BIG APPLE, BIG SPOTLIGHT
Byron’s narrow Daytona 500 win over Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman earned him a trip to New York City for a series of appearances on Tuesday. Bowman, who was featured in the Netflix docuseries “Full Speed,” said he has enjoyed his new role as a figurehead for the sport.
“It’s been fun,” Byron said. “I enjoyed all the stuff I got to do this week, especially because it was something unique and different. It was a lot of different questions. … Obviously I was running on adrenaline for a couple of days and it’s back to the racetrack now.”
ODDS AND ENDS
Denny Hamlin is a 17-2 favorite, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson are next with 10-1 odds, followed by Byron and Logano at 12-1. … Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s 47 Chevrolet failed two inspections on Friday. JTG Daugherty Racing engineer Max Kennon was ejected for the weekend. Stenhouse, the 2023 Daytona 500 winner, qualified 27th.
UP NEXT
The NASCAR Cup Series moves to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway next weekend. Elliott says it’ll be a revealing race for his team.
“I feel good about where we’re at,” said Elliott, who won in Atlanta in 2022 and finished 14th last week at Daytona after winning the first stage. Elliott is looking to bounce back from a winless 2023 season.
“I think we’re in a good place and I think next week you’ll get your first report card about where you really are as it pertains to regular racetracks. I’m excited to get out there and see, but until you get out there it’s kind of hard to guess because me giving you an answer today is a guess.”