Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared his opinion on William Byron and Kyle Larson’s performances in the last couple of races. Speaking about this, the former driver pointed out that between the two HMS drivers, Byron has been outshining his teammate, Larson.
Byron, who was having a fine day at Michigan, ran out of gas with one and a half laps left and ended his race in 28th place. Larson, on the other hand, finished his race in fifth. Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing claimed the victory ahead of Chris Buescher and Ty Gibbs.
Thanks to his Stage 1 and Stage 2 performances, the #24 driver could still take some points and keep his Championship lead intact. Byron is currently leading the table with 576 points, compared to Larson’s 535 points.
“The last couple of weeks, I think that he’s [Byron] eclipsed Larson as the best car at Hendrick Motorsports. Nobody’s really been able to say that for a long time.” Dale Jr. said on the Prime Video post-race show.
“Larson was so good throughout the majority of this season, but he’s stumbled and kind of been kind of neutralized a little bit over the last couple of weeks. We know that won’t last forever, but Byron needs to take advantage of that and try to go out there and get his wins,” Earnhardt Jr. further added.
However, the entire season’s statistics tell a different story. Larson has the upper hand in almost all categories, except for points. The #5 driver has more wins (three to one), better finishing positions (11 to 14.4), more stage wins (eight to seven), more lead laps, Top 5s, and Top 10s than Byron.
As a result, Earnhardt Jr.’s statement about William Byron eclipsing his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Kyle Larson, looks contradictory. However, one can understand that the former driver was speaking about the two drivers’ last few race weekends, where Byron indeed surpassed Larson.
How did William Byron fare in the last few NASCAR Cup races against Kyle Larson?
When comparing the last three races (keeping the recently concluded Michigan International Speedway race out), William Byron has indeed been the better man at Hendrick Motorsports over his teammate, Kyle Larson.
Byron registered three back-to-back Top 5s at North Wilkesboro, Charlotte, and Nashville, including a runner-up finish at the Coca-Cola 600. Compared to him, Larson finished his races in 21st, 37th, and eighth places.
In a nutshell, William Byron has been the statistically better driver at Hendrick Motorsports in the last couple of races, but tagging him as the top dog at HMS over Kyle Larson so far into the season seems a little too far-fetched.
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Edited by Tushhita Barua
