William Byron clinched a spot among the Championship 4 on Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, and he did so in a very impressive way.
Byron seized the lead from Ryan Blaney with 43 laps to go and held on to win with both drivers facing must-win situations. Byron managed to hit every mark by leading the most laps at 304 and sweeping all three stages.
That made Byron the first driver to start on the pole, sweep the stages, and win in a playoff race.
Today William Byron became the first Cup Series driver to start on pole, sweep the stages, and win in a playoff race. pic.twitter.com/JK9un1ONW2
— Daniel Céspedes (@_DanielCespedes) October 26, 2025
After the race, Byron admitted it was the best he had ever felt in his car during a race.
“From start to finish, it’s the best I’ve ever felt in the race car. And that’s a damn good feeling,” Byron said.
I asked @WilliamByron if he just drove the best race of his career. Very thoughtful answer here:
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) October 26, 2025
"From start to finish, it's the best I've ever felt in the race car. And that's a damn good feeling.
"It's been a lot of work. It's been a lot of heartbreak this year. You just…
Byron will join Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, and Kyle Larson in the Championship 4. It is the third straight season he has achieved this, but this one went a lot more smoothly than one of his previous efforts did.
