2025 NASCAR Cup Series Ends: A Look Back

The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series regular season wrapped up recently, marking the end of an era for 16 standout drivers and several prominent teams as they direct their focus to the upcoming playoffs. It’s been an exciting 26 races in the regular season, and it’s now time to glance back and analyze the unfolding of this year’s events. In light of this, we will unveil our inaugural NASCAR award selections. Step into our reflection of the NASCAR awards chosen at the close of the regular season.

Under the ‘Best Driver’ category, we present William Byron. Byron’s driving prowess saw him clinch the championship title in the Cup Series regular season. Thus, it’s only logical to designate him as the standout NASCAR driver as we steer into the playoffs stage. Byron may not have bagged as many victories as Denny Hamlin, Shane van Gisbergen, Kyle Larson, or Christopher Bell, but he consistently outperformed all.

In all honesty, Byron’s record of victories and average final standing could have been more superior barring certain instances when he depleted his fuel supply. Hamlin, who put up an impressive performance throughout the period, came off as the first runner-up.

For the ‘Rookie of the Year’ title, we salute Shane van Gisbergen. Gisbergen was decisively crowned the NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year, leaving no contenders even close to the title. Breaking the Cup Series rookie records with victories and consistently asserting his authority on the victory lane helped cement his definitive rookie status.

In fact, Gisbergen’s continued improvements on the oval tracks and the sheer dominance with which he secured each victory underscored his unrivalled position as the top rookie. No runner-up was named in this category, indicating van Gisbergen’s unmatched performance.

The ‘Biggest Disappointment’ label fell to Tyler Reddick. Previously in the 2024 season, Reddick impressed with three wins, 12 finishes in the top-5, and 21 finishes in the top-10. Not to mention, he also sat at the fourth position for the most laps led in the Cup Series. However, this season wasn’t as productive – he didn’t register a single victory throughout the regular season.

Not only was Reddick without a win, but he also managed to achieve a mere five top-five finishes in 25 races, leading only 153 laps. The reasons for Reddick’s underperformance this year remain vague, especially when compared with Bubba Wallace, his teammate who was undeniably outstanding this summer.

In the ‘Most Improved’ player category, the honor goes to Chase Briscoe. Briscoe exhibited commendable progress in his first season with Joe Gibbs Racing. His stats from a year ago, three top-5s and nine top-10s with an average finishing position of 15.7, were vastly outmatched this season.

With 23 regular-season starts, Briscoe emerged as the leader in the Cup Series regarding poles and amplified his top-five finishes more than threefold. Adding 12 top-10s to his tally and a well-earned average finishing position, Briscoe closed the summer as one of NASCAR’s top-five drivers. Bubba Wallace was a close second in this category.

The ‘Breakout Driver’ recognition was bestowed upon Carson Hocevar. At the tender age of 22, Hocevar managed to increase his total number of laps led by fivefold from his rookie season, claimed his first-ever Cup pole, and regularly demonstrated his high-speed skills despite racing for a second-tier team. Hocevar, at his best, pushed the boundaries of performance and held his own against the leading drivers in the Cup Series.

Such impressive performances from Hocevar make his first Cup victory seem like an inevitability in the coming year. A close runner-up in this category was Shane van Gisbergen.

The ‘Biggest Surprise’ award goes to Ryan Preece. Even adjusting for the disqualification at Talladega Superspeedway which negated a top-five finish, Preece couldn’t garner enough points to gain entry to the NASCAR playoffs. But, he outpaced every other RFK Racing contestant over the regular season.

As the chances of making the playoffs intensified, Preece registered the sixth-best average finish in his last 15 regular-season encounters and narrowly missed a ticket to the playoffs following a nail-biting scenario at Daytona. Austin Dillon’s win at Richmond made him the runner-up in this category.

The ‘Best Race’ category was claimed by the race that saw Chase Elliott’s triumph in Atlanta. This race, voted the eighth-best in the Next Gen era of the Jeff Gluck good race poll, might have rated even higher had it been broadcast on another platform. A thrilling contest for the lead unfolded over the last 10 laps at the Quaker State 400, culminating in Elliott overtaking Tyler Reddick and Brad Keselowski to seize the victory.

A few seasons ago, one of the key reasons Bubba Wallace was struggling was the performance of his No. 23 team pit crew. However, after substantial investment and training, they transformed into the fastest and most reliable pit crew in NASCAR this season. The spotlight must shine on them for their critical role in Wallace’s Brickyard 400 win and his exceptional performances this summer. These efforts crowned them as the ‘Best Pit Crew’.