MARTINSVILLE, Va. — The fall race at Martinsville Speedway has frustrated William Byron and the No. 24 team in recent seasons. Yet, history did not repeat on Sunday afternoon as the Hendrick Motorsports driver delivered a career day.
Videos by FanBuzz
Byron started from the pole, led 304 laps, swept the stages, and won the race. He punched his ticket to the Championship 4 in the process. He became the first driver since Jimmie Johnson in 2013 to win from the pole at Martinsville Speedway.
Oh, and he also chased down and passed two-time Martinsville winner Ryan Blaney in the final stage, the driver who roared from 31st to first with one of the best cars in the field. Byron then held off Blaney on one final restart to close out the most complete performance of his career.
MORE: Martinsville playoff race results
Once Byron took the checkered flag and locked up a spot in the Championship 4, he pulled off a burnout so large that it made the post-race scene feel like something out of a movie.
"To me, William, I believe, had the race of his career today," Jeff Gordon said after the race. "I know it wasn't a Daytona 500, but to me, the way he handled himself and the way he approached it and raced today was just unbelievable. And that last restart I would put right in there with that.
"I mean, he nailed that restart! Not only did he get the jump when in the restart area but then he drove that thing deep down into (Turn) 1, went up wide, turned it, and drove off and cleared the 12.
"And we saw how strong the 12 was on the outside of some of those restarts, so I was anticipating the 12 giving them a heck of a battle, but I was also expecting him to give him the bumper, and William didn't give him the chance to do that."
That is a lot of burnout smoke from William Byron. pic.twitter.com/puu0odCZJh
— John Newby (@JohnNewby_) October 26, 2025
This performance capped off what had been a miserable round of the playoffs for Byron and the No. 24 team, which he referenced with some post-race comment about resilience.
He crashed at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after starting fifth and finished 36th to kick off the Round of 8. This put the regular-season champion in early danger of elimination from the playoffs.
Byron put himself in position to contend for the win at Talladega Superspeedway, but a series of pushes on the final lap sent Carson Hocevar into the back of the No. 24. Instead of fighting for the win or a top-five finish, he spun and finished 25th.
These two races put Byron into a must-win situation heading to a track where he has traditionally struggled in the cooler fall temperatures. Points did not matter, which actually freed him up behind the wheel.
He and the team responded by dominating at Martinsville Speedway. They won for the third time at the short track but the first when it mattered the most.
Now, Byron has the opportunity to compete for a championship against Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, and Kyle Larson.
"I think this is huge," crew chief Rudy Fugle said during a post-race press conference in response to a question from The Athletic's Jeff Gluck. "This could be a stepping stone into getting some more great victories. Really, really excited about that."
