Sitting sixth in the standings with a 40-point cushion, William Byron’s ninth-place run at Kansas Speedway did little to calm the nerves of Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman Jeff Gordon. Byron started 12th and salvaged a top 10, but Gordon made it clear the No. 24’s lack of speed set off alarm bells despite Byron’s third-place effort a week earlier at New Hampshire.
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On the other side of the garage, Chase Elliott stole the show. In a two-lap overtime shootout, he stormed from 10th to first, edging Denny Hamlin by 0.069 seconds to claim his second win of 2025.
With Elliott’s win, Hendrick placed three drivers inside the playoff top 10, a result that might have allowed Gordon to breathe easier for the moment. Yet Byron’s struggles kept the pressure high.
Meeting the media, Gordon did not mince words. “The 24 was the one that was kind of the eye opener today. They were pretty far off. They come out of here with a top 10 because they didn’t give up either.”
“That one’s got our heads, scratching our heads, and we’ll go back and diagnose kind of what they went through and why they were in that position. Just glad they pulled a good finish together there to get the points they needed.”
For Gordon, the unpredictability of the Next Gen car remains a thorn in the side of every team. Thousandths of an inch can decide whether a car qualifies in the top five or mired back in 20th. That fine line, he said, is why teams can look like world-beaters one week and completely lost the next.
“The 24 is a good example of that. They tried a couple things, and all of a sudden they look like the car just came to life all of a sudden out of nowhere.”
He acknowledged the playoff heat is unlike anything else. With Ford showing muscle at select tracks, particularly Penske, and Toyota dominating long runs, Hendrick had to dig deep. That’s why Elliott’s win tasted even sweeter at Kansas.
Still, Gordon praised the fight his drivers showed at Kansas. He lauded their willingness to share notes, lean on each other, and keep pushing the envelope.
