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      RAPTOR High Heat scheme back on William Byron’s No. 24 for Pocono

      © 2024 Nigel Kinrade / NKP

      The Great American Getaway 400 Presented By VisitPA.com
      Pocono Raceway
      Sunday, July 14 | 2:30 p.m. ET

      24 IN ‘24: Byron’s 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season started off hot with three wins (tied for the most) including at the DAYTONA 500. The Charlotte, North Carolina, native has six top-five finishes (tied for the sixth-most) and 11 top 10s (tied for the second-most). He has the third-best average starting position (10.05) and average finish (13.25). After 20 races, he is now sixth in the 2024 regular season standings and has 16 playoff points.

      PREVIEWING POCONO: In his 10 Cup Series starts at Pocono, Byron has two pole awards (June 2019 and July 2023), as well as two top-five finishes and five top 10s with 130 laps led. He holds a 9.9 average finish at the Long Pond, Pennsylvania, track, which is one of six venues where Byron has led more than 100 laps and not won.

      PAST POCONO WINNER: Byron isn’t a stranger to victory lane at the “Tricky Triangle.” After starting from the pole position in 2016, he dominated the NASCAR Truck Series race there, leading 44 out of 60 laps before capturing the checkered flag.

      TRICKY TRICKY TRICKY: Crew chief Rudy Fugle has four Cup Series starts at Pocono Raceway. His best showing with Byron and the No. 24 team came in 2021 when the group finished third after starting second in the first race of a doubleheader. After that initial event, Fugle scored back-to-back 12th-place finishes and a 14th at the Cup level. The Livonia, New York, native has had more success at the 2.5-mile track, though. In seven Truck Series starts, Fugle has visited victory lane there two times, going back-to-back with Byron in 2016 and Christopher Bell in 2017. His truck drivers racked up two pole awards, four top-five finishes, five top 10s and 71 laps led at Pocono.

      DOUBLE DUTY: Byron is pulling double duty at Pocono Raceway this weekend. In addition to Sunday’s Cup Series race, he’ll drive the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports in the NASCAR Xfinity Series on Saturday afternoon. It will mark the third race for Byron in the No. 17 Chevy in 2024.

      HEAT ADVISORY: At Pocono Raceway, Byron will sport the special No. 24 Raptor High Heat Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 paint scheme once again. RAPTOR® is a durable protective coating from Axalta that is designed to tolerate the toughest climatic conditions and can be applied to a wide range of items, including truck beds, lawnmowers, outdoor furniture and more. With 16 pre-mixed colors available, it’s easy to personalize anything you want to protect. RAPTOR® is available at local paint distributors, auto parts stores and online retailers.

      BYRON TALKS POCONO SUCCESS: “Pocono has always been a strong track for me and I don’t know why. I have just always had a good feel for it and understood the dynamics of it. I think that helps when you don’t have to worry about making a lot of speed, you can just focus on what your car needs to do well. I think that’s always an advantage. There is just certain places we go that I have the feel right away that I want and we can just build and go from there. Pocono is definitely one of them.”

      FUGLE ON TRICKY TRIANGLE: “I love Pocono and how unique it is. The turns are all different. Turn one comes after that long straightaway and you’re hauling the mail getting into that corner. There’s a large bump right where you want to brake and lift. That makes it hard for you to set the car and make it do what you want it to. It’s a pretty wide turn and usually your car gets tight there, so it makes it hard to turn and then not be too free in the other corners. After the track was repaved a few years ago, the turn two tunnel is starting to get worn out again, which makes it really treacherous. Meanwhile turn three is the flattest and leads back into the long straightaway. You have to not be free getting into that corner and get off really, really well. Traditionally you have to be really good in turn three. It will be difficult but that’s why I love that place.”

      © 2024 Nigel Kinrade / NKP

      HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS

      POCONO RECORD: Hendrick Motorsports has a track record 19 NASCAR Cup Series wins at Pocono Raceway, which is two more than next-best Joe Gibbs Racing and 10 more than Team Penske. At the 2.5-mile “Tricky Triangle,” Hendrick Motorsports also holds the all-time best marks for pole positions (14), top-five finishes (76), top 10 finishes (137) and laps led (3,456).

      PERFECT 10: The all-time record for the most different drivers (nine) to win for one team at a single track is held by Hendrick Motorsports. In fact, the organization has sent nine drivers to victory lane at four different venues: Pocono Raceway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Martinsville Speedway and Phoenix Raceway. If William Byron or Kyle Larson finish first this weekend at Pocono, Hendrick Motorsports will become the first team in Cup Series history to win with 10 different drivers at one track.

      A GOOD CLIP: Over the last 32 Cup events, Hendrick Motorsports has not gone more than three races without logging a victory. In that span, the team leads the series in wins (12), top-five finishes (39) and top 10s (66). It has placed at least one driver in the top 10 in 31 of the 32 races.

      © 2024 Nigel Kinrade / NKP

      LOOKING FOR NINE: With Alex Bowman’s performance Sunday at the Chicago Street Race, Hendrick Motorsports has a Cup Series-leading eight wins in 2024. All four of the team’s drivers have contributed to the total: William Byron (three), Kyle Larson (three), Chase Elliott (one) and Bowman (one). The 2024 season is tied for Hendrick Motorsports’ second-best win total through 20 races, matching 1997, 1998, 2004 and 2009. In 2007 and 2021, it won 10 of the first 20 Cup Series events.

      WE’RE TRACKING: Chicago was the 32nd track where Hendrick Motorsports has won at least one Cup Series race. WWT Raceway (introduced in 2022) and Iowa Speedway (introduced in 2024) are the only active tracks where the team has not gone to victory lane.

      BIG ANNIVERSARY: In 2024, Hendrick Motorsports is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The team holds the all-time NASCAR Cup Series records in every major statistical category, including championships (14), wins (309), pole positions (252) and laps led (80,940). This season, it leads all Cup organizations with eight points-paying victories through 20 races.

      Via Hendrick Motorsports