William Byron wins Cook Out 400 at Martinsville for Hendrick's 40th Anniversary
The first one to pit road on the final green flag run, William Byron and crew chief Rudy Fugle took this win from more dominant drivers today. This is his third win in the NASCAR Cup Series this season.
Not only did William Byron win for the 40th anniversary of Hendrick Motorsports at Martinsville, where it all truly began, he led his teammates to a 1-2-3 finish. No team has ever accomplished that at Martinsville before.
Rick Hendrick was not at the race today due to recent knee surgery. I bet he tried putting that new knee to use jumping up and down for this win from Byron. Started P18, finished P1. Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson finished behind him on the overtime restart.
13 career wins for William Byron, third of the season. He is the championship favorite right now. With Rudy Fugle, he is a threat no matter where he starts.
Jeff Gordon was in attendance and proud of the No. 24 driver. What a day for Hendrick Motorsports.
Kyle Larson leads all 80 laps in Stage 1
From the pole position, Kyle Larson was able to lead all 80 laps to open up the Cook Out 400. The top three cars to start the race, Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Chase Elliott stayed in those positions the entire first stage. 11 cars would go a lap down.
The big story from that first stage, William Byron advanced 10 positions. On the long green flag run, Byron was able to pass cars and moved into the top-10 after starting P18. The Hendrick cars are fast and they are trying to win for the 40th anniversary of HMS.
Again, not much happened here. Chase Briscoe looked great early. Rubber was laid into the track, helping to create more grooves on the track.
Going into the pit stops after the stage, Kyle Larson beat Bubba Wallace off pit road. Joey Logano gained five spots on pit road to take the lead into Stage 2. He took two tires to Larson and Wallace’s four.
Track position king in Stage 2 until late
Coming off those pit stops, Joey Logano proved that track position was king. He took just two tires and was able to pull away from the other leaders who had taken four. It was a conveyor belt throughout the field and not much going on.
If it hadn’t been for Kyle Larson slipping on the Stage 2 restart, this stage would have been without incident. A debris caution during the stage did create a little bit of a wrinkle. However, that didn’t matter much when everyone knew they only need track position.
NASCAR brings a tire specific to Martinsville. This tire is not run at any other track. Even though it is designed to wear down quicker, it has not burned up how they thought it would. So, tires have not been a factor.
Late in the stage, Denny Hamlin found a groove on the second lane, much to the displeasure of the crowd. Once he found that, he gained ground on Logano. When Austin Dillon refused to get lapped again, it created an opportunity for Hamlin to pass Logano with 11 laps to go. Hamlin went on to win Stage 2 as Logano was passed by mutiple cars.
William Byron uses late pit strategy to win at Martinsville
It was Denny Hamlin’s race to lose. He was leading the race and it felt like he would be on his way to his second win in a row. It all came down to green flag pit stops. Hamlin’s pit crew was slow on his stop. Not only were they slow, William Byron undercut everyone in the top-5.
Byron went early to pit road. By the time Hamlin had gone to pit, Byron was rolling and came out even with the 11 as it came off pit road. Door to door, Byron’s tires had some heat in them and Hamlin’s were relatively cold. So, the 24 pulled off.
Once the cycle played out, William Byron adopted the lead. He was well on his way to the win in regulation and just before the white flag, John Hunter Nemechek slammed into the wall. A short clean-up later and the field lined up for a Green-White-Checkered restart.
No one jumped the restart this week. Hamlin pit and was lost in the back of the top-10. Byron stayed out with his teammates to keep track position. It paid off. Chase Elliott gave him a little contact, but the 24 was quicker off the launch.
There would be just one restart to end this race. William Byron picks up a big win for this season and historically for Hendrick Motorsports, and establishes himself as the top driver in the NASCAR Cup Series.