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NASCAR analyst Jared Haas predicts William Byron could take Kyle Larson's position as the top Hendrick Motorsports driver by the end of the current season.
Kyle Larson has been the dominant driver on the team. He won the Cup Series championship in his first season with Hendrick in 2021 and was the runner-up in the 2023 season. Currently, he leads the championship with four stage wins and one victory at Las Vegas. At the same time, William Byron has gained traction as well with three race wins, running fourth in the standings.
Analyzing his performance, Jared Haas said on Frontstretch that Byron has been more consistent than Larson, and his wins at three different types of tracks this season provide versatility.
"He's been a little bit more consistent force week in and week out. Winning at Circuit of the Americas, Daytona, and Martinsville, you have a superspeedway, you have a road course,and a short track. So that shows the versatility of Byron which I mean is a key factor for being the top dog," Haas said.
Byron has looked strong this season, especially after his victory at Martinsville and a 1-2-3 finish for Hendrick Motorsports. Haas further mentioned that although Larson has the hold currently, Byron might be able to follow him up later in the season:
"I'm going to give the edge to Larson for now but I would not be surprised if Byron rails off a few more wins, he can be the top dog by the end of the season."
William Byron compared with former Hendrick Motorsports legend
The HMS driver was complimented by NASCAR legend Kyle Petty, who thought that the former is following Jeff Gordon's footsteps in racing.
Gordon won the Cup Series championship four times with Hendrick Motorsports in his career spanning over two decades. He was a bold driver and is one of the icons to have ever raced for the team. Petty feels that William Byron could be the next Gordon for the team in the future.
Analyzing both drivers, Petty said on GoPRNLive that Byron drives like Jeff Gordon, and can help to move the team in a positive direction:
“He's [Byron] really insightful into where the team is and I think that shows that William Byron is a Jeff Gordon-style driver. William Byron is a guy that drives the car and then says ‘I think we can move the ball forward if we change this and we work this and we do this’ that's the way Jeff Gordon was.”
