CONCORD, N.C. – Late last season, Jeff Gordon sat down with the driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, William Byron.
As part of Axalta’s series “Around the Track,” the NASCAR Hall of Famer chatted with Byron about a variety of topics in the two-part video segment.
Among the subjects covered was iRacing, which Byron utilized early in his racing career to help launch him behind the wheel of actual race cars.
“I was having some good success – I was winning a lot of races in that,” Byron explained. “So, honestly, that’s what gave me the confidence to say, ‘OK, maybe I can go out in the real world and get involved in a driving career.’”
They discussed Byron’s rapid rise through the NASCAR ranks and the unique challenges the NASCAR Cup Series presents that set it apart from other series.
In addition, they chatted about what was then the recent news that seven-time Cup Series champion crew chief Chad Knaus would join the No. 24 team in 2019.
Byron smiled as he recalled the countless times he had heard Knaus through a headset when he was just a Jimmie Johnson fan listening to the radio chatter during races.
Check out the first part of Gordon’s interview with Byron at the top of the story, and part two can be found below.