Join me as we take a look at every NASCAR Cup Rookie of the Year class from 1972 (the start of the modern era) through 2021, going from the worst to the first in terms of overall careers of each year’s rookie class.
1973
Lennie Pond's car in 1985
Winner: Lennie Pond (Elder-Ranier). Runners Up: Darrell Waltrip (DarWal). Aborted Attempts: Johnny Barnes
How their careers turned out: Nothing against Cup race winner Lennie Pond, but this just goes to show you how the ROTY results aren’t indicative of future success. Darrell Waltrip, a three-time Cup champion, couldn’t beat Lennie Pond in his rookie year. Oh well—at least Lennie never went on to bastardize the Past Champion’s Provisional.
“Fun” “Fact” about the winner: Lennie ALSO never went on to make vaguely threatening comments about the president.
Ranking: #18 out of 50
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