NASCAR: William Byron clinches 2018 Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award
By Asher Fair
With his ninth place finish in the Can-Am 500 at ISM Raceway, William Byron has clinched the Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award for the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron entered the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series coming off of a championship-winning 2017 Xfinity Series season. Before the 2018 season began, he had never competed in a Cup Series race before.
With 35 races of the 36-race season in the books, the 20-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native who replaced Kasey Kahne behind the wheel of the #5 Chevrolet (changed to #24 Chevrolet before the season when Chase Elliott’s #24 Chevrolet became the #9 Chevrolet) has clinched the Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award.
Byron clinched this season’s Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award following his ninth place finish in the season’s penultimate race, the Can-Am 500, at ISM Raceway.
More from NASCAR Cup Series
- NASCAR Cup Series: New team set to compete in 2024
- NASCAR: Surprising name continuously linked to new seat
- NASCAR driver at risk of missing the Daytona 500?
- NASCAR set for rare appearance last seen 13 years ago
- NASCAR team adds third car, names driver for 2024 Daytona 500
Of the 29 full-time drivers who have competed in each of the 35 races that have been contested so far this season, two are rookie drivers. Aside of Byron, only Richard Petty Motorsports’ Darrell Wallace Jr., who competed in four races last season as the substitute for the injured Aric Almirola, was in the running to win this season’s Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award.
A maximum of 60 points are on the table for each driver in each race, as stage one victories are worth 10 points, stage two victories are also worth 10 points and race victories are worth 40 points. All drivers who compete in the race are guaranteed to score at least one point, meaning that a maximum of 59 points can be made up by one driver over another in each race.
Byron entered this race in 24th place in the championship standings with 544 points while Wallace Jr. entered it in 28th with 428 points, so Wallace Jr. was still eligible to win the Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award because of the fact that his point total was within 118 points of that of Byron.
Byron earned 30 points with his ninth place finish in the Can-Am 500 while Wallace Jr. earned 27 points with his 10th place finish in this race.
As a result, Byron now sits in place in 23rd place the championship standings with 574 points while Wallace Jr. still sits in 28th with 455 points. This means that there is no possible way by which the driver of the #43 Chevrolet can catch, much less pass, Byron’s point total in the season finale, the Ford EcoBoost 400, at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Top 10 NASCAR drivers of all-time. dark. Next
Congratulations to William Byron for winning the Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award for the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season! Do you believe that he will earn his first career Cup Series victory in the 2019 season? If not, when do you believe he will do so?