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| William Byron is 200/1 to win at Kansas Saturday night. |
“I like Kansas just because that weekend a couple of years ago was when I got my first national (series) win in the Truck Series. The track was good for us last year in the Xfinity car and that’s the only time I’ve raced there since the Truck win. It’s a fun racetrack; I enjoy it. It’s really smooth and hopefully the top groove comes in – especially at night, I think it will – so there will be some good options there, and I’m looking forward to a good weekend. It’s a good Saturday night race and then I can spend Mother’s Day with my family – so I’ll have to remember to make sure I give my mom some extra attention this weekend (laughs).”
LIBERTY RETURNS: The blue and red Liberty University colors will adorn the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 this weekend at Kansas Speedway for the university’s fifth race of the season. Liberty is the majority primary partner of the No. 24 team with 12 races in 2018. Liberty University, founded in 1971, offers more than 550 unique programs of study from the certificate to the doctoral level. Byron, a sophomore majoring in business communications, takes online classes at Liberty, which offers more than 250 programs online.
KANSAS STATS: In two NASCAR national series starts at Kansas Speedway – one in the Xfinity Series and one in the Camping World Truck Series – Byron never finished outside of the top five. He won his first Truck Series race at the 1.5-mile tri-oval in 2016 in just his fifth start in the series. Byron started second and led 34 laps before ending up in Victory Lane to jump start what would be the most successful season for a rookie in series history. In his lone Xfinity start at Kansas last season, Byron qualified sixth and powered to a fourth-place result. There has never been a first-time winner in the Cup Series at Kansas, a stat Byron hopes to change this weekend. In his last race on a 1.5-mile track (Texas), Byron finished in the top 10, so Kansas may be a great opportunity for him to capitalize. Two of his teammates – Jimmie Johnson and Chase Elliott – finished in the top 10 at Kansas Speedway as rookies.
ROBERTS PREDICTION: 18th) #24 William Byron (200/1) - He got the first top-10 finish of his Cup career at Texas (10th), which was also the best among his four Hendrick Motorsports teammates. It should also be noted that his first career Truck Series win came at Kansas in 2016, the first of his seven wins that season while driving for Kyle Busch's team. He's on the job training and getting better weekly.
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