# Who is the greatest NASCAR Rookie of the Year?

> Some first seasons predicted everything that followed. Others were the best year the driver ever had.

*By YPB Team · Published September 11, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/who-is-the-greatest-nascar-rookie-of-the-year*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Dale Earnhardt** — score 1000/1000
   Rookie of the Year in 1979, then Cup champion the very next season.
2. **Jeff Gordon** — score 912/1000
   Rookie of the Year in 1993 and champion two years later.
3. **Kevin Harvick** — score 643/1000
   Named 2001 rookie while taking over the No. 3 mid-season, and won twice.
4. **Alan Kulwicki** — score 577/1000
   The 1986 rookie who built his own team and won the 1992 title.
5. **Kyle Busch** — score 576/1000
   Won twice as a 2005 rookie at 20 and became the sport's winningest racer.
6. **Matt Kenseth** — score 500/1000
   Beat Dale Earnhardt Jr. to the 2000 award, then won the 2003 title.
7. **Rusty Wallace** — score 500/1000
   Rookie of the Year in 1984, champion in 1989.
8. **Richard Petty** — score 409/1000
   Took the 1959 award and went on to 200 wins and seven titles.
9. **Denny Hamlin** — score 300/1000
   The 2006 rookie who swept both Pocono races that year.
10. **Ryan Newman** — score 300/1000
   Won the 2002 award with a win and six poles.
11. **Joey Logano** — score 300/1000
   Won at New Hampshire as a 2009 rookie at 19, then two championships.
12. **Kyle Larson** — score 300/1000
   The 2014 rookie who became a champion and an open-wheel crossover star.
13. **Chase Elliott** — score 300/1000
   Took the 2016 award and the 2020 championship.
14. **William Byron** — score 300/1000
   The 2018 rookie who arrived from iRacing and won the 2024 Daytona 500.
15. **Tony Stewart** — score 167/1000
   Won three races as a 1999 rookie, then three championships.
16. **Davey Allison** — score 167/1000
   Won two races as a 1987 rookie, the first to do so in decades.

Tags: usa, drivers, nascar, motorsport, awards