NASCAR Cup Series
Martinsville Speedway
Xfinity 500
Team Chevy Post-Race Report
November 1, 2026
Byron Completes Chevrolet’s Season Sweep at Martinsville Speedway
William Byron and the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team showcased a near dominate afternoon at “The Paperclip” to earn their first trip to victory lane of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season. Byron’s fourth coveted grandfather clock came paired with a perfect points day, with the North Carolina native sweeping the stage wins and clocking in the fastest lap of the race to bring home the win and a 76-point day. The win, Chevrolet’s record-extending 64th all-time at Martinsville in NASCAR’s premier series, capped off a season sweep for Chevrolet at the track with Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott driving the manufacturer to victory lane in the spring event.
For the second consecutive weekend, Chevrolet earned five top-10 finishes in the NASCAR Cup Series race. Chase Elliott took the checkered flag in second to give Hendrick Motorsports a one-two finish. Trackhouse Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen ended the afternoon in fifth to match his career-best short track result. Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon finished seventh, with Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson rounding out the effort with a hard-fought ninth-place finish.
Despite a challenging day for the defending champions, the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team will carry a 67-point lead to Homestead-Miami Speedway as they race for their third title in NASCAR’s premier series.
RACE RECAP:
Stage One:
Despite a challenging practice session, Kyle Larson laid down a strong lap in qualifying to earn the third starting position for the penultimate race of the NASCAR Cup Series Chase at Martinsville Speedway. As the field sorted out after a couple of laps around the .526-mile venue, Larson quickly settled into the fourth position for much of the opening run. It took just 32 laps around the Virginia venue for the leaders to reach lap traffic, allowing Larson to start making gains towards closing the gap to then-race leader, Denny Hamlin. A long run building opened up the door for the first green flag pit cycle, which ultimately got underway near the halfway point of the stage. A split pit strategy saw a handful of the top-10 runners, including Larson, opt to run out the stage. But it was the fresh tires that prevailed on the run to the end of the stage. Among those who called for four tires and fuel during the cycle was crew chief Rudy Fugle, giving his driver the opportunity to make a quick march from 16th to the lead that led to the stage win.
Stage Two:
With a call for four tires and fuel under the stage break caution, the No. 24 pit crew kept their driver in position to lead the field to the green flag for Stage Two. Maintaining the lead on the restart, Byron quickly found his rhythm around “The Paperclip” – clocking the fastest lap of the race early in the run before reaching the tail-end of the field. With another green flag pit cycle on the horizon, Byron had yet to make his trip to pit road when the first natural caution of the day flew at Lap 199. While Byron and his teammate, Chase Elliott, continued to pace the field from the top-two positions, timely cautions found Larson back on the lead lap as a tight battle among the top-three title contenders ensued just inside the top-15. A caution with eight laps remaining ultimately brought the stage to a close, giving Byron the stage sweep.
Final Stage:
With both pit crews maintaining their positions in the race off pit road, it was an all-Chevrolet front row with Byron and Elliott to lead the field to the start of the final stage. Byron continued to showcase his race-contending speed, resuming the lead to pace the field to the third green flag pit cycle of the day. Fugle was on the tail-end of the cycle, ultimately calling Byron to pit road on Lap 344 before going on to retake the lead just nine laps later. Within that timeframe saw the points leader, Larson, re-enter the top-10. Settled into 10th as the leaders worked through lap traffic just before the 400-lap marker, Daniels radioed to his driver to keep his pace as they were just within the 20-lap range towards their final trip to pit road of the afternoon. Meanwhile, Byron was able to progressively build his lead as he maneuvered through lap traffic, reaching a four-second advantage as the race hit 90 laps to go. Byron’s call to pit road came with 78 laps to go, quickly cycling back up into the top position six laps later. Never looking back, Byron went on to claim the checkered flag and complete Chevrolet’s season sweep at Martinsville.
Team Chevy Unofficial Top-10 Results
Pos. Driver
1st – William Byron
2nd – Chase Elliott
5th – Shane van Gisbergen
7th – Austin Dillon
9th – Kyle Larson
Chevrolet’s season statistics with 35 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:
Wins: 10
Poles: 6
Top-Fives: 61
Top 10s: 125
Stage Wins: 24
The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season will conclude at Homestead-Miami Speedway with the Championship Race on Sunday, November 8, at 3 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
Post-Race Driver Quotes:
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 11th
“It felt really good to run consistently up front today at Martinsville in the Moose Fraternity Chevrolet. The car handled well and we didn’t need any major swings at adjustments, it was just small little things all day. Unfortunately, we had a little blip there on the last pit stop which hurt us at the end but that’s how it goes sometimes. We ended the day 11th and it certainly could’ve been worse, but it felt good to run well today.”
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 7th
“Heck of a day. Proud of everyone on the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Ducks Unlimited crew. We fought all day long, making the needed adjustments and battling back when we went a lap down. Excited to be one of the seven cars to finish on the lead lap, and happy to see the momentum we’re bringing to the end of the season as we look to conclude on a high note and carry that into 2027.”
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 9th
How would you describe your day today?
“It was a difficult race. The first stage got away with us on strategy. I assumed we were just kind of playing off the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin). The second-half of the run didn’t go like we needed it to. We could have used a caution at some point to save us, but unfortunately, it went green the whole way and we got ate up. I was just hanging on, really. Fortunately, we got back on the lead lap in the second stage, and we just kind of had to fight it out from there. It was just hard to pass. I tried some runs to pass and beat my tires up. Other runs, I tried to save and it was just kind of net-whatever.
It was just a bummer day. I thought our No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet was going to be good, and I think it would have been okay had we kept the track position in Stage One. Obviously, William (Byron) and Chase (Elliott) were really, really good. I think they could have driven my car just as fast. Congrats to William and Chase, both, for the good run here. It was a good day for Hendrick Motorsports.”
I know you wanted to clinch it today, but is it a sense of relief with the points cushion heading into Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend?
“It is a sense of relief, for sure. The No. 20 (Christopher Bell) played the first stage right, and I thought things could get crazy and we could get damage in the back. We got through the day relatively clean. I didn’t lose as many points as I was expecting to today, so I’m happy with that. We’ll go to Homestead-Miami Speedway and try to collect a good points day.”
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 2nd
What more did you need in the closing laps?
“I just needed some rear tires. I was running as hard as I could go. I really fell off hard on the run before, and I think that’s probably what hurt me the most with having to make up that gap. William (Byron, race winner) had that gap to play with and he did a great job managing that. He saved and he knew I was pressing. I’m really proud of our No. 9 UniFirst Chevrolet team. I thought we got our car better and better all day. That last run, I was really happy with it, but I just needed to be a little further up the road.”
William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 1st
How relieving is it to get in the win column this year?
“Yeah, it’s been a tough year, but we’ve grinded and never stopped working. It means a lot for everyone on this No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet team. I think everyone’s felt it, but have worked hard and kept their heads down. To come to a place like this, where we’re traditionally good and just have an awesome performance like that, is incredible. We just kept getting a little bit better through the race and it was a lot of fun.”
How much did you have to work on the car? How many adjustments did you have over the course of the race?
“We just did little adjustments, but it’s hard to say. The track kind of came to us, and when we made that green flag stop, it just stayed good for us. It was awesome.”
Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 20th
“Solid top-20 day for our Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen team. We qualified in a decent spot, which helped us with pit stall selection. For most of the day, our Chevrolet was tight on fire off but built free as the run went on. Andy (Street, crew chief) and the guys kept adjusting on it and towards the end, the balance was better. We just kept burning the rears off it. Didn’t matter how easy I was on the pedals. Overall, a good day for our No. 33 group. Still room for improvement but today was definitely better than the spring.”
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Finished: 16th
“It was such a busy day at Martinsville, it felt like we would go from the back to the front all the time with how the cautions played out. Outside of that, I feel like we had some good pace on our Delaware Life Chevrolet, we just couldn’t find our home in the top 10. We were right around that 15-20th mark all day, but it was a clean day without a torn up race car and that is always a good thing leaving Martinsville. One more to go, so hopefully we can build on Talladega and Martinsville into Homestead-Miami Speedway to go into 2027 with some good momentum.”
Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 17th
“It was a good recovery for our team. We were three laps down at one point, but we were able to get back on the lead lap there to start the final stage and get a decent day out of it. Really proud of this No. 88 Red Bull Chevrolet team, as well as Shane (Van Gisbergen) and Ross (Chastain) for having a great day, as well. It was a good day for the organization and a great day for Chevrolet. I’m excited to get to Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend and close out the season strong.”
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 5th
You ran fifth at Martinsville. Can you label yourself as a fantastic short track racer?
“I definitely feel like I’m getting there, thanks to having a great team around me. Our team did a great job getting our No. 97 Wendy’s Chevrolet better from yesterday and I qualified badly. It was a great day. The first stage was awesome with the different strategies. We managed to stay on the lead lap and we just kept working forward. I enjoyed it.”
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