List of American Championship Car Rookie of the Year Winners
The following is a list compiling all the winners of the Rookie of the Year award in open wheel American Championship Car Racing from 1946 season to the present day. Before the creation of Championship Auto Racing Teams the prize is not officially awarded. So all of the AAA and USAC winners of the Rookie of the Year award is not officially recognized. The list of "Indy car" or "Champ car" rookies under the following auspices:
- American Automobile Association Contest Board (1946–1955)
- United States Automobile Club (1956–1980)
- Championship Auto Racing Teams (1979–2007)
- Indy Racing League/IndyCar Series (1997–present)
Sanctioning bodies
The AAA Contest Board began sanctioning races as early as 1904. In the early years of the sport, only two seasons (1905 and 1916) an official national championship was recognized and awarded.
The 1946 season is a source of a statistical anomaly. The AAA Contest Board included a substantial number of "Big Car" races in the national championship for 1946, swelling the season to 77 events (6 Champ Car races and 71 Big Car races). Some later texts chose to dismiss the 71 Big Car races from record, but reliable records and historians contend that the season should be regarded as the full 77-race schedule.
Officially, Jim Trueman Rookie of the Year Award named after the late founder of the two-time champion TrueSports Racing Team, it's presented from 1979 Season to 2007 Season to the rookie who accumulates the most Champ Car Championship Series points among first year drivers.
Rookie of the Year winners
AAA and USAC Rookie of the Year winners
AAA National Motor Car Championship | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Rookie of the Year winners | Driver standings | Wins | Team | ||
1946 | Jimmy Jackson | 4 | ||||
1947 | Bill Holland | 2 | 2 | |||
1948 | Mack Hellings | 8 | ||||
1949 | Jimmy Davies | 17 | 1 | |||
1950 | Walt Faulkner | 2 | 1 | |||
1951 | Mike Nazaruk | 5 | ||||
1952 | Jimmy Reece | 9 | ||||
1953 | Ernie McCoy | 16 | ||||
1954 | Larry Crockett | 11 | ||||
1955 | George Amick | 9 | ||||
USAC National Championship | ||||||
Year | Rookie of the Year winners | Driver standings | Wins | Team | ||
1956 | Jud Larson | 22 | 1 | |||
1957 | A. J. Foyt | 26 | ||||
1958 | Joe Barzda | 18 | ||||
1959 | Jim Hurtubise | 21 | 1 | |||
1960 | Parnelli Jones | 18 | ||||
1961 | Bobby Marshman | 8 | ||||
1962 | Johnny Rutherford | 25 | ||||
1963 | Jim Clark | 6 | 1 | |||
1964 | Mario Andretti | 11 | ||||
1965 | Carl Williams | 23 | ||||
1966 | Al Smith | 16 | ||||
1967 | Jim Malloy | 27 | ||||
1968 | Sonny Ates | 24 | ||||
1969 | Steve Krisiloff | 24 | ||||
1970 | Dick Simon | 10 | ||||
1971 | George Eaton | 24 | ||||
1972 | Mike Hiss | 6 | ||||
1973 | Tom Sneva | 31 | ||||
1974 | Pancho Carter | 11 | ||||
1975 | Spike Gehlhausen | 24 | ||||
1976 | Rick Mears | 16 | Art Sugai Racing | |||
1977 | Danny Ongais | 12 | 1 | Interscope Racing | ||
1978 | Tom Bagley | 11 | ||||
1979 | Howdy Holmes | 12 | AMI Racing | |||
1980 | Gordon Smiley | 18 | Patrick Racing | |||
CART Jim Trueman Rookie of the Year winners
Season | Driver | Driver standings | Wins | Team | Chassis | Engine | Tyres |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1979 | Bill Alsup | 15 | WASP Racing | Goodyear | |||
1980 | Dennis Firestone | 12 | Rhoades Competition | Penske | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1981 | Bob Lazier | 9 | Bob Fletcher Racing | Goodyear | |||
1982 | Bobby Rahal | 2 | 2 | Truesports | March 82C | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear |
1983 | Teo Fabi | 2 | 4 | Forsythe Racing | March 83C | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear |
1984 | Roberto Guerrero | 11 | Bignotti-Cotter Racing | March 84C | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1985 | Arie Luyendyk | 18 | Provimi Racing | Lola T900 | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1986 | Dominic Dobson | 30 | Leader Cards Racing | March 86C | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1987 | Fabrizio Barbazza | 12 | Arciero Racing | March 87C | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1988 | John Jones | 11 | Arciero Racing | March 88C | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1989 | Bernard Jourdain | 20 | Andale Racing | Lola | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1990 | Eddie Cheever | 9 | Chip Ganassi Racing | Penske PC-18 | Chevrolet A | Goodyear | |
1991 | Jeff Andretti | 15 | Bayside Disposal Racing | Lola | Cosworth DFX | Goodyear | |
1992 | Stefan Johansson | 14 | Bettenhausen Racing | Penske PC-20 | Chevrolet A | Goodyear | |
1993 | Nigel Mansell | Champion | 5 | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola T93/00 | Ford XB | Goodyear |
1994 | Jacques Villeneuve | 6 | 1 | Forsythe Racing | Reynard 94i | Ford XB | Goodyear |
1995 | Gil de Ferran | 14 | 1 | Jim Hall Racing | Reynard 95i | Mercedes-Benz IC108 | Goodyear |
1996 | Alex Zanardi | 3 | 3 | Chip Ganassi Racing | Reynard 96i | Honda HRH | Firestone |
1997 | Patrick Carpentier | 17 | Bettenhausen Racing | Reynard 97i | Mercedes-Benz IC108D | Goodyear | |
1998 | Tony Kanaan | 9 | Tasman Motorsports | Reynard 98i | Honda HRK | Firestone | |
1999 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Champion | 7 | Chip Ganassi Racing | Reynard 99i | Honda HRS | Firestone |
2000 | Kenny Bräck | 4 | Team Rahal | Reynard 2Ki | Ford Cosworth XF | Firestone | |
2001 | Scott Dixon | 8 | 1 | PacWest Racing | Reynard 01i | Toyota RV8F | Firestone |
2002 | Mario Dominguez | 18 | 1 | Herdez Competition | Lola B02/00 | Ford Cosworth XF | Bridgestone |
2003 | Sébastien Bourdais | 4 | 3 | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola B02/00 | Ford Cosworth XFE | Bridgestone |
2004 | A. J. Allmendinger | 6 | RuSPORT | Lola B02/00 | Ford Cosworth XFE | Bridgestone | |
2005 | Timo Glock | 8 | Rocketsports Racing | Lola B02/00 | Ford Cosworth XFE | Bridgestone | |
2006 | Will Power | 6 | Team Australia | Lola B02/00 | Ford Cosworth XFE | Bridgestone | |
2007 | Robert Doornbos | 3 | 2 | Minardi Team USA | Panoz DP01 | Cosworth XFE | Bridgestone |
IndyCar Series Rookie of the Year winners
As of 2015 IndyCar Series season The Rookie of the Year Award is presented to the top-finishing rookie in the IndyCar Series Drivers point standings. Winner also receives a $50,000 bonus.
Season | Driver | Driver standings | Wins | Team | Chassis | Engine | Tyres |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1996–97 | Jim Guthrie | 12 | 1 | Blueprint Racing | Lola T93/00 Dallara IR7 |
Menard V6 Buick V6 Oldsmobile Aurora V8 |
Firestone |
1998 | Robby Unser | 16 | Cheever Racing | G-Force GF01B Dallara IR8 |
Oldsmobile Aurora V8 | Goodyear | |
1999 | Scott Harrington | 14 | Harrington Motorsports | Dallara IR9 | Infiniti VRH35ADE V8 Oldsmobile Aurora V8 |
Firestone | |
2000 | Airton Daré | 16 | TeamXtreme | G-Force GF05 | Oldsmobile Aurora V8 | Firestone | |
2001 | Felipe Giaffone | 6 | Treadway Racing | G-Force GF05B | Oldsmobile Aurora V8 | Firestone | |
2002 | Laurent Rédon | 12 | Conquest Racing | Dallara IR-02 | Infiniti VRH35ADE V8 | Firestone | |
2003 | Dan Wheldon | 11 | Andretti Green Racing | Dallara IR-03 | Honda HI3R V8 | Firestone | |
2004 | Kosuke Matsuura | 14 | Fernández Racing | G-Force GF09B | Honda HI4R V8 | Firestone | |
2005 | Danica Patrick | 12 | Rahal Letterman Racing | Panoz GF09C | Honda HI5R V8 | Firestone | |
2006 | Marco Andretti | 7 | 1 | Andretti Green Racing | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI6R V8 | Firestone |
2007 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | 19 | Rahal Letterman Racing | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI7R V8 | Firestone | |
2008 | Hideki Mutoh | 10 | Andretti Green Racing | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI7R V8 | Firestone | |
2009 | Raphael Matos | 13 | Luczo-Dragon Racing | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI7R V8 | Firestone | |
2010 | Alex Lloyd | 16 | Dale Coyne Racing | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI7R V8 | Firestone | |
2011 | James Hinchcliffe | 12 | Newman/Haas Racing | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI7R V8 | Firestone | |
2012 | Simon Pagenaud | 5 | Sam Schmidt Motorsports | Dallara DW12 | Honda HI12TT V6t | Firestone | |
2013 | Tristan Vautier | 20 | Sam Schmidt Motorsports | Dallara DW12 | Honda HI13TT V6t | Firestone | |
2014 | Carlos Muñoz | 8 | Andretti Autosport | Dallara DW12 | Honda HI14TT V6t | Firestone | |
2015 | Gabby Chaves | 15 | Bryan Herta Autosport | Dallara DW12 | Honda HI15TT V6t | Firestone | |
2016 | Alexander Rossi | 11 | 1 | Bryan Herta Autosport | Dallara DW12 | Honda HI16TT V6t | Firestone |
Notes
- Due to sanctioning body splits in the sport of American Open Wheel racing from 1979 to 2007, several years saw two separate Rookie of the Year Award winners for separately sanctioned championship circuits.
- Although 2003 Season was Scott Dixon's first year in IndyCar and he won the championship and also Tony Kanaan who finished 4-th in Drivers Standings and Toranosuke Takagi who finished 10th in Drivers Standings, they are not considered a rookies because of earlier ChampCar experience.