Ricky Rudd

In his years in the sport, Rudd has seen a lot of change, including drivers entering NASCAR's major league at a younger age. "I'll says this, that there's been no better time in the history of racing where a young guy gets a chance to sort of prove himself," said Rudd. A strong driver development program is one reason this is happening. "And by the time they get to Cup, they're pretty prepared. Years ago they didn't get a chance to see the big tracks until their first opportunity to show up in a Busch car."

He believes each class of Cup rookies will get young and more talented, but there is a challenge they all face. "Not only do they have to learn how to drive the race cars and race tracks and how do they handle the media, there's a lot of things on their shoulders."