A battered car forces William Byron into a backup for his Daytona 500 three-peat bid

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — William Byron will try to drive his way into NASCAR history Sunday when he attempts to become the first winner of three consecutive Daytona 500s.

He’ll have to do it in a backup Chevrolet after his preferred No. 24 was damaged in a qualifying race at Daytona International Speedway.

No big deal, though: Byron won his first Daytona 500 in 2024 in a Hendrick Motorsports backup car.

“We’ve won this race with a backup car, so I’m not super worried on that aspect,” Byron said. “But it does suck that you put a lot of work into the primary and you don’t get to race it.”

He will start 39th in the 41-car field in NASCAR’s season opener but isn’t concerned about being in the back of the pack. Byron was hardly dominant in winning the last two Daytona 500s — he led a total combined 14 laps in both victories — and his success has been rooted in being in the right place at the right time.

No driver in 67 previous Daytona 500s has won “The Great American Race” three years in a row. Richard Petty in 1975, Cale Yarborough in 1985, Sterling Marlin in 1996 and Denny Hamlin in 2021 all came up short.

“It’s hard. You’re going to need things to fall your way,” Hamlin said of Byron’s chances. “In 2021, I legit thought we were going to get (it). We led the most laps in that race, was really fast, but didn’t work out on the last pit sequence.

“There’s an element of fortune there that has to fall your way. Last year, he was fortunate on the last lap there, but if you put yourself in the top eight you can get fortunate at times. He puts himself in the top eight, which is what matters.”

Byron came from nowhere last year — he was ninth at the start of the final lap of overtime — when a monstrous wreck in front of him allowed Byron to squeeze through and snag the win after leading all of 10 laps the entire day.

He led only four laps in 2024 — and dropped as low as 34th during the race — but again was in position to pounce when it mattered. He navigated a last-lap scramble to take the lead right before a caution flag froze the field to win under yellow.

Luck? Maybe. But it takes skill to be able to capitalize when the opportunity arises.

“It just feels like I’ve been, at this track in particular, able to have some things go my way and also make good decisions in those moments that I had opportunities,” Byron said. “It’s a mix of being in the right place and then having those chances to make good decisions.”

His two-year run is a remarkable turnaround for Byron, who has only finished half of his 16 career starts at Daytona, crashing out eight times.

“I feel like for a while it was a joke; I couldn’t finish a race here,” Byron said. “My first six years, I couldn’t finish the race, but I was always in the mix. I think it’s kind of finally tipped the other way.”

Byron has five career victories at drafting tracks — two at Atlanta and three at Daytona (he won the summer race in 2020). But he thinks his ability to master the draft and navigate through traffic turned in his favor at Talladega, where he has five top-five finishes.

“I feel like we’ve had some things go our way, and then we’ve been good at the speedways. Really, it started at Talladega. I think we were better at Talladega for a while,” Byron said. “We weren’t finishing at Daytona, and once we figured out a way to finish the races at Daytona, it seemed like it started to go the other way.

“You just try to do the best job you can, learning the little nuances of the draft. I don’t think I’m the best at drafting at the moment. I think there’s still more to learn.”

Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick, winner of a NASCAR-record 20 Daytona 500s, doesn’t believe Byron’s success at Daytona has been tied solely to luck. He noted that Byron has raced for the NASCAR championship the last three years and has racked up 16 career victories in the No. 24 Chevrolet.

“I don’t know if you can really luck into it. You’ve got to put yourself in position to do it,” Hendrick said. “William is probably underestimated as a plate racer; he’s one of the best out there. If you watch his way through traffic and the success he’s had, not just because he’s won the two Daytona’s back-to-back, because he’s been up there, he’s just getting more mature — not mature — more seasoned.”

Busch tries to end drought

Kyle Busch starts on the pole for the first time in his 21 attempts to win the Daytona 500, and at 0 for 20, his drought is the longest among active drivers in the field.

Even worse, Busch takes a 93-race losing streak into Sunday that dates to 2023, his first season driving for Richard Childress Racing. It’s a frustrating drought for Busch, a two-time NASCAR champion with 63 career Cup wins.

His 10-year-old son, Brexton, a budding racer, watched his father win the pole from the family motorhome in the infield and fell back onto a couch in anxiousness after watching his dad’s qualifying run. Busch said he badly wants to win for his family.

“It’s been a rough stretch. It’s no secret, right? Seeing my son and his passion that he has, he really, really is probably my biggest cheerleader,” Busch said. “He wants to see me run well. He wants to see me win races. He wants to celebrate in victory lane like he sees other drivers’ kids being able to do. So there’s nothing more that drives me every single weekend than seeing him see me, be proud of me.”

The pole-winning run comes as RCR tries to return to its championship-contending form, which has been spotty in the 25 years since Dale Earnhardt was killed in a last-lap crash at the Daytona 500. Earnhardt won six championships and one Daytona 500 driving for Childress.

No driver has ever won the race for the first time in more than 20 attempts — the number it took the Earnhardt to win it in 1998.

“It’s a box we’ve got to check,” said Busch, who finished second to then-teammate Hamlin in 2019. “This is an opportunity to be able to do that. I’ve come down here a lot of years. I think I finished in about every position possible. It would be nice to (open) 2026 with a victory here in the Daytona 500.”

Hamlin goes for No. 4

Hamlin missed his shot to win three straight Daytona 500s but still has records to chase.

Another victory would be his fourth and tie him with Yarborough for second-most all-time victories in NASCAR’s biggest race. Only seven-time winner Richard Petty, also a seven-time NASCAR champion, has more.

“Every win that you get here puts you in a certain list,” Hamlin said. “The list is so small at that four number, it certainly was on my mind on the last lap last year when we were leading, that we are going to get another one. I feel as though the opportunity will be there, and hopefully we can put ourselves in position to move ourselves up that Daytona 500 winners board.”

Keselowski races hurt

Brad Keselowski is 0 for 16 in the Daytona 500 and doesn’t have great odds Sunday because of a fall he took while on a family ski trip in December.

Keselowski slipped on ice and broke his right leg, and the injury caused him to miss last week’s preseason exhibition race. He arrived in Daytona using a cane to walk as he’s hurried his recovery time to ensure he wouldn’t miss any points-paying races.

“When I’m in the car, I know I’ve got an injury, don’t get me wrong, but I feel the best in the car,” he said. “The seat is molded to me really well and you get a little adrenaline flowing, so I felt pretty good.”

He’s raced hurt before: Keselowski broke his ankle in a 2011 crash but raced to a victory at Pocono a few days later. He said the injuries are extremely different.

“This is way more serious. When I broke my ankle that sucked. Don’t get me wrong, it was very painful, but in a couple weeks, I was fairly mobile,” he said. “This is a much more significant injury, unfortunately. It’s hard to explain to people that have never broken their femur before what it’s like.

“A normal broken leg is eight to 12 weeks. This is more like six months, so it’s just totally different.”

Odds and ends

Joey Logano and Chase Elliott won their qualifying races earlier in the week to emerge as strong contenders. … Dale Jarrett is the last driver to win from the pole in 2000. … Jimmie Johnson and rookie Connor Zilisch start side-by-side in 31st and 32nd as row 16 pairs the oldest and youngest drivers in the field. Johnson is 50 and Zilisch is 19. … Logano and his Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney are the betting favorites at plus-1200.

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