By: Zach Catanzareti, Staff Writer
Sunday was a day of career highs at Pocono Raceway. From Daniel Suarez in second and Alex Bowman in third, these first were seen at the top of the boards.
The same can be said for William Byron, the Hendrick Motorsports rookie who scored a career-best sixth-place finish in Sunday’s Gander Outdoors 400. His No. 24, though behind on the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas, was a top-10 car throughout the 164-lap race and was finally there when the checkered waved.
“It feels good just to get our car up there,” Byron said. “We have a new car but we’ve been able to work on all the little details that it takes to be competitive. Those little things are getting better but it’s been a lot of fun so far.”
Sunday became especially fun for Byron when he took the race lead on lap 102, holding it for five laps following a restart to notch 10 total for the day. The time out front made Sunday the sixth race he’s led in 2018.
“With the speed we had, you could go up there and hold the lead like that,” he said. “That felt awesome.”
Byron believes Hendrick’s strong horsepower led to an overall quick day for the organization, with teammates Bowman and Chase Elliott joining the rookie in the top 10.
“Our motors don’t hurt us,” he said. “And our cars are just getting better, downforce, every aspect of the car is getting better. Still, some work to do but it’s getting there.
“It’s going to take a couple more things to happen but we’re right there.”
Above all, Sunday was an upward boost for Byron and the No. 24 team. Just their second top 10 through 21 races, the playoffs may be a tough goal to reach, but the momentum is now there heading into Watkins Glen and Michigan the next two weeks.
“This momentum is just going to continue for us,” he said. “I’m really excited about Michigan coming up, we ran top 10 there all day [in June]. I got to get a little better, still. But our progress is really being seen and it feels really good.”