William Byron adopts a modest approach despite an early advantage in the Playoffs

William Byron will be competing to grab his career-first spot in the Championship Four this season.

William Byron adopts a modest approach despite an early advantage in the Playoffs

William Byron and Rudy Fugle (Via IMAGO)

William Byron has received a big head-start going into the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs this season. His five wins have awarded him a bonus of 36 points, which have taken him to the top of the standings, equal to Martin Truex Jr. However, the Hendrick Motorsports driver is not letting this early advantage get to his head, as he believes he is not safe even in the first round of the Playoffs.

While Byron did admit that the bonus has provided him with a safety net, he talked about how quickly it can go away as well. He stressed that they must perform well to keep this lead due to the sport’s highly competitive nature. Byron said that the team received positive results on the simulator as well and is focusing on one race at a time for the Playoffs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-B7UxaKPKQ&pp=ygUNd2lsbGlhbSBieXJvbg%3D%3D

 “It’s a little bit of a safety net, I guess. But it can all go away pretty quick. We have to average 30 points a race in this first round, I think, and continue to work our way toward the second round. Just take it one race a time and a three-race stretch at a time…  We found a couple of tenths in the simulator this week,” said Byron, as reported by Motorsport.com.

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Byron has never been a part of the Championship Four in his career, but he is in a very strong position this time. The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs will kick off at Darlington on Sunday, fourth September.

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William Byron reflects on his 2023 season so far

William Byron
William Byron (Credits: The SportsRush)

William Byron has had a breakthrough season in 2023. Byron has five wins this year, more than his total number of wins in his past six seasons (four). He is in the Playoffs with his HMS teammate Kyle Larson, driving the #24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. As he gears up for the post-season, Byron has reflected on his career-best season.

Byron admitted that the team did not start the season with high expectations. Having set the target of winning three races, they did not expect to be at their current position. He said that the team experienced a mid-season slump, but they pulled it together before the start of Playoffs at Watkins Glen.

“Starting the season, we didn’t expect to win five races to be honest…  As we transitioned throughout the year, the expectations got higher. There was a little slump that came with that because we started to expect to run top-three or top-five every week. It’s just not possible with this car especially… I feel like we got into a good place before the playoffs” said Byron.

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