The Daytona 500 wasn’t just long. It was way too long. It lasted over 6 hours in total! Rain delays and wrecks turned NASCAR’s biggest race into an endurance test of patience. But, finally, William Byron took full advantage of a last-lap crash, making a perfectly timed move to sneak through the chaos and clinch victory. With that, the 27-year-old became only the fifth driver to win back-to-back Daytona 500s—and the youngest ever to do so, and no one was happier than his team owner, Rick Hendrick.

Rick Hendrick, the legendary owner of Hendrick Motorsports, has overseen some historic milestones trackside at Daytona. However, the boss wasn’t even at the track when Byron crossed the finish line. Instead, he was watching from home in North Carolina, having left during the rain delay. He flew back to Daytona Beach on Monday morning to attend the formal championship celebration. Bob Pockrass managed to get hold of the legend for an interview where Hendrick shared his reaction to the dramatic ending, including a comment that might sting for one driver in particular: Kyle Busch.

Rick Hendrick’s unfiltered talk after the Daytona 500 win

Rick Hendrick stood in stunned silence as William Byron clinched victory at the Daytona 500. “I was in shock. I had no idea what was going on. Then I saw him [William Byron] come off the corner. I said ‘We’re gonna win this thing’,” said Hendrick. William Byron was in sixth place, heading into turn 3 of the final lap at the Daytona 500. As the leaders, Denny Hamlin and Austin Cindric were battling it out, Cole Custer tried to squeeze them for room on the inside and caused all three of them to spin into the traffic behind, leaving a free run for William Byron to the checkered flag.

“I guess I was just a little numb because it’s the last lap. You’re just holding your breath,” Hendrick told Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports. After seeing several heartbreaks over the years, he braced for the worst. But this time, fortune favored his driver. As Hendrick processed Byron’s win, another driver processed bitter disappointment.

Kyle Busch. The two-time Cup Series champion saw his race end in frustration after getting caught in the late wreck triggered by Joey Logano and Ricky Stenhouse Jr with 15 laps to go. “Every time there’s a wreck like that, I look for my cars,” Hendrick said. This time, his car survived; Busch didn’t.

For Busch, the sting of failing to capture the Daytona 500 in his 20th attempt only deepened as Hendrick celebrated back-to-back wins with Byron. “You see guys like Kyle Busch that are disappointed, who’ve won everything but never got a chance [to win Daytona],” Hendrick noted. While Busch fumed over what could have been, Hendrick simply savored another triumph on NASCAR’s biggest stage.

Busch, who finished 34th, blamed both Logano’s aggressive move and NASCAR’s procedural rulings for keeping him out of the race. Under NASCAR’s revised Damage Vehicle Policy, teams can now make unlimited repairs in the garage. But only if the car first meets the minimum speed on track. Busch, unable to do so under caution, was eliminated. “We got beat by NASCAR procedures again,” he said.

Rick Hendrick, however, offered little sympathy for Busch’s plight, emphasizing that Daytona has always been unpredictable. “It’s never over until it’s over,” he said, reflecting on past races where top contenders lost in the final moments. The chaotic nature of superspeedway racing, he implied, is something every driver must accept, including those on the losing end.

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Hendrick sets Daytona record, eyes more glory ahead

For the 10th time in Hendrick Motorsports history, Rick Hendrick saw one of his cars cross the finish line first at the Daytona 500. With William Byron’s dramatic victory, Hendrick Motorsports now holds a record 10 wins in NASCAR’s biggest race. It surpassed the long-standing mark set by Petty Enterprises. “And now, to have 10 of these,” Hendrick said, “we’ve been so fortunate to have great drivers, great crew chiefs, and great teams.”

Geoff Bodine in 1986 was the first Hendrick Motorsports driver to win the Daytona 500, starting a trend that marked at least one HMS win at the Daytona 500 every decade since. Exactly 20 years later, Jimmie Johnson won the ‘Great American Race’ in 2006, marking the first time HMS ever won back-to-back Daytona 500s with Jeff Gordon’s win in 2005 preceding that. They repeated this feat in 2013 and 2014 with Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. However, in 2024 and 2025, Byron created history being the first HMS driver to win consecutive Daytona 500s and clinch number 10.

Even with this milestone, Hendrick isn’t dwelling on past success. His focus is locked on what lies ahead. “I think there’s a lot more out there for us to get,” he stated, signaling his belief that Hendrick Motorsports is far from done making history. With a strong lineup of drivers and a team consistently delivering under pressure, the future looks just as promising as the past.

With powerhouse teams like Joe Gibbs Racing and Team Penske constantly pushing the competition forward, Hendrick Motorsports’ dominance will continue to be tested. But with 10 Daytona 500 wins now, their focus will shift to reclaiming their Cup Series glory, something that has eluded them since 2021. Do you think Rick Hendrick’s team will see the Bill France Trophy this year?