Justin Marks was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the March 7 American Commercial Lines 200 at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway.  Marks was credited with a 14th-place finish and took top rookie honors for the second time in three races this season. Marks leads Phillip McGilton by one point (30-29) in the Raybestos® Rookie standings entering the March 29 Kroger 250 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.  McGilton is tenth in the series championship standings, best of any Raybestos® Rookie.  He trails ninth-place Dennis Setzer by seven points and leads 11th-place Terry Cook by one point.  

GOOD START TO THE SEASON:  A Raybestos® Rookie has scored top-10 finishes in two of the three races this season. The 2007 Raybestos® Rookie class excelled in the Kroger 250 at Martinsville.  Aaron Fike scored a seventh-place finish while Tyler Walker claimed eighth-place.
 
DID YOU KNOW?  Only two Raybestos Rookies have scored top-five finishes in the spring race at Martinsville: Travis Kvapil (second in 2001) and Carl Edwards (fourth in 2003).
 

Top-10 finishes by Raybestos Rookies in the spring race at Martinsville:

2000:   Scott Riggs, ninth
2001:   Travis Kvapil, second   
2001:   Matt Crafton, sixth 
2001:   Ricky Hendrick, ninth
2001:   Nathan Haseleu, 10th   
2002:   Brendan Gaughan, ninth
2003:   Carl Edwards, fourth
2004:   David Reutimann, eighth
2007:   Aaron Fike, seventh
2007:   Tyler Walker, eighth

Two Raybestos® Rookies have won a pole at Martinsville in the Craftsman Truck Series (18 races): Greg Biffle (1998) and Carl Edwards (2003 fall race). 

The best finish by a Raybestos® Rookie at Martinsville Speedway is second, shared by Travis Kvapil (2001 spring race), Carl Edwards (2003 fall race) and Todd Kluever (2005 fall race). 

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE HISTORY

Willie Allen won the 2007 Raybestos® Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Allen finished 15th in the Craftsman Truck Series championship standings, best of any Raybestos Rookie.  His best finish came in the Mountain Dew 250 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway (race No.20) where he placed sixth.  Allen's official margin of victory over Tim Sauter in the final Raybestos® Rookie standings was seven points (160-153).

DID YOU KNOW?  The most recent Raybestos® Rookie to win a Craftsman Truck Series race is Carl Edwards.  Edwards captured the 2003 Federated Auto Parts 200 at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway, crossing the finish line 1.209 seconds ahead of second-place Ted Musgrave (113 races).

DID YOU KNOW?  The most recent Raybestos® Rookie to win a pole position in the Craftsman Truck Series is Erik Darnell.  Darnell captured the top starting spot for the 2006 Toyota Tundra 200 at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway (37 races).     

The most Raybestos® Rookies to win a race in a single season: THREE in 1997(Kenny Irwin, Tony Raines, and Randy Tolsma).

The most poles by a Raybestos® Rookie: FOUR (Greg Biffle in 1998 and Kurt Busch in 2000).

Kurt Busch holds the record for best championship finish (2nd), most wins (four), and most money earned ($745,632). The record for most top-fives by a Raybestos® Rookie is 13 (shared by Busch in 2000 and Carl Edwards in 2003). The record for most top-10 finishes by a Raybestos® Rookie is 19, by Ricky Hendrick in 2001.
 
Three drivers from Roush Racing have won Raybestos® Rookie of the Year while competing in the Craftsman Truck Series: Carl Edwards (2003), Greg Biffle (1998) and Kurt Busch (2000).
 
Kenny Irwin was the first Raybestos® Rookie to win a race in the Craftsman Truck Series.  Irwin captured the Florida Dodge Dealers 400K at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 16, 1997.  He took the checkered flag by .289 seconds over Mike Bliss. Irwin also holds the record for quickest win by a Raybestos® Rookie in the Craftsman Truck Series, scoring his first career win at Homestead in just his third career start.