Byron Finishes in Top-5 At Martinsville, Continues Hot Streak
A chaotic race meant a chaotic day for William Byron at Martinsville April 10-11, but he finished in a familiar spot, nabbing a fourth-place finish with nine laps led to stay in sixth in points.
The race was originally scheduled to take place on Saturday night, but rain delayed the start until after 9 p.m. Byron started in third on Saturday, moving his way up to second before getting caught on the outside and dropping to seventh by lap 33. James Davison spun on lap 38, triggering a caution and a round of pit stops and keeping Byron in seventh.
However, rain returned to the half-mile short track, putting the race on hold again. NASCAR eventually elected to call the race, setting a restart for 4 p.m. on Sunday.
The rest of stage one was uneventful for Byron. He would gain one spot to finish sixth to end the stage.
Stage two was more of a trek for Byron as he started in fifth after a round of pit stops. He struggled to get a handle on his Liberty University Chevrolet, slowly drifting back to 10th place during a 101-lap green flag run.
However, Rudy Fugle brought Byron in under a caution for four tires and fuel, and Byron used the fresh tires to his advantage. He would slowly move his way up to seventh to finish stage two.
Stage three was even more chaotic for Byron. Even though Byron took the lead for nine brief laps after some varied pit strategies, he would struggle with the handle once again, dropping him back to 10th.
With 119 laps to go, Byron made contact with the No. 99 car of Daniel Suarez, sending Suarez up against the fence. After Suarez was involved in a 15-car pileup a few laps later, he jumped out of his burning car on the front stretch, and chucked his water bottle at Byron’s car. Suarez publicly criticized Byron while talking to FOX Sports Reporter Jamie Little under the red flag.
“The (No.) 24 car put us in that position,” Suarez said, “He pushed me out of
the way.”
Byron would charge on though, pitting with 108 laps to go after the red flag. Byron used his fresh tires to improve from his 15th restart position to eighth before pitting again under caution with 48 to go.
He finally found the handle on his car, slowly moving up after the restart into the top five into fourth, where he would finish.
The NASCAR Cup Series will remain in the Commonwealth of Virginia, racing at Richmond International Raceway for the Toyota Owners 400 next Sunday at 2:30 p.m. on FOX. Richmond has been a struggle for Byron throughout his career, with his best finish only 12th way back in 2018. Byron holds an average finish of 18th there in five races.
Joshua Lipowski is a Sports Reporter. Follow him on Instagram at @j_lipowski23.