CONCORD, N.C. -- William Byron, like many NASCAR Cup Series drivers, has a complicated relationship with Martinsville Speedway. In six Cup starts at the track, the 23-year-old driver has finished as high as second (fall 2019) at “The Half Mile of Mayhem” but also did not finish twice due to accidents.
While some incidents are completely out of Byron’s control, he’s focusing on improving his driving technique to make sure his No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE will last during the grueling race.
“We’ve had some really good short track races, but then we’ve had some issues with brakes and mechanical things,” Byron said. “We’re trying to make sure that we make all that stuff last and make it to the end of the race is really important. So, I think that’s a big emphasis for us. I feel like some of that is how your car is driving, but also just technique and making sure that I’m taking care of my stuff throughout the early part of the race so I can have something good at the end.”
Byron's luck at the Virginia track appeared to turn a corner in spring 2020. He placed eighth but felt he could have earned a top-five finish. However, after top-10 result in Stage 1 of the fall race, he was in an accident in Turn 4 with less than 60 laps left, relegating him to a 35th-place finish.
Now Byron is using his notes on his past races at the track to ensure he can take advantage of the venue as much as possible.
“It’s tricky – you have to get in the corner a certain way,” Byron explained. “Running the curb is hard and it’s tough to get drive off, too. It’s really kind of one of those standard short tracks, but I like the rhythm of it. It’s one of my favorites because it’s got good grip, but it’s a challenge. And you can pass; usually it’s not a huge issue to pass, you just have to set guys up the right way.
“Somebody mentioned how a lot of champions win at Martinsville – I think it’s just because it’s an experience place. It’s a really tough place.”
Byron placed sixth at the first short-track race of the season when the Cup Series visited the dirt track at Bristol Motor Speedway two weeks ago. The result was his fifth top-10 result in a row, including his cruising win at Homestead-Miami Speedway in February. Byron said at the end of last season he wants to be a driver who is consistent with solid finishes at all the racetracks, not just his favorites.
According to the Charlotte, North Carolina, native, that goal is going “according to plan” with his hot top-10 streak, a win under his belt and a sixth-place standing in Cup Series points.
“We started the year and things were off to a really bad start; we had some bad luck and it really forced us to hone in on just executing a clean race,” Byron said. “We did that and we won. And then, honestly from there, we’ve just tried to execute really clean races and (have tried) to get this team executing on a high level to where we can start to push some of the details, like pit road, restarts and things like that that we can start to be aggressive with.
“We put together a really good five races in a row here and I feel like we are in that category now of being able to contend every week. We just have to make the next step to lead some more laps. It’s been a couple of weeks since we’ve done that, so that’s important to us.”
Byron will have a chance to add on to his best start in the Cup Series on Saturday at Martinsville. The race will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET and be broadcast on FS1.