Revenge is a dish best served cold. That might not be the case for William Byron, though.
The driver of the No. 24 car put together an impressive regular season in the NASCAR Cup Series this year. He claimed the checkered flag twice (Atlanta, Martinsville), doubling his career win total.
Byron finished the regular season in fifth place, by far the best showing of his career.
But with those successes also came low points. And it’s hard to find many moments more frustrating for the Hendrick Motorsport racer than the May race at Darlington.
Byron led for 24 laps and appeared to be in prime position to snag his third victory of the season. But with a little more than a lap to go, Team Penske’s Joey Logano rammed Byron out of the lead. Byron would finish 13th while Logano cruised to an easy victory.
MORE: Watch NASCAR playoff racing live with fuboTV (free trial)
The 24-year old was furious over Logano’s antics, criticizing the past Cup Series champion for his reckless driving.
“[Logano] runs everybody over, so I don’t see what’s different,” Byron said. “He does it to everybody and didn’t even let us finish. He goes in there 10 miles an hour faster. Stupid.”
What better place for the two drivers to rekindle their beef than at Darlington, then? This time, the lights are a little bit brighter — it’s playoff time.
Logano took the pole in Saturday’s qualifying. Byron qualified third. It seems quite possible that the two could see each other at the front of the pack early and often Sunday.
Byron will be gunning for Logano just for the chance to snag a victory that would automatically advance him to the next round of the playoffs. It will be interesting to see if there are added fireworks between the two skilled racers.
The Sporting News is tracking live updates from Sunday’s Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. Follow along to see all the action unfold at the inaugural playoff race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season.
NASCAR at Darlington live updates, highlights from Goodyear 400
(All times Eastern.)
Updates will start closer to the race’s listed 6 p.m. ET start time.
What time does the NASCAR race start?
- Race: Southern 500
- Date: Sunday, Sept. 4
- Start time: 6 p.m. ET
The Southern 500 is listed to start at 6 p.m. ET, although the green flag is scheduled to be waved at 6:19 p.m. ET.
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