Rob Moroso

Rob Moroso

NASCAR Cup Series statistics
Best placement	30.- (1990)
Starts Victories Poles Top 10 29 - - 1
NASCAR Xfinity Series Statistics
Best placement	1st - (1989)
Starts Victories Poles Top 10 86 6th 9 42

Rob Moroso (born September 28, 1968 in Madison , Connecticut , † September 30, 1990 in Mooresville , North Carolina ) was an American NASCAR racing driver. In 1989 he was the champion and Most Popular Driver of the NASCAR Busch Grand National Series , now the Nationwide Series. He died on September 30, 1990 in a traffic accident.

NASCAR career

Busch Grand National Series

Moroso began his NASCAR career in the Busch Grand National Series , now the Nationwide Series. On September 28, 1986, his 18th birthday, he made his debut at 150 Roses Stores on Orange County Speedway . He drove in an Oldsmobile with starting number 23, with which he started from sixth place. After 56 laps he retired due to suspension problems. In the same year he contested another race on the North Carolina Speedway , which he finished in 18th place.

Although he had only participated in two races up to that point, in the 1987 season he was given a regular place in the team of his father Dick Moroso. As in the previous year, he drove an Oldsmobile. Of the 25 races he contested, he finished two in the top 5 and eight in the top 10. In the overall standings he finished 15th at the end of the season. Moroso also contested the races of the 1988 season in his father's car. On July 2, 1988, he won the Myrtle Beach 200 at the Myrtle Beach Speedway . This was his first win in the Busch Grand National Series. Another followed that same year in the All Pro 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway , now known as Lowe's Motor Speedway. With ten top 5 and 18 top 10 results, he finished second in the overall standings behind Tommy Ellis . In the 1989 season he fought for the title from the start. During the season he managed to win four races. After the penultimate race of the season he was 19 points behind Tommy Houston in second place in the overall standings. Houston had to give up early in the last race of the season, which took place on October 29th at Martinsville Speedway , with an engine failure and watched as Moroso brought his car safely to third place and thus won the championship. Moroso was the youngest champion in NASCAR history at the time; this record was only broken in 2003 by Brian Vickers . He was named Most Popular Driver at the end of the season .

Winston Cup

While he was active in the Busch Grand National Series, Moroso also contested a few races in the Winston Cup , today's Sprint Cup. He made his debut on October 9, 1988 at the Oakwood Homes 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He was driving a Chevrolet of Rick Hendrick , with whom he finished the race ranked 14th In the same year he drove another race on the North Wilkesboro Speedway in a car of his father, with which he was eliminated after 142 of the total of 400 from the race. During his championship season, Moroso drove two races in the Winston Cup, both of which he completed in his father's car. However, he retired in both after accidents.

In 1990, the Morosos ended their Busch Series engagement completely and concentrated on participating in a complete Winston Cup season. Rob drove his father Dick Moroso's Crown Petroleum- sponsored Oldsmobile. His self-declared goal for the season was to win the Rookie of the Year Award . However, his season was marked by disappointments. In the first 13 races he only brought his car to the finish line twice. The highlight of the season was finishing ninth in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway . This should remain his only top 10 result. Still, many continued to believe that Moroso was a talented driver who could do well in NASCAR's highest division. But Moroso could no longer prove this. He died on September 30, 1990 in a traffic accident near Mooresville , North Carolina . Investigations showed that Moroso was under the influence of alcohol and was responsible for the accident in which the driver of another vehicle involved also died. He was posthumously named Rookie of the Year after the season .

Web links

Driver statistics on racing-reference.info