William Byron looks to make it back-to-back wins at Atlanta Motor Speedway. (Photo: Ricky Martinez | The Podium Finish)
HAMPTON, Ga. — William Byron kicked the 2024 season off with a crown jewel race victory following last Monday night’s Daytona 500. Now, he is looking to make it back-to-back victories this week at Atlanta Motor Speedway, another track that the Charlotte, North Carolina native and the No. 24 team have enjoyed recent success the past two years.
Before Byron got to the track and qualified to start the Ambetter Health 400 from the 11th position, the 26-year-old had a busy week doing a series of interviews in New York City. Byron spoke about what it was like being an ambassador for NASCAR after winning such a historic race.
“Yeah, it’s been fun,” Byron said. “I enjoyed all of the stuff that I got to do this week, especially because it’s something unique and different, and I felt like it was really interesting. There were a lot of interesting questions and just different outlets trying to learn about the sport.”
“I tried my best to do a good job. Obviously I was running off adrenaline for two or three days, and we’re back to the race track now and ready to get to work.”
Byron and his team have a record of great success at Atlanta since the track was reconfigured following the 2021 season. The No. 24 team has secured two Atlanta wins, one last July and the other in March of 2022. Byron spoke about how he feels coming back to Atlanta, and what he feels is different since his wins at the track.
“Yeah, I mean look – we’ve been really fortunate that it’s worked out for us a couple of times,” Byron said. “The first win, we were pretty dominant here – led over 100 laps and put ourselves in a good position. But since then, it’s gotten even more chaotic. It’s two to three wide and it seems like everyone has really figured out the draft here.”
“It’s unique, for sure. I wouldn’t want to do it every week, but I do enjoy the challenge of it. I think it’s a super exciting show for the fans. If you think about the attendance here when it was the old layout, and seeing how packed it was here in July – it seems like the fans like it.”
Without a doubt, Byron has started the 2024 season on the right foot, and will be looking to continue building points and wins tomorrow afternoon at Atlanta. He also spoke about what momentum from a win as career-defining as a Daytona 500 means to him.
“I feel like the big thing for us is being able to start the year like that with a lot of momentum, for a lot of different reasons – for our team and to be able to look ourselves into the Playoffs, and also for sponsor engagement and things like that,” he said. “I feel like for me personally, it’s a huge relief and something I’m really excited to carry down the road.”
