Last year Spade Racing took a look at the six drivers competing for Rookie of the Year. This year we continue to look at that vaunted class (sans John Hunter Nemechek and Brennan Poole) as they strive to establish themselves while avoiding the “sophomore slump”. Returning for 2021 is the PRETTY grade: Performance Relative to Equating Team’s Typical Year (its pretty much how well each driver is doing considering their equipment). Here’s how things look going into Las Vegas:
1. Christopher Bell (Joe Gibbs Racing). Best finish: 1st (Daytona Road Course). PRETTY grade: A-. C.Bell rebounded from a so-so Daytona 500 with a breakthrough win on the Daytona Road Course, rocketing him to the top of the Spade Racing Sophomores Rankings. I’d send him a trophy, but I don’t really feel like it (nor do I want to wind up with a restraining order…again).
2. Cole Custer (Stewart Haas Racing). Best finish: 11th (Daytona). PRETTY grade: B+. SHR has often seemed like “Harvick and the rest”, but Cole’s had a solid (if not spectacular) start to the season, well-outpacing teammates Chase Briscoe and that other guy who seems to really like bacon.
3. Tyler Reddick (Richard Childress Racing). Best finish: 2nd (Homestead). PRETTY grade: B-. Were it not for a dreadful start to the season, Reddick could’ve swapped spots with Cole Custer on the back of his 2nd place finish last week. Its like waking up, stubbing your toe, waiting forever for the shower to turn hot, running out of toothpaste, and spilling something on your shirt, only to then get to work and get two Pop-Tarts out of the vending machine instead of one.
4. Quin Houff (StarCom Racing). Best finish: 29th (Daytona). PRETTY grade: D-. A top-twenty race finish would be a major breakthrough for the StarCom Racing team, but it remains to be seen if their poor performance is the car or the driver. Eh, probably both.
NOTE: Brennan Poole seems to not be racing this year in Cup—or any Nascar Series for that matter. Looks like “The Bull” Brennan Poole got “The Horns” of Nascar’s business side and is regrouping by working as a commentator (I believe that’s either “The Left Shin” or “The Spleen”).