NASCAR CUP SERIES
MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY
COOK OUT 400
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT
APRIL 7, 2024
Byron, Hendrick Motorsports Claim Memorable Victory at Martinsville Speedway
- Enduring a green-white-checkered finish, it was William Byron and the No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 team that claimed the checkered-flag in the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway.
- The victory marked Byron’s series-leading third win of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season, and the Team Chevy driver’s 13th career victory in 224 starts in NASCAR’s premier series.
- Already the winningest manufacturer and organization in NASCAR Cup Series’ history at Martinsville Speedway, Byron’s victory extended each series-leading win record at the track – recording Chevrolet’s 61st NCS victory and Hendrick Motorsports’ 29th NCS victory at the .526-mile Virginia short-track.
- Byron delivered Chevrolet its fifth victory in eight points-paying NASCAR Cup Series races this season; and the manufacturer’s 856th all-time victory in NASCAR’s premier series.
- All four Hendrick Motorsports Camaro ZL1’s placed in the top-10 of the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway, with Byron leading the organization to a sweep of the top-three finishing positions. The feat marks the first time in series’ history that an organization has swept the podium at Martinsville Speedway.
TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10:
POS. DRIVER
1st William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Ruby Camaro ZL1
2nd Kyle Larson, No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Ruby Camaro ZL1
3rd Chase Elliott, No. 9 UniFirst Ruby Camaro ZL1
8th Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Ruby Camaro ZL1
RIDGEWAY, Va. (April 7, 2024) – William Byron and the No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 team delivered Hendrick Motorsports yet another monumental victory in the organization’s 40th anniversary season – enduring a green-white-checkered finish to claim the victory in the NASCAR Cup Series’ Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway.
Martinsville Speedway holds a special place in Hendrick Motorsports’ NASCAR history as the site of the organization’s first victory. Now, 40 years later, the winningest organization in NASCAR Cup Series’ history only solidified its lasting legacy with Byron taking Hendrick Motorsports back to victory lane at the .526-mile Virginia venue – delivering the organization its series-leading 29th NASCAR Cup Series victory at the track.
Byron’s monumental victory brought Hendrick Motorsports to its 305th all-time victory and Chevrolet’s 856th all-time victory in NASCAR’s premier series – extending their record as the winningest manufacturer and team partnership in series’ history.
“On behalf of everyone at Chevrolet, congratulations to Rick and the entire Hendrick Motorsports organization on such a special win at Martinsville Speedway,” said Jim Campbell, General Motors U.S. Vice President of Performance and Motorsports. “40 years ago, Geoff Bodine’s victory at Martinsville started a legacy that’s led Hendrick Motorsports to the title as the winningest organization in NASCAR Cup Series history with 305 victories and 14 championships – all in partnership with Chevrolet.”
Byron also led the organization to a series-first record at Martinsville Speedway, with a one-two-three finish by Bryon and his teammates Kyle Larson (second) and Chase Elliott (third) marking the first time that an organization swept the top-three finishing positions in a NASCAR Cup Series race at the .526-mile Virginia venue.
“Today’s win by William Byron and the No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 is extremely special for everyone at Chevrolet,” added Campbell. “We congratulate Rick and Hendrick Motorsports on 40 years of success.”
The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season will continue at Texas Motor Speedway with the AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 on Sunday, April 14, at 3:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage of the 267-lap event can be found on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE QUOTES:
William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Ruby Camaro ZL1
Finished: 1st
HOW SPECIAL IS THIS TO YOU TO DELIVER THIS WIN TO EVERYONE AT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS?
“Yeah, it’s awesome and it’s way bigger than me. There are so many men and women that this is a tribute to with all the hard work in the shop. It’s just a really good environment to work in. They have built something so special over the years, and I am thankful to be a part of it and drive the No. 24. It’s pretty special.”
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE PATIENCE YOU HAD TO COME FROM 18TH TO CONTEND FOR THE LEAD?
“It wasn’t pretty. The first stage, we were pretty good – coming from the back and getting up to eighth or ninth. And then we stalled out. We had a couple of pit stops not go our way and then we got too tight. We just had to keep working on that and we eventually got this No. 24 Axalta Chevy where it needed to be; get it turning and doing what it needed to do. Just really proud of the team.”
WHAT DID YOU TELL YOURSELF AND WHAT DID YOU DO WITH THAT GREEN – WHITE – CHECKERED?
“I knew the shot was going to come from behind and that is just the way it is here. I used a little bit more of the racetrack in (turns) one and two to make sure I could get clear off of two and he gave me a shot over there. We raced pretty clean. He gave me a chance to make the corner and that is all you can ask for.”
Kyle Larson, No. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM Ruby Camaro ZL1
Finished: 2nd
SUMMARIZE YOUR RACE DAY HERE THIS AFTERNOON.
“Yeah, it pretty alright I guess. We had great track position from qualifying, so I was able to maintain that all race and get that Stage One win, which was great. We kind of just lost a few spots there in Stage Two and was never really able to overcome that small track position loss.
But William (Byron), he did a really good job. He was able to pass cars and they pitted a lap before we did during the green-flag cycle. I really thought that helped him carve his way to the lead because his tires were just ready before ours were. He did a good job; kind of schooled us all and deserved to win. So that was really cool to see him win.
Really awesome to have an HMS top-three on a day like today, with what it means to the company and celebrating 40 years; having all the Hendrick Motorsports’ employees here with their families to celebrate with. It will be a long night of celebrating and taking pictures and all that, but we are excited for Hendrick Motorsports and I am happy to contribute to a good day.”
Chase Elliott, No. 9 UniFirst Ruby Camaro ZL1
Finished: 3rd
DESCRIBE THAT OVERTIME RESTART AND WHAT DID YOU NEEDED TO GET BY YOUR TEAMMATE?
“I just burnt the rear tires off of it a little bit too much. I had an opportunity. I kind of got William (Byron) up off the bottom and I had a shot at him off of (turn) four, but I just couldn’t get the power down to get underneath him. Really cool for HMS to get a win on the 40th (anniversary) weekend. Wish it could have been us, but I am proud of a couple top fives these last couple weeks. We’ll try to keep it rolling.”
IT LOOKED LIKE YOU GAVE IT EVERYTHING YOU HAD ON THAT LAST RESTART AND JUST COULDN’T QUITE GET THERE AND UNFORTUNATELY LOST A SPOT WHEN IT WAS ALL SAID AND DONE.
“Obviously number one, congrats to William (Byron) and everyone at Hendrick Motorsports. Rick and Linda (Hendrick), Jeff (Gordon), Jeff (Andrews), Chad (Knaus) and all the people that put this together for us. They have an unbelievable program and I think we are all proud to call home. It was awesome hosting over 1,000 people from Hendrick today; employees and their families. Glad one of us could get it done. Obviously wish we could have got it done, selfishly, like anybody would.
But it is nice to have a good couple of solid weeks and being in contention for a win. We haven’t been in contention to win one for a while, so kind of nice to get to that last restart when it actually mattered. So, enjoyed that aspect and certainly hungry for more.”
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Lucas Oil Camaro ZL1
Finished: 16th
“We made an improvement this weekend from how we ran last year at Martinsville Speedway. The first run of the race the Lucas Oil Chevrolet got looser as went. We pitted for tires and adjustments and the next run we were a little free everywhere but tight at the three-quarter mark of Turns 3 and 4. At the end of Stage 2 we pitted again but the adjustments didn’t seem to work, and we lost track positions. Crew Chief Randall Burnett and the guys kept working and never gave up. We made the car better by the end of the race and we were able to get a decent finish, but we still have work to do to get to where we want to be.”
Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Cirkul Camaro ZL1
Finished: 28th
“Today was a hard-fought one. We started out super tight, and I felt like I just killed the right-side tires early on. Trent [Owens] made some great calls, and we continued to get the No. 31 Cirkul Chevy close to where it needed to be during the second stage. We tried gambling a little and running long during the final stage, but unfortunately, we never caught a caution. I’m definitely proud of the hard work this team put in this weekend that we can bring back here in the fall. We definitely made the car more competitive and are going in the right direction.”
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Camaro ZL1
Finished: 34th
“Long day for the Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Off-Road Chevrolet team at Martinsville Speedway. We had a problem with a left front tire locking up and I think the power steering was going out pretty much the whole race. When it went out with about 200 laps to go, I had to fight hard to gain positions. I can at least say I finished the race with no power steering, I’m going to be a little sore tomorrow, but we’ll keep fighting. It’s not the finish we wanted today, but we will go to Texas Motor Speedway next week to try and regain some momentum.”
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