William Byron wins 2024 Daytona 500

William Byron started his seventh season on NASCAR’s Cup Series in perfect fashion Monday, driving his No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to victory lane in the 2024 DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway.

Byron, a Liberty student pursuing a B.S. in Strategic Communication through Liberty University Online Programs, took the white flag seconds before two cars went spinning through the infield following contact. With the caution coming out, he earned his first DAYTONA 500 win and 11th victory in the Cup Series, which includes the 2020 summer race at Daytona. The win also tied Hendrick Motorsports with Petty Enterprises for the team’s ninth championship in “The Great American Race.” The organization is the first to win the crown jewel event in five different decades.

Byron was interviewed on Fox News Tuesday morning, when he described the race’s wild finish and how he emerged victorious.

“It’s a pretty incredible feeling,” he said. “Just super thankful that it worked out. It looked like (Ross) Chastain was making a move to the bottom and I moved up to block the outside lane. It was a pretty crazy sequence, but those moves are so split-second, you’re just trying to think about ‘What is the right move and how do I come out on top?'”

Alex Bowman placed second while fellow Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kyle Larson came in 11th and Chase Elliott finished 14th. In the final stage, Byron methodically worked through the draft to get into the top 10 after restarting the last segment in 21st. After pitting for fuel only with 19 laps to go, he rejoined the race in eighth and rode the middle lane to get into second with Bowman right behind him.

Liberty has sponsored Byron since 2014; the university was the primary sponsor for the Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for 13 of the 38 Cup Series races this past season, including two in the playoffs. For the 2024 season, Liberty will serve as a primary sponsor of the No. 24 car for 12 events, including two playoff races.

The 2024 season marks the 40th anniversary for Hendrick Motorsports, with current team Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon (1997, 1999, and 2005) and Jimmie Johnson (2006 and 2013) combining for five of the nine DAYTONA 500 wins.

The Cup Series heads to Atlanta Motor Speedway this Sunday for the second points race of 2024 and the second straight race to utilize the superspeedway package. Hendrick Motorsports has a series-best 17 wins at the 1.54-mile track. Since the venue underwent a reprofiling and reconfiguration before the 2022 season, the organization has won three of the last four races — two by Byron and one by Elliott. Watch the race at 3 p.m. on FOX or listen to it on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Byron will don the Liberty logo at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 17 and Richmond Raceway on March 31. Then, on April 14, the No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will head to Texas Motor Speedway — where Byron is the defending champion after capturing his first checkered flag in a playoff race in September — for the first of three consecutive races with Liberty as primary sponsor. On April 21, Byron will race with the red, white, and blue color scheme again at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway before taking the No. 24 on to Dover (Del.) Speedway on April 28.

Byron will have a special patriotic paint scheme at his home track of Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 26 for the annual 600 Miles of Remembrance race held over Memorial Day Weekend.

The rest of the schedule with Liberty as primary sponsor includes: Iowa Speedway on June 16; Daytona International Speedway on Aug. 24; Darlington (S.C.) Raceway on Sept. 1 (where Byron captured the checkered flag in May); Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International Raceway on Sept. 15 (where he won in August); and finally back in Virginia at Martinsville Speedway on Nov. 3, the penultimate playoff race before the Championship 4 in Phoenix.