The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season began in stunning fashion with the Daytona 500 providing an exciting watch. After an intense end to the race, William Byron triumphed for Hendrick Motorsports on Monday night. The Cup Series couldn’t have expected a better way to celebrate the team’s 40th anniversary.

With Dwayne Johnson kick-starting the proceedings as the Grand Marshal, The Great American Race had the perfect start. Unsurprisingly, the race witnessed several wrecks before it got too hot to handle.

William Byron hands Rick Hendrick the perfect anniversary gift at Daytona

Daytona 500 and Wrecks have almost always gone hand-in-hand. Well, that’s what makes the race so iconic. Fortunately, the 2024 season opener didn’t lack any spark. In fact, things got feisty in the early stages of Stage 1 when an incident took place in lap 5.

Brad Keselowski early in the race bumped John Hunter Nemechek in the high line. Then, the Legacy Motor Club driver came down and made contact with Harrison Burton in the middle lane. Burton eventually hit Carson Hocevar as both drivers went into the grass. The wreck also collected Austin Dillon, Kaz Grala, Ryan Preece, and Jimmie Johnson.

Ultimately, the crash ended the race for Burton, Hocevar and Grala. While Keselowski seemed to have triggered the wreck, it turned into a nightmare for the four drivers. Even Jimmie Johnson took a hit as he went two laps down after the wreck.

Despite Joey Logano taking the pole position after the qualifying race, he struggled to keep his lead. It only got worse for him and his Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney with a miscalculated pit stop. This turned into a blessing for Chevrolet and Hendrick Motorsports as it allowed Chase Elliott to take Stage 1. It is the second time that Elliott registered a stage win at the Daytona 500.

Furthermore, at the end of Stage 1, all four of the Hendrick Motorsports cars finished in the top five with Ross Chastain finishing third. Seven Chevrolet cars finished in the top ten including Kyle Busch. While three Toyota drivers managed to achieve the same feat, unfortunately for Ford, none of their cars managed to finish in the top ten at the end of Stage 1.

However, Joey Logano gave the Ford camp a major boost in Stage 2 as he dominated from almost the onset. For over half of the second stage, Logano along with Todd Gilliland led the pack. Gilliland led more laps (12) in Stage 2 than he did in the rest of his Cup Series career combined. Having said that, Kyle Larson made a stunning run and took the lead in the 116th lap. Prior to that, he was running 19th.

Interestingly, Stage 2 witnessed some tight racing in the dying phases. Kyle Busch and Austin Cindric went toe-to-toe to clinch the stage but it wasn’t to happen. It was the defending champion Ryan Blaney who made a last-ditch move, registering a win in Stage 2.

Daniel Suarez, Tyler Reddick, William Byron, Bubba Wallace, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, AJ Allmendinger, and Chris Buescher joined the top ten drivers to have finished in the second stage. However, despite finishing in the top ten of another stage, Busch struggled early on in the final stage.

With smoke pouring from his car, pit stops turned out to be a problem for Rowdy. While his left front wheel was left loose, Busch was forced to return to get it tightened. Witnessing the incident, Richard Childress had a strong message on the radio for the #8 team. He said, “Get your head out of your ass and no more f***ing up.”

Having said that, that didn’t stop Busch from making an impressive comeback. With 50 laps to go, the 38-year-old was strongly fighting in the top five to go all the way. Rowdy was up against Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano, who both looked very much in control until the 180th lap.

The race witnessed many different leaders post that before it all went haywire with under ten laps to go. A huge wreck involving Hamlin, Logano, Keselowski, Gilliland, Reddick, Martin Truex Jr, Blaney, Erik Jones, Larson, and Antony Alfredo resulted in a red flag.

It all started with Alex Bowman giving teammate William Byron a bump. This resulted in the #24 driver turning sideways and turning Keselowski into Logano and there on taking out 18 cars in the process. Ironically, post the restart, Byron sealed the victory for Hendrick Motorsports, ending the team’s 10-year drought for a Daytona 500 win.

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Not only that, the 26-year-old also helped Rick Hendrick reach another milestone with his narrow win on Monday

William Byron’s victory under caution at the Daytona 500 will always be memorable

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It is no secret that winning the Great American Race feels no less than an achievement. Having last won the Daytona 500 in 2014, Hendrick Motorsports and Rick Hendrick longed for a win desperately. Amazingly, William Byron made the wish come true as he managed to achieve what Dale Earnhardt Jr did ten years ago.

By doing so, he now becomes the sixth different driver to win the Daytona 500 for Rick Hendrick. With the team celebrating its 40th anniversary, the timing couldn’t have been any better. Not only that, with this win, Hendrick Motorsports has now record-tying ninth Daytona 500 victory. Petty Enterprises also has the same amount of wins.

Naturally, Byron looked ecstatic after the win. Speaking still in disbelief after the win, he said, “I’m thankful for great power under the hood from Chevrolet. I’m just a kid racing on computers and winning the Daytona 500. I can’t believe it. I’m just very blessed.”

It could entirely have been a different story had the race not gone under caution with eight laps to go. Regardless, it is a moment to savor for William Byron and Hendrick Motorsports. If the Daytona 500 was a testament to what’s coming in the Cup Series this season, it couldn’t get any more exciting for the fans.

READ MORE – Is the Daytona 500 Ruining the Races as Crashes Get More Violent With the Years?