gettyimages-2183911200.jpg
Getty Images

Following the conclusion of the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, Carson Hocevar has officially been named the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year. The 21-year-old from Portage, Mich. came out on top in a season-long, four-driver battle for top rookie honors that also included Josh Berry, Zane Smith and Kaz Grala.

After graduating from the Craftsman Truck Series and earning a Cup ride with Spire Motorsports, Hocevar turned in an impressive rookie campaign that saw him both quickly acquit himself to the Cup level and greatly elevate the performance of his No. 77 Spire Motorsports team. Hocevar finished the year with one top five (a career best third at Watkins Glen) and six top 10s en route to a 21st-place finish in the championship standings, giving him the Rookie of the Year title by 107 points over Berry.

Hocevar is the first Chevrolet driver to win Rookie of the Year since Daniel Hemric in 2019, and he is also the third driver in history from the state of Michigan to win Cup Rookie of the Year. Hocevar joins his mentor Johnny Benson (1996) as well as fellow Cup Series competitor Erik Jones (2017).

"Being named Sunoco Rookie of the Year is special," Hocevar said in a statement. "I got beat out for Rookie of the Year in the CraftsmanTruck series, and I didn't run in the Xfinity Series full time so to win the award in the NASCAR Cup Series is a huge accomplishment for our whole team. It definitely didn't come easy. Josh (Berry) has won a bunch of Xfinity races, and the No. 4 team won tons of races and a championship with Rodney (Childers) and (Kevin) Harvick. We also had Zane (Smith) in contention, who raced for Spire Motorsports and has won several Truck Series races and a championship. It was a good group of accomplished drivers vying for it, and it means a lot to come out on top. We ran really strong at the end of the year and were able to pull away in terms of points. These last several weeks show our capabilities as a team.

"This award will be something that will live with me my whole career, and I'm proud to be known as the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year. There's an elite list of guys who have won it, and many of them went on to win races and championships. The award is something you only have one shot at. You can never go back and try to win Rookie or the Year later down the line. It is the only thing like that in racing. It is cool to win something so significant this year, and the mission is now to get the No. 77 car to Victory Lane and in the playoffs in 2025."