By: Zach Catanzareti, Staff Writer
When it was all on the line for the playoff drivers Sunday at ISM Raceway, William Byron snuck into the belly of the action.
Following a 19th-place qualifying effort, Byron advanced through the field in good time, finishing ninth in Stage 2 for good position to the checkered, where he finished ninth.
The run was his first top 10 in 13 races and his fourth of his rookie Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.
“Our car was honestly the best car we’ve had,” Byron told Kickin’ The Tires. “We were a lot more competitive than we normally are. We could do a lot. Definitely the best day we’ve had.”
Running inside the top five for a late green-flag run, Byron was caught up in the lap 270 accident, which damaged his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
Despite the incident, Byron continued on in competitive standing for the final 12-lap shootout.
“We got run into when the wreck happened,” he said. “I was really surprised the car handled as well as it did after that. We were really loose in, didn’t have the downforce with the left rear gone. Other than that, the car handled pretty nice.”
With his quickest car of 2018, Byron believes a career-best finish may have been in order if not for the late accident.
“I think we would have finished top five,” he said. “We ran top 10 throughout the race, had some adversity, which has been pretty common for us this year, and we were able to bounce back from that. That’s something to be proud of.”
Following an accident two weeks ago at Martinsville, Byron stated he wouldn’t “wish this year on anybody” after his ninth DNF of the season. Ending his season with a top 10 has put Byron in a happier mindset heading into the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Plus, he’s officially the Cup Series Rookie of the Year for 2018.
“It’s awesome,” he said. “It’s been such a struggle so it’s awesome to get a good run.”
Retweet to congratulate @WilliamByron on capturing the #SunocoRookie of the Year award with his performance today at @ISMRaceway! pic.twitter.com/7sdLKtTirE
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) November 12, 2018