2008 NASCAR rookie class stinks

The Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidates have had a rough season, accumulating ZERO (0) Top 10 finishes in 2008 (#8-Aric Almirola has a Top 10 from Bristol, but he is not a candidate and not running for the award in 2008 and will have too many races to run for the award in 2009). No rookie class in the modern era (1972-present) has gone this deep into a season without a single Top 10 finish. In fact, you need to go all the way back to 1961 – when the schedule stretched 62 races deep – for the last time all the ROTY candidates were shut out of the Top 10 nineteen races in. So far in 2008, the best finish by any of the five drivers running for the award is a 13th place by Sam Hornish, Jr. at the Coca-Cola 600 in May. And in case you're wondering, at Chicagoland the best run any of the first year drivers could muster was a 30th by #10-Patrick Carpentier. Frontstretch Newsletter