NASCAR Truck Series: Myatt Snider wins 2018 Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award
By Asher Fair
Myatt Snider clinched the Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award for the 2018 NASCAR Truck Series season with his 14th place finish in the season finale.
ThorSport Racing’s Myatt Snider entered the 23rd and final race of the 2018 NASCAR Truck Series season, the Ford EcoBoost 200, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in ninth place in the championship standings. He was the highest non-playoff driver in the standings, and he was the highest rookie in the standings.
The 23-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native entered this 134-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida with a 22-point lead (588 to 566) over Kyle Busch Motorsports’ Todd Gilliland, who sat in 10th place in the championship standings, in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year award standings.
Snider finished this race in 14th place in his #13 Ford and scored 23 points as a result of it, as he did not score any stage points. Meanwhile, Gilliland finished in 13th in his #4 Toyota and scored 24 points as a result of it, as he also did not score any stage points.
As a result, Snider clinched the 2018 Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award for the Truck Series by 21 points (611 to 590) over Gilliland.
More from Camping World Truck Series
- NASCAR: New team confirmed for Kyle Busch for 2024
- NASCAR: Replacement confirmed for driver released before Talladega
- NASCAR team releases driver with three races left
- NASCAR Truck Series: Spencer Boyd speaks on Montucky, Bristol tradition
- NASCAR title-winning team shutting down after 2023
Snider competed in all 23 races this season while Gilliland only competed in 19. This was the case because of the fact that the 18-year-old Sherrills Ford, North Carolina native did not turn 18 years old until Tuesday, May 15, so there were certain races that took place early in the season in which he was not allowed to compete.
In 23 races, Snider racked up three top five finishes and eight top 10 finishes. His best finish of the season was his second place finish in the round of 8 race at Talladega Superspeedway and his average finish was 14.1. He led 55 of the 3,250 laps that he completed this year.
In 19 races, Gilliland racked up four top five finishes, nine top 10 finishes and one pole position. He took the pole position for the round of 6 race at Martinsville Speedway. He ended up finishing it in 12th. His best finish of the season was his second place finish in the June race at Gateway Motorsports Park and his average finish was 12.5. He led 208 of the 2,696 laps that he completed this year.
dark. Next. Top 10 NASCAR drivers of all-time
How will Myatt Snider and Todd Gilliland perform in the 2019 NASCAR Truck Series season? As the top two non-playoff drivers of this season, will they take the next step and get to next year’s playoffs and possibly be in contention to win the championship?
The 2019 season is scheduled to begin on Friday, February 15, 2019 with the NextEra Energy Resources 250, which is set to be broadcast live from Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida on Fox Sports 1. Be sure not to miss it.