Tyler Hughes wins 2012 Virginia Rookie of the Year award – NASCAR news
The Eastern Shore driver, Tyler Hughes, has been named 2012 Virginia Rookie of the year in Whelen All-American Series; a points championship for NASCAR sanctioned local racetracks.
“I was very happy to win that award. It's something I could put on my resume. And maybe potential sponsors will say ‘He did all that when he was that young?’” Hughes told The Baltimore Sun, while talking about what the award meant for him at such a young
age.
The award ceremony was held in Charlotte, N.C., with drivers from around 30 states attending. To Hughes’ surprise, it was his day and he walked away with a 20-pound Virginia Rookie of the Year trophy.
“I honestly thought there would be younger drivers but I was kind of taken aback by how many adults were there. And I thought about how lucky I was to receive that award at age 16,” said the Eastern Shore driver.
According to Hughes, his passion for racing came from his father, Don Hughes. The younger Hughes made racing a hobby at a childish age of 3. Spending his time on an asphalt track in a neighbour’s backyard powering a little go-kart was Hughes’ favourite amusement.
Two years later, he was racing quarter-midget cars, race cars that have been around in one form or another since before World War II. At a young age of 10, Hughes clinched seven victories while racing 600cc modified Lite Dwarf cars.
Now it is time for the 16-year-old to move from high school to college, and having shown potential signs of becoming a legendary NASCAR driver in the years to come, Hughes is looking for someone willing to fund his campaign.
“Every NASCAR driver's dream is to go professional and I would need a sponsor to do that. I need someone to put me under their wing since racing can get very expensive,” Hughes said.
Shedding light on how expensive racing could get, Hughes noted that he had to change a set of tires every week which ran around $680 with expenditures for pit passes, fuel, equipments and maintenance on top of that.
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