Danny O'Quinn Jr. (19th). Rookies A. J. Foyt IV – Released midseason from the #38 Great Clips team after team switched from Dodge to Chevrolet (Foyt IV is under contract to Dodge Motorsports and could not break the contract) Joel Kauffman – Fired midseason from the #12 SuperCuts Dodge Todd Kluever – #06 3M Ford Mark McFarland – Fired midseason from the #88 United States Navy Chevrolet Burney Lamar – Fired midseason from the #77 Dollar General Chevrolet Danny O’Quinn Jr. – #50 World Financial Group Ford Chris Wimmer Also, John Andretti was officially considered a Busch Series rookie of the year contender for 2006, even though he is a Winston/Nextel Cup veteran. ROTY favorite Lamar was released early from his ride at KHI while leading the standings. Eventually, the ROTY came down to a fight between NEXTEL Cup veteran John Andretti and former USAR Pro Cup driver Danny O'Quinn Jr. Eventually, O'Quinn Jr., despite being pulled from his ride for two races in favor of David Ragan to prepare him for his full time Cup season in 2007, still managed to hold off Andretti to win the award by only a single point. Another preseason favorite and 2005 NCTS Rookie of the Year, Tood Kluever, struggled in his transition to the Busch Series. Another USAR driver, Mark McFarland, had an up and down year and was replaced by Shane Huffman. Joel Kauffman and Chris Wimmer made bids for ROTY, but were released from their rides. A. J. Foyt IV, in his transition to stock cars, was released due to a Dodge development deal. See also 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series 2006 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series NASCAR Xfinity Series seasons