2020 ARCA Menards Series Bounty Rookie Challenge Winners

The ARCA Menards Series is perpetually stuffed with young driving talent, and the 2020 season was yet another example.

Of the 35 races run throughout the ARCA Menards Series platform in 2020, 24 were won by teenagers. So naturally the 2020 Bounty Rookie Challenge winners for the ARCA Menards Series, the ARCA Menards Series East and the ARCA Menards Series West are all teenagers.

AWARDS: ARCA Menards Series Virtual Championship Celebration

Below are more details on this year’s Bounty Rookies of the Year.

ARCA Menards Series Bounty Rookie of the Year: Hailie Deegan

Deegan set the standard for her rookie ARCA Menards Series season when she finished second in the opener at Daytona. The three-time West Series race winner’s career best ARCA Menards Series finish also tied the series record for best finish by a female.

Now the 19-year-old from Temecula, California, is the first female Bounty Rookie of the Year in ARCA Menards Series history.

Deegan finished 30 points ahead of Drew Dollar in the Bounty Rookie Challenge standings for the season. She finished third in the overall ARCA Menards Series points standings behind champion Bret Holmes and second-place Michael Self.

Deegan, who has a dirt racing background, matched her Daytona finish when she ran second in the season’s penultimate race at the Springfield Mile in Springfield, Illinois. It was her fourth top-five finish of the season.

Deegan ended the season with 17 top-10 finishes in 20 races.

ARCA Menards Series East Bounty Rookie of the Year: Ty Gibbs

Gibbs was the only driver who was able to challenge ARCA Menards Series East champion Sam Mayer in 2020. Mayer won five of the six East races, but the one victory Gibbs stole was more than enough to make the Charlotte, N.C., native the series’ Bounty Rookie of the Year.

The 18-year-old grandson of Joe Gibbs broke out with impressive numbers this season across all three ARCA Menards platforms — a total of seven victories, 18 top-five finishes and 20 top-10 finishes in 23 races.

As for the East Series, Gibbs clinched the Bounty Rookie Challenge by 31 points over Nick Sanchez.

Including his win at Toledo Speedway in Toledo, Ohio, in June, Gibbs ended the East season having earned top-three finishes in five of the six races on an altered schedule.

ARCA Menards Series West Bounty Rookie of the Year: Jesse Love

Love had such a healthy points lead entering the ARCA Menards Series West finale at Phoenix Raceway, he was able to coast to the championship.

So the 15-year-old from Menlo Park, California, had no trouble also winning the Bounty Rookie Challenge for the West Series in 2020.

Love’s Bill McAnally Racing teammate Gracie Trotter, who finished third in the West point standings, was the only fellow rookie who had a chance to take the award from Love late in the season. But the lead he had built throughout the year proved insurmountable.

Love won a series-high three West races in 2020, also leading the series in top-five finishes (nine), General Tire Pole Awards (four) and laps led (369) in 11 races.

His average finish of 3.9 was easily the best among drivers who ran the full schedule.