This season’s Sunoco Rookie of the Year battle has taken a back seat – and understandably so – to a continuing, red-hot NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship struggle.
But those in the know believe that this year’s class is the best since the freshman award was instituted in 1996. And that says a lot – considering a roster of top rookies that includes NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch, current NSCS championship leader Carl Edwards and two NASCAR national series champion Greg Biffle.
“In my career, this is the best rookie class I’ve seen in motorsports,” said NASCAR Camping World Truck director Wayne Auton. “I’m impressed with their ability to handle themselves both on and off the race track. They’ve been fun to deal with. I’ve not had one veteran complain about a rookie – and I think that’s a first.”
Joey Coulter, 21, holds a five-point lead over former Formula One driver Nelson Piquet Jr., 26, with 20-year-old Cole Whitt 10 back entering the Nov. 18 Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The award is based upon a driver’s best 14 finishes plus bonus points for overall final ranking and vote by the series’ rookie of the year panel based upon competition and interaction with other drivers and the media.
Coulter is Richard Childress Racing teammate to championship leader Austin Dillon, raising the possibility of one owner capturing both awards for only the second time in series history. Biffle and rookie of the year Busch finished one-two in 2000 driving for Jack Roush.
An unprecedented three Sunoco rookie contenders rank among the top 10 (and a fourth, Parker Kligerman, is 11th). Whitt became the first rookie to lead the overall standings after finishing third in the season’s seventh race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
No rookie has won in 2011, but three – Whitt, Kligerman and Piquet – have logged second-place finishes. This year’s seven-member rookie class has assembled 18 top-five and 48 top-10 finishes.
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