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Byron Breaks into Championship 4 after Martinsville Must-Win

Byron Breaks into Championship 4 after Martinsville Must-Win
Photo Credit to Peter Stratta/TSJSports

NASCAR

Byron Brings Martinsville Mastery, Larson Rounds out Championship 4

RIDGEWAY, Va. – Under the incredible duress of must-win Playoff pressure, William Byron was almost perfect at Martinsville. The Hendrick No. 24 Chevrolet was in the wind for over 300 laps of the Xfinity 500, quickly establishing themselves as the team to beat. Set back to start the final Stage, Byron performed a bump and run on Ryan Blaney to seal his Playoff fate. Thanks to Byron winning, Hendrick Motorsports gets two cars in the Championship 4 along with Kyle Larson. Next week will prove to be a heavyweight slugfest between the Hendrick duo and Joe Gibbs Racing.

From the pole, William Byron looked spectacular across Martinsville’s first half. The 24 swept both stages, leading all but five laps in the process. Under a win-or-go-home Playoff scenario, Byron looked unbeatable early on. Ryan Blaney did rally early, however, starting 31st and getting to seventh by the first stage break.

Thanks to short-pitting Stage 2, Ryan Blaney cycled to the lead for the start of Stage 3. The Penske No. 12 Ford, who won this race the past two years, soon drove off from the pack. Even after Byron methodically drove back up to second, the 24 could not find his way by Blaney’s bumper. This did not change until Byron bumped Blaney in turn one just shy of 45 laps to go.

Even with one more restart pinning Blaney on his outside, Byron was not to be denied a nearly flawless victory under the greatest possible stress. Byron’s third Martinsville triumph delivers himself and teammate Kyle Larson into the Championship 4.

“Damn, I got a lot to say,” Byron said. “Things have a way of working out. God really tests your resilience a lot of times. We’ve been tested. Just unbelievable. I’m out of breath. Thank you fans for coming out. Badass crowd. I watched my first NASCAR race up there just before start/finish line. Man, I am just so thankful, excited to see my family, just celebrate this one. We obviously go to Phoenix. Just go try to kick ass there.”

“We just worked so hard, all these guys work so hard. You put everything into Sundays. Sometimes you don’t get anything in return. That’s been the last couple weeks. Honestly, throughout the year, had some close calls. But yeah, sometimes life is that way. You just got to keep being resilient. We were. Just feels damn good.”

Also facing his own must-win scenario, Chase Elliott recovered from a lap down to be third at the checkers just behind Byron and Blaney. Ross Chastain tied his best Martinsville result of fourth, just ahead of final Championship 4 transfer Kyle Larson. Larson ultimately got the upper hand by seven points over seventh-place finisher Christopher Bell. Hear from these drivers below.

Byron, Larson, Denny Hamlin, and Chase Briscoe are the final four suitors in the hunt for the 2025 Bill France Cup. The all-important title finale from Phoenix Raceway will see one of these hopefuls crowned Cup Series champion. The desert green flag flies Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Written by Peter Stratta

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Photo Credit to Peter Stratta/TSJSports

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