William Byron wins back to back races for the first time in his career and erases any doubt that he will be in the NASCAR playoffs in 2023. For the second straight weekend, Byron’s pit crew put him in a position to win late in the race and the young driver capitalized on a green-white-checker finish.
WILLIAM BYRON DOMINANT EARLY
The beginning of the race looked to be a continuation of last week as Byron grabbed an early lead and dominated the first stage of the race. But during the yellow flag pit stops, teammate Kyle Larson was able to get the lead. Larson and Byron clearly had similar car setups which made it almost impossible for Byron to pass. For all of stage two and the majority of stage three, Byron was content running in the top five but just not looking as good as he did in the first stage of the race.
LATE RACE CAUTION HELPS WILLIAM BYRON
Help came with ten laps to go in the form of a late race caution. Kevin Harvick found a great setup for long green flag runs and managed to pass Larson for the lead. But, with the caution out, everyone pitted and both Larson and Byron took two tires while Harvick took four, putting the Hendrick cars back out front. Larson, Bryon and Ryan Blaney would battle for the lead until another caution led to overtime and a green-white-checker-finish.
TYLER REDDICK PUSHES WILLIAM BYRON TO VICTORY
During the restart, the trio who had taken two tires were battling three wide for the lead. Fourth place Tyler Reddick, who had taken four tires, chose the line behind Byron and literally pushed the 24 car to the lead and managed to pass Larson himself for the third place finish. Once Byron was back out front he pulled away just enough to cross the finish line first and win his sixth career race. One win usually locks drivers in the playoffs, but two wins guarantees it, barring injury. Byron will be racing for the championship in the final ten races of the season.
TOP 10 FINISHERS
- William Byron
- Ryan Blaney
- Tyler Reddick
- Kyle Larson
- Kevin Harvick
- Christopher Bell
- Chase Briscoe
- Kyle Busch
- Alex Bowman
- Josh Berry
TOP 10 POINTS
- Alex Bowman
- Kevin Harvick
- Ross Chastain
- William Byron
- Kyle Larson
- Christopher Bell
- Denny Hamlin
- Ryan Blaney
- Kyle Busch
- Martin Truex Jr.
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
There’s a new winner in the NASCAR Xfinity series. 18-year-old Sammy Smith took the checkered flag at Phoenix holding off teammate Ryan Truex and becoming the youngest winner in series history. Smith led the final 52 laps of the race in just his 13th career start to clinch the win. Besides holding off his teammate, he also held off the winningest driver in Xfinity Series history Kyle Busch on two late restarts before Busch dropped back further in the top ten.
Smith is still a high school senior and is taking classes online so he can race fulltime for Joe Gibbs racing. The 18-year-old breaks the record set by his car owner’s grandson, Ty Gibbs, who was also 18 when he won the 2022 series championship.
TOP 10 FINISHERS
- Sammy Smith
- Ryan Truex
- Sheldon Creed
- Riley Herbst
- Chandler Smith
- John Hunter Nemechek
- Austin Hill
- Josh Berry
- Kyle Busch
- Daniel Hemric
TOP 10 POINTS
- Austin Hill
- John Hunter Nemechek
- Justin Allgaier
- Chandler Smith
- Riley Herbst
- Sammy Smith
- Sam Mayer
- Cole Custer
- Josh Berry
- Daniel Hemric
Both the Monster Energy Cup Series and the Xfinity Series return next week as NASCAR heads to Atlanta.
ARCA MENARDS SERIES
There was also a first-time winner in the ARCA Menards Series race at Phoenix Friday night. Tyler Reif overcame multiple incidents to record his first win in his third career start. Reif’s car was damaged in a wreck on lap 11, but his crew kept him on the lead lap and Reif found himself in the top five at the end of the race.
A late race caution led to a green-white-checker. That’s when William Sawalich, who had dominated the race to this point, spun after contact with Bradley Erickson, handing the lead to Reif for a second green-white-checker. Reif lost the lead to Landen Lewis and it appeared he would have to battle Erickson for second. But Reif was able to hold off Erickson and get back by Lewis on the final lap to record the win.
TOP 10 FINISHERS
- Tyler Reif
- Landen Lewis
- Bradley Erickson
- Andres Perez de Lara
- Kyle Keller
- Frankie Muniz
- Connor Jones
- Leland Honeyman
- Trevor Huddleston
- Greg Van Alst
The ARCA series will take another month off before reurning for the third race of the season at the super speedway in Talladega, Alabama.
Get the latest sports news via Fantom Sports Industries. Follow us on Twitter via @Fantom_sports. Like us on Facebook at Fantom Sports Industries. Subscribe to our YouTube channel via Fantom Sports. Subscribe to our Newsletter! Shop Fantom Sports Industries Merch.
Invest in your favorite athletes like stocks with “Prediction Strike!” Use code FANTOM when you sign