"Damn it, I wanted that one really bad," said William Byron after losing out to Ross Chastain in the battle for the win. "It just sucks, man. You're so close, and you know going to Talladega you know what that is. So just sucks, but proud of the effort."
Byron leaves Kansas atop the standings with a 34-point buffer, but he was one position away from not having to sweat at all over the next two weeks. If he had won, it would have been an automatic advancement into the Round of 8. From the drop of the green flag, it appeared that Byron had one of the best cars as he won the opening stage in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
