NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

In one of the closest races in recent history, Top Fuel driver and motorsports legend Tony Stewart was named the 2024 NHRA Rookie of the Year in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.

Stewart was awarded NHRA Rookie of the Year honors Monday at the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Awards Ceremony at the Pechanga Resort Casino. He was part of a standout field and a hotly contested race that included Brandon Foster, Richard Gadson, Derrick Reese, Jasmine Salinas, Sienna Wildgust, Daniel Wilkerson, and Ida Zetterstrom.

“It’s a big honor to win this award this season,” Stewart said. “There are some great drivers in the NHRA, and it’s one of the most diverse forms of motorsports I’ve been a part of. I’ve had a really good time working with the series this season to promote and continue to grow the sport.”

Making his Top Fuel debut in 2024, Stewart advanced to a pair of final rounds, four semifinals, a berth in the Countdown to the Championship, and a ninth-place finish in Top Fuel points. Stewart took over driving duties for his wife, Top Fuel standout Leah Pruett, this year as the couple focused on starting a family.

Pruett gave birth to the couple’s first child, Dominic James Stewart, early Sunday morning, as Stewart then traveled back to Pomona to compete at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals that same day. He advanced to the semifinals to close out the NHRA season, one that also included a career-best run of 3.688 seconds at 334.73 mph in his 11,000-horsepower dragster.

Stewart is one of motorsports’ most accomplished stars, winning championships in both NASCAR and IndyCar. He formed the two-car Tony Stewart Racing NHRA team in 2022 and raced in the Top Alcohol Dragster ranks in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Sportsman ranks before moving to Top Fuel in 2024.

“It was an honor to be part of this group this year,” said Stewart, a NASCAR Hall of Famer. “The two main coaches I had were Matt Hagan and my wife, Leah. Thank you, Leah, for giving me this opportunity, and I want to thank everyone at NHRA. It’s been a blast this year.”

Pro Stock Motorcycle rising star Richard Gadson finished third in points in the two-wheeled category, advancing to a trio of final rounds and four semifinals. Gadson also won a Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge race.

Salinas and Zetterstrom both made impressive Top Fuel debuts during the 2024 season, showing their potential to become major stars in the sport. Salinas, who took over driving for her father, Mike, had three round-wins, dipping into the 3.60s for the first time at the finale in Pomona. Zetterstrom, the 2023 European Top Fuel world champion, made her NHRA debut in Brainerd, competing in the last eight races of 2024 and picking up three round-wins as well.

Wilkerson took over for his father and longtime standout, Tim Wilkerson, in the Funny Car ranks, advancing to the final round at the Charlotte four-wide race. He finished seventh in points and also advanced to three semifinals.

Pro Stock drivers Foster, Reese, and Wildgust also took to the track in the very competitive class. 

Last season, Chase Van Sant was named the 2023 NHRA Rookie of the Year. Other recent winners include Pro Stock’s Camrie Caruso in 2022 and Dallas Glenn in 2021, Top Fuel’s Justin Ashley in 2020, and Austin Prock in 2019. Prock won his first world championship in Funny Car in 2024.

The NHRA Rookie of the Year award recognizes the top rookie competitor who also represents the future of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series. The nation’s leading auto racing journalists select the winner through a voting system based on the following criteria: number of events competed in, performance on and off the racetrack, participation in NHRA promotions, and relationships with fans, sponsors, and media.