.

But the team got right back on track the following week at Kentucky with a top-five finish. Then at Iowa, Briscoe had a great car and secured his first win of the season, his first since the victory at the Charlotte Roval. With the win, he was able to lock the No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing team into the Playoffs.

The team started off the Playoffs at Richmond Raceway with another top-five finish. Then two weeks in a row at the Charlotte Roval and Kansas, Briscoe qualified the No. 98 on the pole. The Playoffs were looking up for the Stewart-Haas driver, however, a wreck at Texas prior to ISM Raceway hurt their chances to advance. Briscoe finished 22nd and was in a must-win situation going into the final race in the Round of 8.

An eighth-place finish wasn’t enough to push the team for the Championship 4 and they were left to battle for a top-10 position. Even though he could not win the championship, Briscoe still had an opportunity to win the race at Homestead and he certainly had the car capable of doing so. He started fifth and won the first stage. The No. 98 team remained consistent for a finishing position of fifth for Stage 2.

Briscoe never fell out of contention in spite of bringing out the caution on Lap 124. He bounced off the wall off Turn 1 and eventually had a flat tire. Even with the incident, new tires helped the team and in the end, he came home with a third place finish after leading 14 laps.

“Yeah, I think if I had to read it on a 1 to 10 scale, I would say it was like a 6 1/2,” Briscoe said. “I felt like at the beginning of the year I kind of struggled to understand what I needed in these race cars, and truthfully how to drive them and the feel I was looking for. I just struggled to find ‑‑ the biggest thing was I couldn’t feel the right rear ever. As the season went on, we kind of switched from trying to say do what Harvick ran the year before and what Cole was running and just try to build more of a setup to what I felt better about.”

“Iowa was really the first race that we decided to do that, and that was the race we won. It seemed like from then on out we were a serious contender every week. Felt like the second half of the year was a lot better than the first half of the year, but we definitely ‑‑ looking back at these playoffs, especially, I felt like we could have realistically won three or four of the races, and weird stuff happens. The Kansas deal, the Roval was one where I felt like I could have ran down Allmendinger. Dover, I think we led the most laps and didn’t catch a caution, and then tonight just getting into the wall.”

“I think the end of the year was definitely better than the first part of the year, but overall we definitely have more to improve on and I can get way better as a driver I feel like.”

While winning Rookie of The Year may help his resume, Briscoe currently has no plans for 2020 and does not know if he will be back with Stewart-Haas Racing next year.

“I know they’re still working on trying to find funding to make it happen, but as of right now I don’t have anything,” Briscoe added.

“Obviously I was wanting to win the race tonight. I feel like if I did that, it would have made everything a lot easier. But I felt like we showed speed and I feel like if we do get to go back next year, I feel like we could be serious championship contenders, and hopefully, they can and we can work together and try to figure something out. But yeah, right now they’re still working on it.”

Briscoe finishes the 2019 season with one win, 13 top fives, 26 top-10s and 197 laps led along with an average finish of 8.2.

November 16, 2019
NASCAR Rookie Rundown following Pocono/Iowa

With NASCAR’s national touring divisions edging closer toward their respective Playoffs, the top rookies in each division are clamoring to stake their spots in their championship races. The rookie race in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is contained among three drivers (Ryan Preece, Daniel Hemric, and Matt Tifft) who are racing more among themselves, while Xfinity Series rookies have finally broken into the win column following Chase Briscoe’s win at Iowa.

The same can be said for the Gander Outdoors Truck Series, as Tyler Ankrum scored his first win at Kentucky, highlighting what has been an up-and-down season for the 18-year-old Californian. The win definitely gives momentum over fellow Truck standouts Sheldon Creed and Harrison Burton.

MENCS – Richard Childress Racing driver Hemric has started to come around as the season has progressed, as evidenced by his Pocono finish on Sunday where he finished seventh. His second top-10 of 2019 comes ahead of some stout runs in recent weeks where, with the exception of Kentucky and Loudon, he’s been lingering in the top-20. This includes a streak from the June Pocono race to Daytona where he finished as high as 12th, but no lower than 19th.

The No. 8 Luke Lambert-led team has had speed on the mile-and-a-half speedways, as Hemric qualified third at Chicago, but now it’s a matter of connecting the dots for Hemric as the team is still in its building phase.

Meanwhile, performance in Preece’s JTG-Daugherty Racing camp has remained a constant, running in the top-25 unless sidetracked with issues both on-track and mechanical. He’s shown that his primary strength lies in superspeedways, although his third-best finish of 2019 was a 16th at Martinsville. Other than that, it’s that consistency that might keep him from a Rookie of the Year victory. Still, being a rookie is about learning and growing, and given time Preece may become a contender. But there’s a ceiling at JTG-Daugherty, and he may be hitting it right now with Tristan Smith.

Meanwhile, at Front Row Motorsports, there is definite improvement for Tifft. He’s made it easy on his team, only being slowed by two DNFs in 21 starts, and as a result, he was able to boost his career-best finish from a 20th at Phoenix to a ninth-place run at Daytona. A recent Crew Chief swap with teammate David Ragan sent season-long CC Mike Kelley to the 34 while Seth Barbour helped lead Tifft’s No. 36 to one of its better outings of the season as they finished 23rd at Pocono, a week after the team finished 24th at Loudon.

The No. 36 Mustang has been finishing in the top-30 every race since Michigan, and although that isn’t saying much when compared to the other rookies on this, for a completely new team that was formed before the season began it’s definitely a step forward. At this rate, it isn’t unreasonable to expect regular top-25s out of that camp in the near future.

Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 98 Ford Performance Ford, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway on July 27, 2019 in Newton, Iowa. Photo by Jeff Curry/Getty Images.

Xfinity – The Xfinity Series rookie race has now yielded a race winner, as Briscoe joined his Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Cole Custer as a winner this season when he won at Iowa. Briscoe is not only a weekly contender; he’s also a championship favorite now as he’s scored a win, eight top-fives, and 14 top-10s in 19 starts. He isn’t just consistent; he’s strong. He’s been in or among the leaders weekly, and there’s little doubt that Iowa will be his only win this season.

Meanwhile, the best result JR Motorsports rookie Noah Gragson has been able to put together was a second at Michigan, but considering JRM has gone from division powerhouse to not breaking into the win column yet this season isn’t Gragson’s fault. Still, four top-fives and 11 top-10s in 19 starts is nothing to frown at as a rookie. He’s only finished off of the lead lap in four races, but one of those was a sixth at Kentucky, so it isn’t for lack of effort. He’s been consistent, but the JRM strength isn’t there.

It’ll be interesting to see where the No. 11 of Justin Haley goes from this point on this season. He’s been as strong as the top rookies in the division this season, but following the death of Crew Chief Nick Harrison, the team will no doubt be faced with a firmer resolve to succeed in his honor. He’s currently ninth in points with two top-fives and 14 top-10s in 19 starts this season, including an eighth at Iowa with Interim CC Alex Yontz (who also led the team to a 10th at Michigan).

Haley came close to victory at Daytona, proving the No. 11 Kaulig Racing team has the strength and resolve to contend for wins, and as good as Haley is with his equipment (zero DNFs in 2019), it’ll be no surprise when he does score a win.

John Hunter Nemechek has had a roller coaster rookie campaign in 2019. He has three top-fives (including a second at Las Vegas) and 11 top-10s in 19 starts but sits in 10th in the standings as he’s been sidelined with three crash DNFs. He placed third at Iowa, and considering he knows what it takes to win in the series and run near the front, he’ll post more strong finishes this season.

However there’s a catch: GMS Racing’s Xfinity effort isn’t as strong as Ganassi Racing’s 2018 Xfinity effort was, as Nemechek was a Ganassi development driver when he won at Kansas last year. He can get a win, and GMS has an Xfinity Series win, and he’s come close this season to Victory Lane, but it’ll take a little more luck than it did last season to seal the deal.

Harrison Burton goes inside of GMS Racing driver Brett Moffitt at Pocono. Photo by Kirk Schroll

NGOTS – Harrison Burton still continues to lead the Truck Series rookie class with seven top-fives and nine top-10s in 14 starts, which currently leaves him fifth in points with his No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports team. Despite the strong showings, though, he can’t seem to finish any higher than third-place, a feat he’s accomplished four times this season.

It’s granted that Burton feels a bit of pressure in his role as a full-time rookie; he’s with a championship-winning organization that has yielded some of the hottest names in NASCAR in recent memory. There’s also pressure considering that the No. 18 is the flagship entry in an organization that has put it in Victory Lane countless times. But unlike his snake-bitten teammate Todd Gilliland, Burton stands a higher chance of placing strongly in the Playoffs and even scoring a win.

Sheldon Creed, however, is not too far behind Burton; with four top-10s he’s currently ninth in points. There’s still pressure on him as he is with a championship-winning organization as well, not to mention his teammate, defending champion Brett Moffitt, has already won twice this year. But Creed needs to exercise a modicum of balance. He’s aggressive behind the wheel, and although it’s nice that there’s a driver who is up on the wheel and ready to get the job done, he’s put himself in situations that have left him with a wrecked truck.

He’s been up front a lot in 2019 and led a lot of laps, so it’s not entirely impossible he parks it in Victory Lane by the end of the season.

Tyler Dippel has definitely been on the underdog side of things, as he’s managed to put himself in the top-15 more often than not. His season highlight so far was when he finished eighth in the first Texas race of 2019, but aside from that his No. 02 Young’s Motorsports entry has only finished outside the top-25 once this season (a crash at Daytona left him in 29th). He’s quietly consistent, and although his equipment may not be top-notch, he’s posting good, solid results that could land him a ride with a solid team down the road.

Tyler Ankrum, on the other hand, got a late start on the season driving for DGR-Crosley Racing, and he’s making up for it in spades. Despite losing a sponsor and being relegated to a couple of appearances in Joe Nemechek’s No. 87, he’s scored a win at Kentucky as well as three top-fives and five top-10s. At Pocono on Saturday he put his No. 17 Toyota in the runner-up spot to Ross Chastain, scoring his second-straight top-two finish, thus showing that the young Californian means business.

Ankrum keeps his equipment together and stays out of wrecks (his save at Texas in June was nothing short of legendary), and considering the No. 17 has momentum he could very well win again this season. If their sponsorship issues can get squared up soon, he could post some more strong results when the Playoffs come around.

July 30, 2019
NASCAR rookie rundown leading into Michigan/Texas race weekend

It’s past the halfway point in the 2019 NASCAR regular season, and so far the rookies across the three national divisions have been engaged in tight battles to be the supreme rookie in their division.

In the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, Daniel Hemric and Ryan Preece have been neck and neck with each other, even if their results haven’t exactly wooed the NASCAR world. In the NASCAR Xfinity Series, the rookie class is a lot deeper, as Chase Briscoe, John Hunter Nemechek, Justin Haley, and Noah Gragson have been posting some serious results on a regular basis. The 2019 Gander Outdoor Truck Series rookie class is in a similar vein, as Tyler Dippel, Sheldon Creed, Harrison Burton, and Gus Dean (among others) are also in a heated contest for rookie of the year honors.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

The Cup Series rookie race hasn’t been as deep as the other divisions this season. That said, Hemric and Preece have left fellow RotY contender Matt Tifft behind and are currently battling among themselves as Preece sits 25th in points with one top-five and two top-10s while he tails Hemric in 24th, who just has one top-five and one top-10. Tifft sits 31st in points with two top-20 finishes and three top-25 finishes yet hasn’t finished on the lead lap in 2019. Tifft managed to lead a lap at Kansas, where he finished 21st, but in this day and age leading laps even on strategy doesn’t account for much. Still, he’s a rookie with a new team and if there’s anything Bob Jenkins knows how to do with his Front Row team, it’s giving his drivers a solid foundation.

Prior to Daytona, it was all but a given that Hemric would run away with the RotY battle. Richard Childress Racing is an established championship team who has managed to put several drivers in Victory Lane, while the sole Cup victory for JTG Daugherty Racing came in 2014 at Watkins Glen with AJ Allmendinger. However, despite the RCR Chevys having had issues for years, it isn’t that Hemric is failing in his expectations or anything. It’s that Preece has managed to take his No. 47 Chevy and get more out of it than originally expected. He’s shown he’s a solid superspeedway driver, scoring a career-high of third at Talladega (the same race where Hemric got his first top-five).

Still, Preece holds three lead-lap finishes to Hemric’s two. But Hemric’s consistency has been his strength, as he holds six top-20 finishes to Preece’s four top-20 finishes. They’re both remarkably steady for Cup Series rookies, with both of them usually lingering in the upper mid-pack positions. That shouldn’t change at Michigan on Sunday, so expect these two to loiter around 15th-25th position during the race.

NASCAR Xfinity Series

Noah Gragson. Photo by Joseph Shelton

The rookie race in the Xfinity is a lot deeper and happen to be more viable threats for the win, aside from rookie Matt Mills, who is currently in the midst of trying to help his team gain traction in the garage. But one of the impressive underdog rookies happens to be Gray Gaulding, whose Bobby Dotter-owned race team scored a runner-up finish at Talladega, which was Gaulding’s career-best. Aside from that Gaulding has managed to put his No. 08 in the top-20 in 10 out of 12 starts this season, so if he’s able to maintain this it could be the start of something good for his team. They’re not going to contend for wins soon, but they will be knocking on the door to the top-10 sooner than later.

Meanwhile, drivers such as Briscoe, Haley, Gragson, and Nemechek are running at the front weekly, and it’s been fun watching to see who would gain the edge over the others. Right now it’s Briscoe, who sits sixth in points with six top fives and nine top-10s. He has a win to his credit, like Nemechek, but it came a year ago, also like Nemechek. This could prove to be a valuable psychological edge for Briscoe and Nemechek, as both have managed to establish themselves as championship threats. Nemechek holds a runner-up (Las Vegas) to Briscoe’s season best of third (Pocono), but he also sits seventh in points with two top fives and seven top-10s, a tally that he’s also short on compared to Briscoe. Still, Briscoe proves to be strong everywhere while Nemechek has yet to prove himself on other tracks. Unlike Briscoe, Nemechek has shown to be lacking on some of the faster tracks, but at the rate he’s going it’s something he can overcome soon.

Haley and Gragson are the only actual rookies in this class, and they’ve shown it. Gragson sits eighth in points with two top fives and five top-10s. In true JR Motorsports fashion, he’s a consistent front runner, but it’s the smaller tracks where he needs more work, as 22nd at Richmond and 19th at Dover. Otherwise, when he isn’t in the top-10 he’s running in the top-15: 11th at Daytona, Phoenix, and Talladega, 12th at Fontana, and 13th at Texas (pictured).

However, Haley’s proved to big a big rookie surprise. He sits in 10th in the points, but while he’s earned a solitary top-five (fifth at Charlotte), he holds nine top-10s. It’s a testament to his Kaulig Racing team, who although isn’t as high funded as other teams, holds an affiliation with RCR. That affiliation isn’t the sole reason Haley’s been near the front, but with their driver Tyler Reddick a consistent front runner and race winner, it’s obvious the affiliation isn’t hurting the team at all. Haley’s top-10s have come on a variety of tracks, so don’t be surprised if he manages to score another top-five or be a threat to win before the season is up.

NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series

Rookies Sheldon Creed (No. 2) and Harrison Burton (No. 18) go three-wide with Grant Enfinger. Photo by Brad Keppel

The rookie race in the truck series isn’t as impressive as the Xfinity Series, but that’s not to say that the racing isn’t impressive in its own right. Rookies Creed and Burton are currently leading the charge in the division, as they have both shown the most strength with their teams, who also happen to be the strongest teams in the Truck Series (Creed with GMS Racing, Burton with Kyle Busch Motorsports). They have yet to translate their runs into wins, but it isn’t for lack of trying. Burton has posted the best results with two top-fives and four top-10s, which places him in the ninth spot in the standings at the moment. Three of his four top-10s have come on 1.5-mile tracks, which are the bread-and-butter for KBM drivers.

What’s surprising about Creed is that although he holds a single top-10 (sixth at Las Vegas) and sits 10th in points, he’s actually led 92 laps over the span of three races (21 at Daytona, where he earned a stage win, 59 at Dover before a crash put him in 27th, and 12 at Kansas before finishing several laps down in 19th) and has shown to have a strong truck more often than not. However, his luck isn’t the greatest as a rookie: Despite having a season average starting spot of sixth, he has five finishes outside of the top-15 in eight starts this season. Patience would go a long way for Creed, and after a little more experience he’ll soon be posting finishing stats that equal his qualifying efforts.

Young Motorsports driver Dippel isn’t far behind Burton and Creed, as he sits 11th in points, also with a single top-10 (eighth at Texas). It’s been hit or miss for Dippel in 2019 though, as outside of that top-10, he only has three top-15 finishes. Otherwise, he’s been a solid mid-pack driver, with a 17th at Las Vegas, an 18th at Dover, and a 23rd at Martinsville. His DNF at Daytona where he finished 29th was his only one so far of the season, so it does seem like he takes good care of his equipment.

Dippel’s teammate Gus Dean has had a rough go of things though. The two-time ARCA race winner has yet to break the top-10 in a Truck race this season, but he holds four top-15 finishes in eight starts this season. Aside from troublesome finishes at Las Vegas and Charlotte where he finished 22nd and 26th, respectively, his DNFs at Martinsville and Texas where he finished 32nd and 29th respectively were nothing more than growing pains for the Young Motorsports organization. They’re steadily improving, so before too long Dippel and Dean could end up improving on their rookie season start soon.

The David Gilliland Racing stable has definitely been hot and cold in 2019. On the hot side, there’s Tyler Ankrum, who has earned two top-10s in five starts so far in 2019, with a season-best of sixth at Texas. He’s held strong runs regularly; his DNF at Charlotte where he finished 27th was his first time outside of the top-20. Otherwise, he’s very stout on the faster tracks. His run at Martinsville resulted in a 19th-place finish but considering it wasn’t any different from his 18th-place run there during his series debut it’s safe to say short tracks should provide a learning experience for him, one that he’s sure to accomplish.

The pairing of Anthony Alfredo and Chris Lawson is still in its infancy, but that’s not to say it hasn’t had its ups; Alfredo earned his first top-10 in his fourth start when he finished eighth at Charlotte. Considering that his last start before that ended up in a fiery crash at Texas, anything above that should be considered a success. He’s only made four truck starts, but he’s solidly been in the top-20 in every start he’s made with the exception of Texas. He still has several starts to go before he becomes established, but with that said Alfredo is a very capable driver.

The lone bust happens to be Natalie Decker. Granted, she’s made limited starts in her DGR Toyota, but she’s also been in a few easily avoidable incidents such as Kansas and Charlotte. Her DNF at Daytona was truly an incident beyond her control, and considering it’s Daytona she looked to build on her promising start of 11th. But running over debris which ended her day was not any fault of hers. The crashes and issues since are a little harder to justify. She’s a rookie, sure. But DGR Toyotas are very solid race cars, and she should have more promising results other than her 13th at Las Vegas.

She had a lot of hype following last year’s ARCA season where she finished seventh in points after scoring two top-fives and five top-10s, but that hasn’t translated so much in the truck series. She needs to stop being afraid of her truck and afraid of the competition if she is to learn like she’s supposed to be doing. Decker has proven capable in race cars before this year; she needs to re-establish just how capable she truly is.

June 7, 2019
2019 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Rookie race not looking like much of a race

Although the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year race will see such talents as Ryan Preece and Daniel Hemric lead a charge that also includes Matt Tifft and Tanner Berryhill, it doesn’t look like it will be much of a race.

At first, it may look like Preece has the upper hand in terms of statistics. Unlike Hemric, Preece has won in the Xfinity Series not once, but twice, both times in Joe Gibbs Racing equipment. Stacked against Hemric’s Xfinity record, where he was consistently recording top-fives and top-10s in stellar Richard Childress Racing equipment but didn’t record a win (mirroring his NASCAR Truck Series record where he was a consistent front-runner but never a winner), it looks like Preece may have an edge, and maybe he does when the numbers are taken into consideration: In 15 starts in 2018 he recorded a win, seven top-fives, and 10 top-10s. In 33 starts in the 2018 Xfinity Series Hemric was winless, but he did record four poles, 16 top-fives, and 23 top-10s.

Preece has the upper hand in this case because he was able to get more out of the car in the limited run that he had. It may help a bit that the JGR Toyota program is a dominant force in the Xfinity Series despite the best efforts of the competition. But while Hemric is being promoted in the RCR organization to Cup level in an otherwise quietly consistent midpack entry, Preece is headed for the JTG-Daugherty camp in their No. 47 Camaro.

TThe fact that the Camaro struggled throughout the 2018 season was more of a manufacturer fault than a team fault despite getting four wins (by two drivers – Austin Dillon won the Daytona 500 while Chase Elliott won three times in the second half of the season). But the No. 47 Chevrolet does not have a stellar record. With one win (AJ Allmendiner in 2014 at Watkins Glen) in 432 total Cup starts as well as two poles, 15 top-fives, and 50 top-10s among four drivers (Allmendinger, Chris Buescher, Bobby Labonte, and Marcos Ambrose), Preece finds himself in an optimistic situation where the team can finally form itself around a true rising star. But often times that can lead to disastrous results, something that the JTG-Daugherty camp is all too familiar with.

Meanwhile, the RCR organization is still trying to re-establish itself as a weekly contender. Streamlining their Cup efforts to focus on Dillon in the No. 3 and Hemric in the No. 8, RCR looks to lighten their excess load in order to put the cars in Victory Lane more frequently, having not won since the 2018 Daytona 500. In his two Cup starts in 2018, Hemric didn’t make much noise, having his best run at the Charlotte Roval where he finished on the lead lap in 23^rd after starting 11^th. He does have experience, having been to most of the tracks on the schedule at least twice in the past two seasons, so he knows what to expect. Better still is that since he was promoted within the organization the team has a clear understanding of how Hemric performs and how to get the best out of him as a driver, while Preece back at JTG-Daugherty is in the middle of a learning curve with a new team.

In this case, the odds look to be in Hemric’s favor, but that’s not to discredit either of the two rookie front-runners let alone Tifft and Berryhill. Hemric’s stability in the RCR camp only serves to boost his confidence going into 2019. He’s in a familiar territory, and as a result he may very well post some great numbers. Nevermind that he has yet to score a NASCAR Trucks or Xfinity win; Jimmie Johnson still only has one Xfinity win before his rookie Cup season of 2002 and he’s now a seven-time champion. Therefore, Xfinity results (or lack thereof) don’t always translate to Cup performance. But in terms of the 2019 rookie race where Berryhill (driving for the brand-new Obaikia Cup entry) and Tifft (driving for the reincarnated Front Row Motorsports third entry) will both be driving as unheralded rookies for under-funded teams while Preece will be in an adjustment period with his team, Hemric and RCR may be the best bet for top rookie honors come Homestead.

January 16, 2019
Rookie of the Year: It’s a Two-Way Battle

It’s no secret that the 2016 rookie class was one of the most talked about subjects prior to the start of the season. With hype comes expectation and many times with expectation comes failure to deliver. However, that hasn’t been the case so far for two rookies this season.

We all knew that Chase Elliott would have speed, after all, he’s racing for one of the top teams in NASCAR, but would that speed translate into good finishes? The answer is an astounding yes.

In fact, he’s already posted six top 20 finishes, two of those being top fives. If it hadn’t been for a late rate race caution at California, he might have even captured his first checkered flag. From what it seems, Elliott isn’t phased by the pressure of taking over such an iconic ride. Expect to see the 24 back in victory lane this season.

Photo Credit: Rachel Myers

Then, there’s Ryan Blaney. Blaney and the Wood Brother’s both went full time in the Sprint Cup Series this season. Blaney has posted a respectable two top 10 finishes in eight races, his best coming at Las Vegas placing sixth. Each race Blaney has shown that he has the speed and poise to contend not only for rookie of the year but for wins at NASCAR’s top level.

The other rookies in the field haven’t been posting the impressive numbers, nor have they shown they have what it takes to contend each week with Elliott or Blaney. Brian Scott and Chris Buescher have each posted only one top 20 finish apiece while Jeffrey Earnhardt’s best finish is only 32nd, matching his car number.

Bottom line, this rookie battle is clearly only between two guys, Elliott and Blaney. Much like the rookie battles between Newman and Johnson, Kenseth and Junior, Harvick and Kurt Busch, Gordon and Labonte; it’s going to be an entertaining battle to the end. Don’t be surprised to see both of these drivers in The Chase this season.

April 20, 2016
Elliott and Blaney Dominate Rookie of the Year Battle

Five races into the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup season, Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney have risen to the top of the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings leaving the rest of the contenders to play a game of “catch me if you can.”

Elliott is the current leader, by way of a tie-breaker, having three top-10 finishes, eighth at Atlanta and Phoenix and a sixth-place finish this past weekend at Fontana. Blaney has placed in the top 10 twice, scoring sixth at Las Vegas and 10th at Phoenix.

Although Elliott was the consensus to win Rookie of the Year honors preseason, Blaney has proven to be a tenacious competitor, leading the standings after three of five races.

The season began with Elliott becoming the youngest driver to win the pole in the history of the Daytona 500. The 20-year-old was elated, saying, “This is a very, very cool day.”

His excitement would be short-lived, however, when Elliott lost control of his car only 20 laps into the Sprint Cup race, sliding through the infield grass and sustaining heavy damage to his car. After repairs to his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Elliott was able to resume the race 40 laps down and finished a disappointing 37th.

By contrast, Blaney was the highest finishing rookie at Daytona, finishing in 19th place. He ran in the top 10 for the first 100 laps but handling issues saw him falling further back as the race continued. It wasn’t the result he wanted but it was enough to begin the year as the leading rookie.

“No one could go on the top all day,” Blaney said after climbing out of his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford. “There was a while where people could go (on top) but then it’s nonexistent. I don’t know if it’s a lack of motor or what. We got behind and we couldn’t get back up there.”

Blaney was also the highest finishing rookie at Las Vegas while Elliott took the top spot at Atlanta, Phoenix and Fontana.

Since the first race, the trend has continued as the pair take turns occupying the number one position in the rookie standings. Brian Scott (-14), Chris Buescher (-16) and Jeffrey Earnhardt (-37) are third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

Scott’s highest finish this year was 12th at Fontana, Buescher’s best was 26th place at Las Vegas while Earnhardt (who has only competed in three of five races) captured his best finish of 33rd at Las Vegas.

Although the season has barely begun, Blaney and Elliott have clearly established themselves as the frontrunners in the rookie competition. After a week off, the action will continue as NASCAR heads to Martinsville Speedway and the battle resumes.

Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/angiecampbell_

March 21, 2016
NASCAR Champions Featuring Richard Petty

Cup Champion: 1964, 1967, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1979
Born: July 2, 1937
Hometown: Randleman, North Carolina
Career: 1958 – 1992

Premier Series Stats:
Starts: 1185
Wins: 200
Poles: 123

With his tall, slender frame, signature feathered cowboy hat and sunglasses; he is easily one of the most recognizable figures in the racing world. His accomplishments on the track will likely never be equaled and a worthy successor may never be found. There has only been one king in NASCAR and that king is Richard Petty.

His success in the Sprint Cup Series is unparalleled and includes the most wins (200) and the most poles (123). He is tied with Dale Earnhardt for the most championships (seven) and holds the record for most Daytona 500 wins with seven. In 1967 he set two records with the most wins in a season (27) and the most consecutive wins (10). His 1,185 starts set the bar for the most starts in the series.

Petty retired from driving in 1992 and assumed the role of car owner with Petty Enterprises. The organization won a total of 268 races before they merged with Gillett Evernham Motorsports in 2009 to form Richard Petty Motorsports. In 2010, Petty was inducted into the inaugural class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

With Petty at the helm, Richard Petty Motorsports currently fields two cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with Marcos Ambrose and Aric Almirola and a Nationwide Series team with Dakoda Armstrong.

Petty’s legacy and influence, however, extend beyond mere statistics. It cannot be truly measured by numbers in a record book but rather is reflected in the lives he has touched.

In 2003, John Force (16-time NHRA Funny Car champion), was asked what kind of legacy he wanted to leave in drag racing.

“Hell, that’s an easy one to answer,” he said. “I want to be the guy that signed more autographs for the fans than anyone else. When I was first getting into this sport I watched Richard Petty. I watched the way he treated his fans. He would stand and sign autographs as long as people wanted them. I never saw him refuse to give a fan an autograph. I saw the love that his fans had for him and the way he seemed to really like them. I want to be like Petty except I that I want to sign even more autographs than he has. I want to take care of my fans the way he has.”

For some fans, it was Petty’s prowess on the track that inspired their allegiance. Jimmy Taylor shared this memory from August 1979 at Michigan International Speedway.

It was “20 laps to go,” he told me. “Petty is following Baker lap after lap. They take the white flag coming down the back stretch. Baker goes low to block the slingshot. Petty goes high instead, coming off turn four, side by side, screaming to the checkered, Petty wins by four feet! This 13-year-old boy cried like a baby with joy, the second greatest moment of my life besides my child’s birth.”

For Mike Neff, Senior Writer at Frontstretch.com, it was a chance encounter that left a lasting impression.

“In 2003 the fall Nationwide race at Charlotte was scheduled to run on Friday night but it was rained out,” he explained. “Saturday morning I packed up the kids and the wife and headed to the track. When we got there we stopped at the restroom for mom and the kids to take a break before we went to our seats. As I waited on them I saw Richard Petty leaning against the wall waiting for Lynda to come out of the restroom as well. I took the opportunity to shake his hand, having never met him before.

“The family comes out of the restroom and we head down to our cheap seats, three rows up from the track at the flag stand and settle in to watch the race. As the pace laps are going on, who comes to sit directly behind us, in the cheap seats, but Richard Petty. Couldn’t believe he was sitting in such crappy seats.

“Throughout the race people come by and talk, take pictures, get autographs, tell stories and just get their own little piece of the King. We did get to talk a little about racing during cautions and spent the whole race just being fans. It was one of the coolest experiences I’ve ever had at a race track.

“When the day ended I wished him well, he thanked me for spending the race with him and we went on our way. I can’t imagine Dale Jr. or Jimmie Johnson sitting four rows up at a Nationwide race and spending 75 percent of the time interacting with fans. There is a reason he’s called The King.”

Randy Claflin’s favorite story is about a special birthday present courtesy of Petty.

“In October of 1988, some of my family went to Florida on vacation,” he began. “On our way back home to Michigan, we stopped at the Petty museum for my birthday. While watching a movie in the museum, I heard a race car start up. Soon you could hear it moving around the building I was in. I went running through the museum with my camera (an old 110 film camera) out the front door. Here is Richard driving one of his Pontiacs around the parking lot. When he saw me and my camera, he stopped so I could take a picture. I went over to him and introduced myself to him and he shook my hand. He wished me a Happy Birthday, started the car back up and drove off. I lost the picture long ago but the memory of a great birthday present will live forever.”

Terry Strange recounted a touching memory from Bristol about how a small gesture from Petty had a huge impact on a young boy.

“Many years ago, the infield at Bristol was grass, and racers, their families and some fans could drive their own vehicles inside to park. My wife and I were sitting in our car eating a sandwich before we pushed the cars out to line up pre-race. A lady driving a pickup with a disabled child in the back (in a wheelchair) drove into the infield. She couldn’t find a place to park, as all the spaces in our section were full. A yellow tape separated us from the press parking, which was half-full. I held the rope up and let the lady come through.

“She thanked me, and said that her son loved Richard Petty, and that his dream was to one day meet him. I had talked to him earlier,” Terry said, “and knew where his truck was parked. I walked over to his truck, where he was eating his own sandwich. I told him about the young man, he promptly put the sandwich down and told me to take him to the boy. As we walked across the infield to the truck, the boy lit up with a huge smile, Richard got up into the back of the truck and sat and talked with the youngster for quite a while. The boy’s mother cried. I waved and walked back to my car, then to work. I knew that afternoon why they call him The King.”

Many drivers look at signing autographs as an obligation. Today’s fans often have to jump through hoops just to be part of autograph sessions that are first come, first served and limited to a strict period of time. Petty is a different breed of driver and as Bob Waas discovered, “He is the real deal.”

Bob was an official from 1967-1977 at the now defunct, Islip Speedway in New York and his story dates back to July 5, 1967 when he drove the pace car for a NASCAR event.

“Back then when the Sprint Cup cars (Grand National) visited Islip they didn’t have their own pace car driver,” he revealed, “so they entrusted the local officials with the duty of driving the pace car.

“At the conclusion of the race I had the pleasure of driving the winner around the track so he could wave to the fans. It was a convertible in case you were wondering. On this night Richard Petty won so I picked him up at the start/finish line and took him around the track a few times. They told me over the radio to bring him to the press box afterwards so he could sign some autographs.

“I was standing next to Richard when he signed his first autograph and it seemed to take a very long time. I looked over his shoulder and noticed that his autograph had lots of swirls and circles and other lines that I think would be hard to duplicate. I said to Richard, ‘You’re not going to sign all of them like that are you?’ He gave me that dumbfounded look and said, ’Of course I am Bob, it’s my autograph!’ I replied, ‘But, look at all the people!’ By now the line had grown so long it went down the entire length of the stairs and wrapped around the corner. Richard said to me, ‘It’s okay, I’ll stay here all night to sign autographs for the fans.’”

Bob’s story doesn’t end there. A year later he was walking through the pits and passed by Petty and his brother Maurice who were sitting on the tailgate of their truck.

“I kept walking as I gave a wave in his direction while shouting out, ‘Hi Richard.’ When he replied, ‘Hi Bob,’ it floored me. All those miles traveled between stops at our little track and somehow, he remembered my name.”

These are only a few of the stories that came pouring in when I asked Petty fans to share some of their favorite moments. There were far too many to share them all but there was one sentiment expressed throughout. Richard Petty may be called The King because of his achievements on the track but it is his actions off the track that make him NASCAR royalty in the hearts of the fans.

Accomplishments:

All Time Wins Leader: 200
All Time Poles Leader: 123
1959: Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year Award
1962, 1964, 1968, 1974-1978: Sprint Cup Most Popular Driver Award
1964, 1967, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1979: Sprint Cup Champion
1964. 1966, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979, 1981: Daytona 500 Winner
1967: Most Sprint Cup Wins in One Season – 27 Wins
1967: Most Sprint Cup Consecutive Wins – 10 Wins
1973: North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame Inductee
1989: Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Inductee
1992: Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom
1997: International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee
1997: North Carolina Auto Racing Hall of Fame Inductee
1998: Named One of NASCAR’s Greatest Drivers
1998: National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame Inductee
2010: NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductee

John Force Quote from dragracingonline.com June 16, 2003

Special thanks to Randy Claflin, Mike Neff, Terry Strange, Jimmy Taylor and Bob Waas for their contributions.

July 18, 2014