William Byron wins at Martinsville to lock into NASCAR Cup Championship 4

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — William Byron stepped up when he needed to make the Championship 4 and won Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway.

Byron beat fellow Championship 4 hopefuls Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott to earn his third consecutive Championship 4 berth. He took the lead with a bump-and-run pass on Blaney with 44 laps to go — and survived a restart with 11 to go — to grab the berth.

“Damn, I got a lot to say! We’ve been tested. It’s unbelievable, out of breathe. Thank you fans, badass crowd. I watched my first race up there just before the start-finish line. I’m excited to see my family celebrate with them and go kick ass in Phoenix,” Byron said to NBC.

Byron won the regular season championship but struggled in the playoffs, compared to drivers like Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe who locked their way into the Championship 4 with wins in the Round of 8 while Byron had two tough weeks.

Sunday saw Byron turn up his performance, leading a career-high 304 of 500 laps and taking a strong fight to Ryan Blaney that now sees him racing for his first Cup championship.

“All these guys work so hard and we put everything into Sundays and don’t get anything in return and the last few weeks have been that way but you stay resilient and get days like today,” Byron said.

Blaney losing to Byron means Team Penske will not have a car in the Cup Championship 4 for the first time in the NextGen era, dating back to 2022.

Blaney put up a strong fight in Sunday’s race. He started 31st and drove to the top 10 in the first half of the race. He ultimately led twice for 177 laps but needed more rear grip when Byron bumped him out of the way late in the run.

“I just was starting to fade and had to protect. I tried to crowd him as much as I could and the move he made was nothing bad, just short track racing. I’m so proud of everyone on this 12 group, starting where we did and making up ground. The 24 car was better than us in the end. I seemed to lose rear drive quicker than he did. I thought I got a good restart but he motored around me,” Blaney said.

TOP-10 FINISHERS (LAP 500): William Byron, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Ross Chastain, Kyle Larson, Ryan Preece, Christopher Bell, Joey Logano, Todd Gilliland, Josh Berry.

Larson finished fifth and will make the Championship 4 for the first time since 2023. He beat Bell by seven points for his third career Championship 4 berth.

Follow here for live updates on the NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at Martinsville Speedway.

NASCAR Cup Series Stage Results at Martinsville

Who won Stage 1 in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway today? Who won Stage 2?

NASCAR Cup Series at Martinsville Stage 1 Results Today (Lap 130): William Byron, Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell, Todd Gilliland, Austin Cindric.

NASCAR Cup Series at Martinsville Stage 2 Results Today (Lap 260): William Byron, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Chase Elliott, Todd Gilliland, Chase Briscoe, Ryan Preece, Shane van Gisbergen, Tyler Reddick, Erik Jones.

FINAL STAGE

2 to go: Chase Elliott to third behind William Byron and Ryan Blaney.

10 to go: William Byron clears Ryan Blaney for the lead. Ross Chastain is third.

11 TO GO RESTART.

Off pit road: William Byron, Ryan Blaney, Ross Chastain, Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, Josh Berry, Todd Gilliland, Joey Logano, Ryan Preece, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick, Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs, Austin Cindric, Shane van Gisbergen in 15th. Austin Dillon free pass in 16th.

CAUTION. Carson Hocevar spins off the front bumper of Spire Motorsports teammate Michael McDowell in turn three and totally turns this race on its head. Restart coming with less than 10 laps to go.

19 to go: Joey Logano and Christopher Bell round out the top 10 behind Todd Gilliland.

TOP 10 (33 to go): Byron, Blaney, Preece, Chastain, Berry, Elliott, Larson, Gilliland, Busch, Logano.

38 to go: Ryan Preece to third. Don’t rule him out of contention for the win yet.

43 to go: BUMP AND RUN WILLIAM BYRON TO THE LEAD. Ryan Blaney is not done yet, still in second and staying with Byron.

46 to go: Byron’s there for the lead on Blaney.

LAP 445: As crew chief Rudy Fugle prophesized, William Byron is catching Ryan Blaney in lap traffic and is going for the lead. 55 to go.

LAP 437: Joey Logano has cracked the top 10 again.

LAP 417: Ty Gibbs gets loose and sacrifices himself to not take out teammate Christopher Bell. Gibbs drops to 15th. Bell is now up to 11th.

LAP 411: William Byron is dogging Ryan Blaney and is looking for a way around him. Playoff drivers run first, second, fifth (Chase Elliott), seventh (Kyle Larson), 11th (Joey Logano) and 13th (Christopher Bell). Bell is 12 points behind Larson for a Championship 4 spot. Byron is told to back off some and make up ground in traffic.

LAP 406: Ryan Blaney and William Byron are nose to tail to see who will race in the Championship 4 next Sunday at Phoenix Raceway. Erik Jones is in trouble again and has a right-front wheel pointing the wrong way. NASCAR keeps the race green.

LAP 400: Bell, Logano, Gibbs, Busch, Reddick pit under caution. They’ll restart in front of Austin Dillon, who received the free pass and is now 17th.

LAP 398: Carson Hocevar spins again in turn one — with future Spire Motorsports teammate Daniel Suarez again. Hocevar had some sort of issue.

Ryan Blaney hangs on to the lead over William Byron.

Top 10 (Lap 397): Blaney, Byron, Chastain, Berry, Gilliland, Custer, Preece, Elliott, Larson, SVG.

LAP 390: Ryan Blaney to the lead over William Byron but they race hard.

LAP 389: On the lead lap: Blaney, Byron, Chastain, Gilliland, Berry and Custer will restart up front. Chastain, Gilliland, Berry and Custer just pitted.

Preece free pass, Elliott, SVG, Larson, Bell, Busch, Logano, Gibbs and Reddick wavearound.

Cindric will restart tail end – penalty.

LAP 378: CAUTION! Erik Jones pits.

LAP 376: Kyle Larson pits. William Byron and Ryan Preece pit a lap later. Ryan Blaney pits a lap after Byron and Preece.

LAP 374: Christopher Bell is pitting from sixth. Elliott and Logano are coming too. Leaders should be in soon.

LAP 365: William Byron has cut Ryan Blaney’s lead to under a second. Behind them, Ryan Preece was around two tenths faster than the leaders.

LAP 360: Christopher Bell: “Just going free again. It’s the best I’ve been to take off. We gotta help longevity without tightening the fire off.”

Bell slides after losing fifth to Kyle Larson.

LAP 356: Ryan Preece to third over Chase Elliott. He is closing in for the lead on this longer run.

LAP 351: Ryan Preece is running lap times a tenth or two faster than the drivers in front of him. He is 4.9 seconds behind leader Ryan Blaney.

LAP 346: Ryan Preece to fourth. Great run for him. He kicks Christopher Bell back to three points below the cutline behind Kyle Larson, who takes sixth from Joey Logano.

LAP 335: Denny Hamlin has blown an engine from second. He is the third Toyota to have an engine issue in the last 20-30 laps or so. That is nervewracking for Christopher Bell who is one point below the cutline to make the Championship 4 and does not need an engine issue. That would end his title hopes.

LAP 329: Riley Herbst goes to pit road with a mechanical issue. Chase Elliott to fourth over Joey Logano, Christopher Bell takes fifth behind Elliott. Bell is now -1 to Larson for the cutline.

LAP 318: William Byron takes third from Joey Logano.

LAP 310: William Byron is having troubles getting by Joey Logano and remains behind him. Cutline is Blaney with the lead, then Larson +1 to Bell.

LAP 302: Chase Briscoe to pit road with engine issues. Kyle Larson back to 10th. Cutline is tied with Christopher Bell who tries a move on Chase Elliott.

• “No indication it was going to fail. I thought we were going to have a really good day and battled Larson. It upshifted and then gave out,” Briscoe said.

LAP 291-294: William Byron gets two spots on the restart to move up to fourth on the outside lane. The two drivers he passed were Tyler Reddick and Ty Gibbs who are on older tires. Chase Elliott will try to do the same thing and does. Christopher Bell takes sixth behind Elliott.

LAP 287: Green flag! Denny Hamlin hangs tough with Ryan Blaney for a whole lap. Now Blaney clears.

LAP 280: Josh Berry spins after Bubba Wallace dove into turn one and got into Brad Keselowski, who got into Berry. No one gets the free pass because Wallace and Keselowski were racing for it and were involved in the caution.

Ryan Blaney leads. Reddick, Hamlin, Logano, Gibbs, Byron, Elliott, Cindric, Bell and Larson round out the top 10.

LAP 271: Tyler Reddick takes the lead but Ryan Blaney is charging on the outside lane. Side by side a lap after the restart.

LAP 264: Reddick, Blaney, Hamlin, Logano, Gibbs, Cindric stay out. Byron, Larson, Elliott, Bell, Gilliland, Briscoe, Preece pit.

The final stage is 240 laps and ends with the scheduled checkered flag at lap 500.

STAGE TWO Winner: William Byron

STAGE TWO TOP 10 (LAP 260): William Byron, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Chase Elliott, Todd Gilliland, Chase Briscoe, Ryan Preece, Shane van Gisbergen, Tyler Reddick, Erik Jones.

LAP 254: Kyle Larson takes second back from Christopher Bell. They’re racing for the final spot in the Championship 4.

LAP 251: Christopher Bell to second over Kyle Larson behind William Byron.

LAP 247: Byron, Larson, Elliott, Bell, Gilliland, Briscoe, Preece, Shane van Gisbergen, Reddick, Erik Jones, Custer stay out. Blaney, Logano, Hamlin, Gibbs, Cindric, Chastain pit.

LAP 241: Cody Ware spins in turn three with a detached wheel. Caution flies right as Christopher Bell took fifth. Free pass goes to Josh Berry in 18th. William Byron has led all but five laps.

LAP 238: Ryan Blaney goes for second on Kyle Larson and takes it. He is now behind William Byron.

LAP 231: Cole Custer spins after making contact with Josh Berry. Custer stays on the lead lap. A bunch of drivers will join him on the lead lap as a result of taking the wavearound on the last caution.

LAP 224: William Byron takes the lead as Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson race side by side for second. Larson takes it. Ryan Blaney races Chase Elliott to the outside for third.

Off pit road, lap 217: William Byron, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, Austin Cindric, Todd Gilliland, Ryan Preece.

LAP 216: Carson Hocevar spins in turn one. Free pass is Tyler Reddick — again.

Christopher Bell: “We gotta get it turning better. Entry to the center I feel like I’m getting killed.”

LAP 209: Christopher Bell is in trouble. He has dropped to 11th. Meanwhile, playoff competitor Kyle Larson is second. Bell could be 13 points below the cutline on points earned if things stay the same.

Todd Gilliland is having a fantastic day in 10th. He finished in the top 10 in the spring race.

LAP 206: Kyle Larson takes second from Joey Logano. Chase Elliott is close to them.

LAP 203 TOP 10: William Byron, Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Preece, Christopher Bell, Austin Cindric.

LAP 200: Christopher Bell is sliding back. He is now eighth after Denny Hamlin passed him. Ryan Preece passes Austin Cindric for ninth.

The top 10 is mostly unchanged. However, Ty Gibbs is up to fourth with Chase Elliott and Christopher Bell behind him.

Top 10 to start the stage on lap 142: William Byron, Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell, Austin Cindric, Ryan Preece.

The second stage is 130 laps and ends on lap 260.

STAGE ONE Winner: William Byron

STAGE ONE TOP-10 (LAP 130): William Byron, Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell, Todd Gilliland, Austin Cindric. Free pass Tyler Reddick in 15th.

LAP 122: Blaney to seventh. Logano to second.

LAP 106: Ryan Blaney has cracked the top 10 after starting 31st. He’s gonna be a serious contender by day’s end. Teammate Joey Logano took third.

LAP 62: The top 3 Hendrick cars — Byron, Larson, Elliott — have been about 2-3 tenths faster than the rest of the field the last few laps.

LAP 55: Michael McDowell has dropped from first to 23rd on two fresh tires. It is now 20 laps after the restart.

LAP 51: Joey Logano to fourth over Ty Gibbs.

LAP 49: Chase Elliott to third on the outside lane. Elliott is really fast.

LAP 42: Michael McDowell finally gets down to the bottom with an aggressive block on Cole Custer. Custer has to lock up the brakes and caused Todd Gilliland to touch the wall. Christopher Bell passes McDowell on the outside lane for seventh.

LAP 37: William Byron takes the lead. Michael McDowell tried to defend but has just two fresh tires. Kyle Larson battles McDowell for second and now Ty Gibbs and others are coming through.

LAP 30: Michael McDowell takes the lead with a pit stop for two fresh tires. William Byron, Kyle Larson, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Cole Custer, Christopher Bell and Austin Cindric round out the top 10 off of pit road on four tires. No one stayed out.

LAP 29: Daniel Suarez spins. This is the first caution of the day. Bubba Wallace makes contact and Ryan Blaney avoids it.

LAP 25: Chase Elliott takes third. Now, Denny Hamlin goes for fifth on Joey Logano.

LAP 22: Chase Elliott to fourth over Joey Logano.

LAP 20: Chase Elliott takes fifth from Denny Hamlin. Hamlin appears to be saving his tires early on.

LAP 13: Joey Logano takes fourth. He basically needs a win to get into the Championship 4.

LAP 5: William Byron, Kyle Larson, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Cole Custer, Chase Elliott, Kyle Busch, Austin Cindric, Christopher Bell.

LAP 1: William Byron takes the early lead from the pole.

The first stage is 130 laps.

RACE START

The race is scheduled to go green at 2:17 p.m. ET. No cars are set to go to the rear of the field.

Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe are locked into the Championship 4 after winning Las Vegas and Talladega, respectively.

Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson are in position to join them in the Championship 4 but the four drivers below the cutline will have something to say about that.

Everyone in the playoffs qualified in the top 12 other than Ryan Blaney who barely starts in the top 30.

William Byron, who is below the cutline, is on the pole. If the race ended with the drop of the green flag, Byron would get into the Championship 4 and knock out Bell.

500 laps will determine if that comes to be or not. 

NextGen winners at Martinsville: Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, William Byron.  

Today’s race goes green just after 2 p.m. ET on NBC, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and MRN.

MORE: Byron earns pole for Cup cutoff race at Martinsville