The Daytona International Speedway hosts two Cup Series races every year. The first one is the legendary Daytona 500, which every driver on the grid dreams of winning. The second is the Coke Zero Sugar 400, which plays a crucial role in setting the 16-driver playoff field. William Byron is one of the few drivers with the authority to detail the different dynamics between the two.
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During a press conference at Watkins Glen International, he was asked to do the same, considering that he is the winner of the last two Daytona 500s. He said that the two events are largely different from each other. For one, the fall race is a lot more chaotic than the season-opener for obvious reasons.
He explained, “I think the track is slick in some ways, but at nighttime, it gains some grip. I feel like the cars are edgier to drive in the fall race. Plus, in the Daytona 500, you have more time to dial in your setup and dial in your handling for what you’re going to fight on Sunday. I think desperation is high for a lot of people, so it just creates a lot of elements that create a lot of crashes.”
Drivers push each other more aggressively because of this desperation and end up creating lengthier races filled with cautions. Byron continued to use an example from 2024 to make this case. He had been running fourth in the fixture, believing that all he needed to do from thereon was push. Josh Berry had been in his outside lane at the time.
The drivers tried going three-wide, but ended up shaking the balance of the inside lane, which caused Berry to flip over. Fortunately, he escaped without major injuries. “So, yeah, it’s always something there,” Byron concluded.
The summer race at Daytona will soon arrive once the visit to Richmond Raceway is checked this weekend. The hype on it will be a lot more than usual since it will be the final race of the regular season and decide who wins 15 playoff points by becoming the regular season champion.
As things stand, Byron is the front-runner with 812 points. His teammate, Chase Elliott, trails him with a deficit of 42 points. Denny Hamlin sits third with a deficit of 81 points. The race will also decide which drivers get through to the playoffs on points.
RFK Racing teammates Chris Buescher and Ryan Preece appear to be the ones heading toward an all-out battle on track, sitting 16th and 17th in the playoff standings.
