The Daytona 500 affair seemed like a Penske fairytale at first. All three of Roger Penske’s drivers dominated the front row. Reigning Cup Series champion Joey Logano led for 43 laps and won Stage 1 while Ryan Blaney led for 22 laps and won Stage 2. Austin Cindric was in the top five for a big chunk of the race. However, the chaotic last stage claimed all of them – and William Byron claimed the fairytale victory to secure a repeat victory at the Daytona 500.
William Byron defends his crown
Hendrick Motorsports lived up to its glorious streak as always. During the 2024 race, William Byron delivered a photo finish with his teammate Alex Bowman, clinching the victory in style. As he claimed the 66th Daytona 500 victory, the 67th also landed in his lap. The No. 24 Chevrolet overcame a sea of smoking wrecks that engulfed Roger Penske’s men. Byron emerged unscathed at the end after leading five times for 10 laps. He delivered a consecutive Daytona 500 victory, a feat that Denny Hamlin did last in 2019-2020.
In the post-race interview, William Byron could not get enough of his ecstatic emotions after going back-to-back. “Yeah, obviously, some good fortune. But just a trust in my instinct on the last lap there. Like they were getting squirrely on the bottom… I was honestly going to third lane regardless ’cause I was probably 6 coming down the back. Obviously fortunate, that worked out in our favor. Just really proud of this team, worked super hard all weekend. I had an amazing car and had a hard time with the fuel-saving and kind of staying towards the front.”
As Denny Hamlin and Austin Cindric battled for the lead on the white flag lap, Cole Custer was right behind them as they crowded up the bottom lane. The lack of space led to all three of them colliding and taking out a couple more drivers behind them. However, Byron and Tyler Reddick escaped this wreck on the outside lane and ended up P1 and P2 in a thrilling finish to the Daytona 500.
He avoided the chaos to go back-to-back. William Byron talks with @JamieLittleTV. pic.twitter.com/oIGCQHx3va
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) February 17, 2025
While Roger Penske’s Cup Series stars faded in the background with mangled cars, William Byron overcame all the melee. He counted his blessings: “It’s obviously really special. It’s an amazing race. Obviously, a lot of crazy racing out there tonight and just a lot of pushing and shoving.” There were multiple crashes, as there always are at Daytona, but Byron managed to weave his way away from it all in a triumphant night for Hendrick Motorsports at the expense of Roger Penske. The Penske drivers were involved in crashes themselves prior to the final lap and could not capitalize on their wins in stage 1 and 2.
As William Byron claimed his latest crown jewel victory, we look forward to a year jam-packed with more victories for the HMS fold!
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