One of the biggest success stories so far in the NASCAR Cup Series 2021 season has been William Byron. That did not seem likely after the first two races, the Daytona 500 and the next race at Daytona Road Course.

However, Byron struck back in some style, winning the next race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Since then, the Hendrick Motorsports youngster also has four straight top-10 finishes and is already in sixth place on points. Byron is also essentially locked into the playoffs.

This year, the no. 24 Hendrick driver has a new crew chief in Rudy Fugle. Last season, Byron won his maiden Cup race with Chad Knaus atop the pit box, who has now taken a higher role at Hendrick Motorsports.

Byron feels he has gelled really well so far with Fugle and his other teammates at Hendrick. He credited them for the early success that has taken him to his highest-ever standing in points in Cup.

William Byron reflects on incredible early success in NASCAR season

“To be sixth in points is the highest I’ve ever been in Cup and a lot of that is credited to Rudy and the guys working together,” Byron said in a recent interview.

Byron is far from done in 2021. He is high on confidence and expects great results ahead. “We’ve got a great team this year, so I feel like our potential is really high,” he added.

Byron drove an almost perfect race at Homestead-Miami to get a surprise win so early in the season. Even in races since then, he has looked very good in phases and has stayed at the front of the field more often than not.

Byron stays hungry for more wins in 2021

While it is easy to take the foot off the pedal after an early win, Byron does not want to rest on past laurels. The team has been working on making things even better and Byron is positive about more wins this year.

“Homestead, obviously, was our shining moment with everything going according to plan and winning that race. Ever since then, we’ve been trying to learn the fine-tuned details that we need to run to try and win multiple races. I feel like we’re really close,” he expressed.

Byron’s confidence was evident in last week’s race on the Bristol dirt. Despite having very little experience of dirt racing, Byron finished in sixth place.

He is a much-improved driver now and exciting times lay ahead for the driver of an iconic number in the Cup Series.

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