William Byron Dominates for Walk-Off Win at Martinsville

With his back against the wall on Sunday in the NASCAR Cup Series Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway, William Byron was not going to be denied a win and a shot at the NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

After an accident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and a last-lap spin at Talladega Superspeedway, Byron faced a must-win situation at Martinsville. Without a victory, this year's NASCAR Cup Series regular season champion would not be one of the four drivers battling for the title at Phoenix Raceway next Sunday.

Race Results: NASCAR Cup Series Xfinity 500 at Martinsville

Byron didn't just win the race, he left a decisive thumbprint on the entire weekend. The two-time Daytona 500 winner qualified on the pole and led 304 of the race's 500 laps for the victory.

Ryan Blaney, another driver needing a win to advance to the Championship 4, gained control of the race during the final stage. However, Byron muscled his way past Blaney with 44 laps to go and held off the 2023 Cup Series champion on a late restart for the victory.

"Things have a way of working out," said Byron while interviewed by NBC following the win. "God really tests your resilience a lot of times. We've been tested. It's unbelievable.

"I watched my first NASCAR race up there, just before the start/finish line. Man, I am just so thankful. Excited to see my family and just celebrate this one. We'll obviously go to Phoenix and try to kick ass there."

The last two weeks tested Byron and his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team, but they collectively answered the call on Sunday.

"You just work so hard, all these guys work so hard. You put everything into Sundays. Sometimes you don't get anything in return, and that's been the last couple of weeks. Honestly, throughout the year, we've had some close calls. Sometimes life is that way, but you've just got to keep being resilient and we were. It just feels damn good."

While Byron celebrated on Martinsville's frontstretch, Blaney's runner-up finish was not enough to keep his title hopes alive.

"I'd look back on that long run before the last yellow, when William got by me," said Blaney. "I just got loose trying to work through lapped cars. My rear drive was fading quick. I tried to manage a lot in the beginning, but just was starting to fade."

While Byron and Blaney made contact on the pass for the lead with 44 laps to go, Blaney did not hold any contempt for Byron for the maneuever.

"I was trying to protect. I mean, that's two guys going for it. I don't blame him for taking that. I kind of lost momentum and I would have done the same thing, to be honest with you. I knew it was going to be tight. I tried to crowd as much as I could."

Byron joined Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe as race winners in the Round of 8 who move on to the Championship 4 at Phoenix next Sunday. The last spot went to the highest driver in points standings among non-winners in the field of eight, Kyle Larson.

Larson and Christopher Bell entered Sunday just one point apart and comfortably ahead of their fellow points contenders. However, Blaney's win pushed them into a cutoff battle, where Larson's fifth-place finish earned him the nod ahead of Bell, who finished seventh.

Larson held the upper hand on Bell for most of the race, but several late cautions added some anxiety.

"A couple of times, I just wanted to stay green," said Larson. "The 77 [of Hocevar] was in, like, every caution tonight. Restarts, I felt good about my car on restarts, but you just never know how the aggression's going to pick up.

"We had good enough track position all day. We were kind of out of the mess, I guess. That was good. My HendrickCars.com Chevy was fast. Our pit crew was on it all night. What a performance by William, that's awesome. I thought when the 12 gained control of the race, it was going to be really hard for anybody to beat him. William did a great job on the restart and just kept positioning himself enough to get by them on the long run."

Bell needed more pace to contend with Larson for the final spot in the Championship 4.

"It just seemed like we were lacking a little bit of long-run pace," said Bell. "I felt like whenever we got the balance close at time, I could take off on tires and do okay and make some passes, maintain my position. The consistent theme of the day was just falling backwards as the tires got old.

"Simply put, we weren't strong enough at Martinsville this weekend. We practiced in the teens, we qualified in the teens and kind of raced back there most of the day. I feel content with the results. I think the four going there are legitimate contenders, and whoever the champion is, is going to be well deserved. The 20 team wasn't good enough."

The NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race takes place next Sunday, November 2, at 3 p.m. ET at Phoenix Raceway. Coverage of the event will be on NBC, the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

-Photo credit: David Jensen/Getty Images