By Sarah Handy, Staff Writer
HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Daniel Hemric wrapped up his 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rookie campaign by finishing 12th in Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, as well as clinching the Rookie of the Year award.
Hemric entered the season-finale at Homestead with a 10-point lead on JTG-Daugherty Racing’s, Ryan Preece in the ROTY standings. With stage finishes of 14th, 13th and crossing the finish line in 12th in his No. 8 myblu Chevrolet it was enough to secure the award in Hemric’s honor.
“Yeah, it’s pretty special to say the least. I wish we were able to win Rookie of the Year and have a couple more solid finishes throughout the year than what we had, but about five or six years ago, myself and Ryan Preece somehow ended up tied with four or five races to go, so we knew we had to buckle down. And really proud of this group for doing that.”
Hemric’s 2019 rookie season wasn’t filled with stellar finishes, frankly most of it was quite rocky. Hemric went winless, but the 28-year old managed to his earn his first Cup Series pole at Kansas this fall. In addition, Hemric earned one top-five finish at Talladega Superspeedway earlier in the season, and a solid seventh-place result at Pocono Raceway in July.
Hemric’s last three events this season including tonight’s finale have been consistent with finishes of 16th, 21st and 12th, something Hemric recognized.
“For the last three weeks, we were able to string three decent races together, tonight being one of our best of the year.” said Hemric.
“Just proud of those guys and the heart they continue to fight with. And a lot of really important people in our sport have been able to take these honors home, so I’m going to take pride in the Rookie of the Year title and look forward to the next chapter.”
It was announced in September that Richard Childress Racing would part ways with Hemric following the 2019 Cup season. Ultimately, the organization decided to promote Tyler Reddick from the NASCAR Xfinity Series next season, leaving Hemric on the outside looking in.
Following that September announcement, Hemric tweeted out to his followers on Twitter, saying the following.
Read More: Daniel Hemric balancing phone calls for 2020 opportunities https://kickinthetires.net/daniel-hemric-balancing-phone-calls-for-2020-opportunities/
However, with all that said, the 2019 Rookie of the Year in the Cup Series won’t be without a ride in 2020. While, it’s not full-time it was announced last week that Hemric would join JR Motorsports in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for 21 of the 33 events on the schedule.
In 66 previous starts in NASCAR Xfinity Series competition, Hemric has 23 top-five, 39 top-ten finishes and five pole awards. The Kannapolis, North Carolina native stated his excitement on Sunday evening regarding his move to JR Motorsports next season.
“I’m really pumped up, starting right now,” said Hemric.