Of all the storylines that came out of the wild (and forgettable) weekend at Daytona International Speedway, there was one story that was glossed over by fans and media alike, and perhaps even the driver in question.
Austin Cindric has secured the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year award.
If this is news to you, you’re probably wondering, “How could this be? There are still 10 races left in the season!”
Well, Cindric made the playoffs. Yes, that’s all it took for him to lock in Rookie of the Year. His Daytona 500 win was enough to project him into the playoffs, and because he is the only rookie to make the this year’s playoffs, he is guaranteed the highest points finish of all the rookies, which automatically wins him the prestigious award.
But just how prestigious is the award now? The Rookie of the Year is decided by the season-end points, and although this has worked for many years, the institution of the newest iteration of the playoffs means that rookies who make the playoffs are the only ones who can qualify for the Rookie of the Year award.
Usually, this isn’t an issue, as it’s very rare for a full-time rookie to win a race, but the issue lies in the fact that this literally just happened two years ago.
Cole Custer stole his first and only career win to date at Kentucky Speedway in 2020, and vaulted himself into the playoffs doing so. He was the only rookie to make the playoffs, and therefore won ROTY after the 26th race of the season.
The problem? Custer was not the best rookie that year. His two NASCAR Xfinity Series rivals, Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick, were having much better seasons than Custer despite having no wins. Custer had no shot at the playoffs until his Kentucky win, while Bell and Reddick were dancing around the cut line the entire season up to that point.
Had Custer not won that race, he would not be ROTY, and Reddick would have instead taken home that award. Reddick deserved the award more than Custer, who would have finished 20th in a non-playoff points standing, behind both Reddick (18th) and Bell (19th).
It almost happened again in 2016. Chris Buescher and Front Row Motorsports played pit strategy perfectly, as they were the leader at Pocono Raceway when weather forced NASCAR to end the race, giving Buescher the upset of the season. He made the playoffs, and would have won Rookie of the Year if Chase Elliott didn’t also make the playoffs as a rookie. Elliott took home the award, but Buescher,…
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