Denny Hamlin was the Raybestos Rookie of the Race in the July 23 Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway. Hamlin scored his second win of the 2006 season in the race, crossing the finish line 1.510 seconds ahead of second-place Kurt Busch. He grabbed top rookie honors for the 11th time in 20 races. Hamlin enjoys a 48-point lead (223-175) over Clint Bowyer in the Raybestos Rookie standings entering the August 6 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. A Raybestos Rookie has finished in the top-15 in all 20 races this season. Jamie McMurrays third-place finish in 2003 is the best by a Raybestos Rookie in 12 previous Brickyard 400 races. The best starting position by a Raybestos Rookie at Indianapolis is third by Casey Atwood in 2001. Johnny Benson holds the record for most laps led by a Raybestos Rookie at Indianapolis and is also the only Raybestos Rookie to lead the most laps in the race. Benson led three times for 70 laps to earn WIX Filters Lap Leader of the Race honors in the 1996 event. A Raybestos Rookie has posted multiple victories SEVEN times in NASCAR Cup history: Davey Allison (two wins in 1987), Stewart (three wins in 1999), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two wins in 2000), Kevin Harvick (two wins in 2001), Johnson (three wins in 2002), Kyle Busch (two wins in 2005), and Denny Hamlin [two wins so far in 2006)(Raybestos PR), see the full rookie report on my 2006 Rookies page.(8-3-2006)
