Entering the final race weekend of the NASCAR Cup Series Round of 8, William Byron and the No. 24 team showed speed from the start of Saturday’s practice session and followed it up with a third-place qualifying effort. When the field went green on Sunday for the 500-lap event, Byron maintained third until lap 57 when he made the pass for the second position. He continued to run up front as the opening stage went on until the caution came out on lap 78. Under the yellow, crew chief Rudy Fugle made the call for his driver to pit for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment for a No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 that was a bit tight in traffic. Restarting on the front row with 45 laps to go in the stage, Byron maintained second, picking up crucial stage points at the end of stage one. Lacking grip during the last run, Byron came down pit road under the stage break for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment.
The Charlotte, North Carolina, native once again lined up on the front row, this time for the start of stage two, but quickly took over the lead. With a couple quick cautions back-to-back, Byron continued to pace the field until the yellow flag came out on lap 184. Fugle called his driver down pit road for four tires and fuel. However, with some cars electing not to pit under the caution, Byron lined up 12th for the restart on lap 191. Byron methodically went on to pick up positions, reaching ninth by lap 202. He didn’t stop there, racing his way to fifth as the stage continued to go green. Once again snagging critical stage points, Byron ultimately finished stage two in fifth but was still lacking grip. Under the stage break, Fugle made the call for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment.
Lining up in the third position for the start of the final stage, Byron wasted no time taking over the runner-up position as the field went back green. The 26-year-old driver continued to run in the leader’s tracks as the laps wound down. He ultimately slipped back to third as the run went on. However, on lap 373, Fugle called the No. 24 Chevy down pit road under green for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. When the green-flag pit sequence had fully cycled through, Byron was scored in the second position with 117 laps to go. He began quickly reeling the leader in, and was within striking distance just as the caution came out on lap 398. Electing to stay out under the caution, Byron re-took the lead. However, with the yellow flag being displayed almost immediately after the green, Byron was relinquished back to second with another restart coming. The driver of the No. 24 initially took second but slipped back to third with 60 laps to go. Byron continued to maintain that position before dropping to fourth with 25 laps to go. Trying his best to fight off those on fresher tires, Byron battled it out to ultimately cross the finish line with a sixth-place finish at Martinsville Speedway – locking himself into the Championship 4 for the second time in his Cup Series career.
Chase Elliott led his Hendrick Motorsports teammates to the finish line Sunday evening at Martinsville Speedway in the second position with Kyle Larson close behind in third. Byron held on to secure a sixth-place result, while Alex Bowman secured a 13th-place finish.
What are your emotions here at the end of this race?
William Byron: “Yeah, I’ve never been a part of anything like this, so I don’t really know how to feel. I hate it for everyone involved, but I’m happy for this No. 24 Liberty University Chevy team. I’m happy for us moving on, and we’ll go on and focus on Phoenix (Raceway).”
I know your mind is on Martinsville here, but from a broader perspective, what’s your thoughts, expectations, optimism heading to Phoenix?
Byron: “I have not gotten there yet (laughs). I’ll think about this one here at Martinsville with my team. We had a lot of adversity through the second half of the race there. Yeah, I mean we know what the rules are, right? So it is what it is. I wouldn’t say I’m happy, but I’m excited to race for a championship, that’s for sure.”