William Byron has a place to call home through the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season as the 22-year old driver revealed that he has extended his deal with Hendrick Motorsports. Byron made the news official with a Tweet on Tuesday.
It’s been a fun ride so far with @TeamHendrick and I'm excited to finally share that I'm signed up through 2022 in the No. 24! Thanks for all the support. Now let’s go to Darlington and lock ourselves into the next round of the #NASCARPlayoffs. pic.twitter.com/mPu0nssZI8
— William Byron (@WilliamByron) September 1, 2020
Byron, of course, scored a dramatic first-career victory this past weekend in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. In doing so, he became the first driver since Jeff Gordon to win in the No. 24 car and he actually broke Gordon’s record as the youngest winner in the No. 24.
While the timing of the announcement would suggest that Byron’s win impacted the contract negotiations, the deal was actually signed back on August 8th.
The Playoffs are now in the North Carolina-native’s sights. Byron enters the Playoffs on a two-race top-five streak. He had not scored a top-five finish all season before this stretch. You have to wonder if the No. 24 team is peaking at the right time.
Byron has now won races in all three NASCAR National Series, and he is a former champion in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.