Byron was the first lead-lap car to make a green flag pitstop – uncharacteristic on the short track – in the middle of the final stage and when the cycle of stops was completed, he emerged as the leader for the first time in the race.
Byron soon built a big advantage and appeared set for an uneventful victory, until John Hunter Nemechek lost his right-front tyre and slammed into the Turns 3 and 4 wall with two of the scheduled 500 laps to go, which brought out a caution and sent the race into overtime.
