Historic Hendrick Win

Cook Out 400:

William Byron claimed his third victory of the season Sunday afternoon in the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway. Byron led a 1-2-3 Hendrick performance in the race that celebrated the 40th anniversary of Hendrick Motorsports first Cup Series win in NASCAR. Sunday proved to be a picture perfect day for HMS with the Byron win, their first 1-2-3 finish at Martinsville, all four cars in the top 8, and a trove of Hendrick employees (past and present) in attendance for the race all decked out in their ruby red for the weekend. All that was missing was Mr. H himself as he was home recovering from surgery.

HMS drivers dominated the race leading 238 of 400 laps. Larson dominated Stage 1 and then was jumped by Joey Logano on pit strategy. Chase Elliott eventually took the lead and help on for a bit in Stage 3 after Logano and Denny Hamlin led significant laps in Stage 2. Hamlin retook the lead on a long run from Elliott only to lose it to Larson and Byron after a cycle of green flag stops. Byron jumped Larson and once pit stops cycled the 24 car took command of the race and held on until the end. While Byron did use strategy and a little luck, the 24 team was a tale of never give up and do what it takes to get the lead. Byron and team were basically the only car throughout the day that had significant jump in their starting to finishing position. Again, mostly on the tale of strategy and some misfortunes by others. It does not hurt, however, they Byron has demonstrated he is likely the best driver in the new generation of car, has the best team in NASCAR behind him, and has a crew chief wizard in Rudy Fugle atop the pit box. All seems well for Byron who is establishing himself as the championship favorite in the first third of the 2024 campaign.

But what was the big story as far as the racing is concerned? While the Hendrick dominance and storyline is great and should be celebrated, we are once again focused on the atrocious short track racing this new generation car and Goodyear tires continues to deliver. Martinsville, which should be one of the best short track races on the circuit every year, has been the worst so far this year. Yet, NASCAR and Goodyear refuse to make real changes to the car. And as always we hear the same excuses: Goodyear wants a durable tire so they sell more to fans/consumers. I can, for a fact, say how their race tire would wear would make me less likely to buy a Goodyear tire in the future. Matter of fact: their refusal to make a tire that allows this sport to shine makes more far more likely to buy other tires. And NASCAR tells us it's too cost prohibitive to current teams and/or detrimental to future OEMS and cost prohibitive to them as well to make major changes and add horsepower. But what I say is more detrimental is a loss in fan interest. And without a serious look at what it takes to restore glory and good racing on all tracks, I am fearful that may be where NASCAR is headed. They talk about adapting, and now is the time to adapt to keep your current fans and attract a new swath of fans. I hope they stop making excuses and start delivering solid racing products back to the teams and fans.

All in all, however, we should celebrate what HMS and Byron achieved this weekend. They are the best team in NASCAR history. Byron is on a tear as a leading (or maybe the leading) driver of the last few seasons, and they played it well given the circumstances around them. It is also a good, feel good story. A longstanding NASCAR team wins on the anniversary, a milestone anniversary at that, race weekend. Mad props to Byron and the 24 team delivering another major win to Hendrick Motorsports and Mr. H.

This Sunday we head to the Lone Star state for a NASCAR triple header weekend. Trucks Friday night on FS1, Xfinity on FS1 Saturday afternoon, and the big show, the AutoTraderEchoPark 400 Sunday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. EST on FS1. Be sure to tune in to what I hope is a compelling race on the 1.5 mile Texas Motor Speedway.

Picks: Trucks: Nick Sanchez

Xfinity: Riley Herbst

Cup: Tyler Reddick

Header Photo: James Gilbert/Getty Images