Byron Earns Third Straight Top-10 Finish at Kansas Speedway

William Byron had far from a perfect afternoon at Kansas Speedway Sunday, but nonetheless fought hard for his third-straight top-10 finish, ending the race in eighth after leading three laps. 

The day began unremarkably, as Byron started 10th and remained there until the competition caution at lap 30. Crew Chief Chad Knaus then decided to go with an alternate strategy, having Byron take only two tires on his first pit stop, giving him the lead for three laps. However, Byron was swallowed up on the restart and struggled to a 22nd-place finish to end stage one. 

Byron then regrouped for stage two, restarting in 17th before slowly moving up to the 13th slot before pitting on lap 124. Byron seemed to be settling in for a top-15 stage two finish, but a caution came out during the pit stop cycle, stranding Byron in 17th.

But the setback did not hold him back after he pitted under the caution for four more tires. He went on another tear after the restart, falling just short of getting stage points by finishing 11th. 

After pitting for four more tires to end stage two, Byron restarted in 16th. He moved his way up to 13th before a caution came out with 69 laps to go after playoff driver Kurt Busch blew an engine. Byron’s pit crew rose to the occasion, gaining Byron four spaces on pit road and moving him up to ninth. 

Byron hung out around that position for most of the rest of the race, gaining one more spot in the closing laps to finish at a respectable eighth. The top-10 finish is Byron’s 13th of the season, tying a career high. 

Byron’s next race will take place Sunday, Oct. 25, in the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 at Texas Motor Speedway at 3:30 p.m. on NBCSN. Byron had a forgetful outing there back in July, finishing 37th after tangling with the No. 13 of Ty Dillon on lap 252. Byron did, however, have a career-best sixth-place finish at the Texas Motor Speedway in March 2019. 

Lipowski is a Sports Reporter and the host of the “Further Than the Cheap Seats” podcast. Follow him on Instagram at @j_lipowski23.