Only three drivers have had the chance to wheel the Hendrick Motorsports iconic #24 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series. The first of those, Jeff Gordon has won four Bill France Cups. Chase Elliott did not find much success in his two-year stint behind the #24’s wheel following Gordon’s retirement. But he too became a Cup champ, albeit in his now infamous #9 Chevy.

As of 2024, William Byron has emerged as the perfect inheritor to Gordon’s enormous NASCAR legacy. The newest #24 driver has taken his efforts to numerous milestones, just barely missing out on his first championship. But the former driver, now walking in the esteemed boots of Vice Chairman at the same organization, is confident of positive change, courtesy of his successor’s rapid advances this season.

Jeff Gordon praises the #24 team’s infectious “momentum” 

Following Byron winning the #24 car’s 106th victory in the Cup Series amidst HMS’ 40th anniversary celebrations, Gordon has been all praises, for his superstar quartet of Hendrick drivers. The #24 and #5 have already swept up 50 percent of all race wins heading to Texas this Sunday, and the acting VC believes “there’s a lot of momentum” following these crucial early season victories. 

In recent disclosures to SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Gordon said, “The #24 car is just red hot with what William and Rudy (Fugle, crew chief)  are doing. And what that does is, that motivates the other teams within our organization, so they’re all stepping up. Right now two of them have won and the other two wanna also get to victory lane and we’re pulling for that as well.” 

He believes that there are “always new challenges around every corner, every track is different,” while also acknowledging Chevrolet’s extensive part to play in this ‘contagious’ early-season dominance, considering the Camaro Zl1 has seen victory lane five times out of eight races run so far.

Gordon explained, “I just love the tools that we have at our disposal because of our friends at Chevy, and the work that we do at Hendrick…“ However, laying out an elaborate challenge, the 4x champion-turned-Hendrick VC concludes, “I think we do a great job over the off-season prepping for the new season. But like I said, it’s a long season, your competitors learn from what you’re doing. They get better, they get motivated, and trying to stay on top when things are going well. I think is one of the toughest things to do in NASCAR.”

A look at the upcoming challenge

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As the winningest team in NASCAR history, Hendrick Motorsports has battled varying levels of ‘toughness’ and has now emerged victorious 305 times. 2024 has certainly been kind to Rick Hendrick, Gordon, and the rest of the team, and that was evident at their most recent outing in Martinsville.

From Kyle Larson picking up the pole position and finishing second, to Chase Elliott following behind in P3 to sweep out the podium, and even Alex Bowman finishing inside the Top 10, HMS looked very strong on the short track last weekend.

Nevertheless, this Sunday we head back to the Lone Star state for a test of the intermediates, at the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway. Interestingly, William Byron is the current defending champion of Texas’ asphalt, after his win last season. It is also important to note that the last time a race was run on an intermediate track in 2024, Kyle Larson managed to claim a victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, keeping up his momentum from 2023.

Can Byron back himself on his fortunes at Texas, but more importantly, could he win Jeff Gordon’s former #24 car its fifth Bill France trophy this season?