NASCAR Cup Series
By Staff Report
NASCAR.com
Published:
2 Minute Read
Eleven up-and-coming drivers will compete for 2022 Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors across NASCAR’s three national series.
In the Cup Series, Austin Cindric, Harrison Burton and Todd Gilliland will battle for the accolade.
Cindric, the 2020 Xfinity Series champion, amassed 13 wins, 62 top fives and 89 top 10s in four full-time seasons driving for Jack Roush and Roger Penske. A perennial contender at the Xfinity level, Cindric was tabbed to fill the seat of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford this season alongside teammates Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney. Cindric made seven Cup starts a season ago.
No stranger to battles with Cindric, Burton also moved up in the ranks to become the youngest driver to ever run a full-time season for Wood Brothers Racing. Burton spent two seasons in the Xfinity Series, highlighted by a four-win campaign in 2020.
Gilliland jumps up to the top level after 93 starts and a pair of wins in the Camping World Truck Series, earning a spot in the two-car operation for Front Row Motorsports. He will drive alongside Michael McDowell.
RELATED: Full Cup Series schedule | Silly Season tracker for Cup
Sheldon Creed, Austin Hill and Jesse Iwuji are each vying for the title in the Xfinity Series.
Creed and Hill both begin their first full-time seasons at this level after multiple years of success in the Camping World Truck Series. Creed and Hill will both pilot entries for Richard Childress Racing, with Iwuji making his full-time debut in NASCAR after collaborating with Emmitt Smith and others to form his own team – Jesse Iwuji Motorsports.
RELATED: Full Xfinity Series schedule | Jesse Iwuji, Emmitt Smith partner with Chevrolet
Jack Wood (GMS Racing), Dean Thompson (Niece Motorsports), Lawless Alan (Niece Motorsports), Corey Heim (Kyle Busch Motorsports) and Blaine Perkins (CR7 Motorsports) are this season’s contenders in the Camping World Truck Series.
RELATED: Full Truck Series schedule | Track Truck and Xfinity driver, team changes
The 2022 season kicks off this month with the first points-paying races at Daytona International Speedway.