The driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet is making his second consecutive appearance in the Championship 4 — but he'd rather not repeat his 2023 performance.
Last year, William Byron earned pole position for the title-decider but fell behind rivals Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney as the race progressed.
His entry into this year's finale is very different from the other three drivers, partly because he earned his way in on points — partly because he hasn't won since April.
Indeed, for 27 minutes after the previous race in Martinsville, he was actually out of the Championship 4.
Then, Byron stood stoically on pit road, waiting for a ruling to come down from NASCAR. Eventually, they deemed Christopher Bell's accidental wall-ride an illegal safety violation, paving the way for Byron's re-entry into the final four.
"It was excruciating," said Byron of the wait. "I felt like it was so long. I was honestly numb to whatever was going to happen. I was honestly just preparing for not being in, then thinking about I felt like we did all we could do. It is what it is at this point. It was a lot of waiting. I felt like the longer I waited, in some ways, that it wasn't going to work out. But yeah, it did."
Onward to Phoenix
When it was announced that he would have a shot at the championship, the celebrations were muted and Byron appeared subdued. That doesn't mean he's going to let the curious journey to Phoenix impact how he approaches this critical race on Sunday.
"I haven't ever felt as bonded to my team as I am now," said Byron. "We had a meeting on Sunday night about it. I feel like we've turned the page really, really quickly. For me personally, I've blocked out a ton of the noise. I haven't looked at social media. I don't really care. I'm just focused on trying to get the 24 car as fast as I can.
"I think past experiences have probably helped fuel that where I've been through enough BS in my Cup career where I kind of know what to focus on and what to block out."
"No comment" on Martinsville penalties
Despite his decision to ignore it, the off-track noise hasn't quieted down. On Tuesday, NASCAR penalized three teams for alleged race manipulation including the two Chevrolet drivers that rode side-by-side behind Byron in the closing laps. This week, an appeal by Trackhouse was rejected, with the panel saying it had to be done to "protect the integrity of the sport."
Byron, the only driver related to all of the controversy that wasn't directly implicated in some way, had little to say about what happened or the penalties that followed.
"I was just focused on what I could do," said Byron when asked about Ross Chastain and Austin Dillon's actions in the closing laps. "I was driving as hard as I could. I was trying to block, just drive as hard as I could. I don't really know. I wasn't in their cars. But yeah, that was my goal, was just trying to do that."
He was also asked if he agreed with the penalties but again, it wasn't a subject Byron was keen to talk about.
"I mean, I have no comment. I'm just focused on the 24. Yeah, I mean, I just want to do a great job for my team. I feel honestly like on Sunday night, this is a huge opportunity for us to go out here and win this championship. That's all I'm focused on."
A focused Byron will certainly have a lot of pressure on him this weekend as the only driver for Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet in the finale. He will also be piloting the iconic No. 24, which hasn't won a Cup title since Jeff Gordon (who now serves as HMS' vice chairman) did it in 2001.
