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Analysis: Notable drivers to claim first win in third season
By Staff report | Published: 12 Dec, 2022 8
Logan Riely | Getty Images
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Logan Riely | Getty Images
Newly-signed 23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick made the most of his final season driving the No. 8 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in 2022. The native Californian struck gold for his first win this past year — adding another two along the way before the campaign wrapped — joining an elite group of drivers whose first victory came during Year 3 of their respective Cup Series careers (counting full-time seasons only). See which current (and potentially future) Hall of Famers have also accomplished the feat.
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Rusty Wallace
Year 3: 1986
Age: 29
Wins: 2, at Bristol and Martinsville
Career: Wallace is the most decorated driver on this list, capping his career after the 2005 season with 55 wins. He was inducted to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2013.
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NASCAR Research & Archives Center | Getty Images
Alan Kulwicki
Year 3: 1988
Age: 33
Wins: 1, at Phoenix Raceway
Career: Kulwicki would win four more races, including two in his storybook 1992 championship year before his death in an aviation crash in 1993. He was inducted to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2019.
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NASCAR Research & Archives Center | Getty Images
Bobby Labonte
Year 3: 1995
Age: 31
Wins: 3, at Charlotte Motor Speedway and twice at Michigan
Career: Labonte made steady improvement after breaking through in 1995, culminating in the NASCAR Cup Series title in 2000. With 21 career wins, Labonte was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2020.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Kyle Larson
Year 3: 2016
Age: 23
Wins: 1, at Michigan
Career: Larson's one-win third year set the stage for a championship push in 2017, when he won four races and logged 15 top fives. He fell short that year, but turned in one of the finest seasons of this century in 2021 with 10 wins on the way to his first championship.
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Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Chase Elliott
Year 3: 2018
Age: 23
Wins: 3, at Watkins Glen, Dover and Kansas
Career: Elliott won another three races in Year 4 (2019) and emerged even stronger in 2020, landing a career-high five victories while taking it all the way to his first Cup title. He added another seven wins and two Championship 4 appearances in 2021 and '22.
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Wiliam Byron
Year 3: 2020
Age: 22
Wins: 1, at Daytona
Career: Byron has steadily progressed upward throughout his Cup career, tacking on another win in 2021 before looking like a bona fide championship contender — and nearly making the Championship 4 — in 2022, finishing with a career best two wins and sixth-place standings result.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Tyler Reddick
Year 3: 2022
Age: 26
Wins: 3, at Road America, Indianapolis Road Course and Texas
Career: Reddick's third season was just about as interesting and topsy-turvy as you could imagine, seeing him break through to show his true Cup Series talent — while simultaneously very publicly break up with the team he's taking to Victory Lane. The sky's the limit for Reddick, however, and he very well could top this number as he moves over to 23XI Racing for the '23 season.