NASCAR: 2015 Beyond The Flag Sprint Cup Series Awards

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Most Improved Driver of 2015

Every year it seems as though there are a few drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series that come out of nowhere and have a decent or great season. Sometimes it’s drivers who had a horrible season the year before and sometimes it’s drivers who have never truly had success in NASCAR but finally managed to break through. Below is a look at some of the drivers who improved and surprised us in 2015.

The Nominees:

• Martin Truex Jr. (2014: 24th in the points with one top-five finish, five top-10’s and one lap led) compared to (2015: 4th in the points with one win, eight top-five finishes, 22 top-10’s and 567 laps led). Truex Jr.’s average finish went from 20.2 in 2014 to 12.4 in 2015.
• Kurt Busch (2014: 12th in the points with one win, six top-five’s, 11 top-10’s and 220 laps led) compared to (2015: 8th in the points with two wins, 10 top-five’s, 21 top-10’s and 788 laps led). Busch’s average finish went from 18.9 in 2014 to 11.1 in 2015.
• Joey Logano (2014: 4th in the points with five wins, 16 top-fives, 22 top-10’s and 993 laps led) compared to (2015: 6th in the points with six wins, 22 top-five’s, 28 top-10’s and 1,431 laps led). Logano’s average finish went from 11.1 in 2014 to 9.2 in 2015.
• Matt Kenseth (2014: 7th in the points with no wins, 13 top-fives, 22 top-10’s and 529 laps led) compared to (2015: 15th in the points with five wins, 12 top-five’s, 20 top-10’s and 927 laps led). Kenseth’s average finish went from 13.2 in 2014 to 14.3 in 2015 but he did win five more races in 2015 as opposed to 2014.

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