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On Sunday night, William Byron won the NASCAR race in Atlanta for his fourth victory of the season. Byron's victory in Atlanta was his second in the previous two years, and he now leads the NASCAR points standings.
The risk of rain influenced strategy as drivers tried to get to the head of the pack before the race was delayed or canceled due to weather. On Lap 167, Byron passed A.J. Allmendinger for the lead and maintained it until a crash on Turn 3 involving Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Preece, and Bubba Wallace produced the seventh yellow of the evening on Lap 178.
William Byron recovered from a spin early in the second stage, which set him down a lap, and was then in the perfect position as the weather seized control at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
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This is what he had to say after the race:
"Hey fans, we are here at victory lane at Atlanta. Just super excited to get a win tonight. Total team effort to comeback from spinning out and get back towards the front. Just really proud of this race team and shows what we are capable of. So definitely good fortune on our side tonight. Great race out there at Atlanta and just excited to get a win."
NASCAR sent cars to pit road on lap 185 due to the weather and potential lightning. Cars were covered as officials waited for the rain to stop. Only a few minutes later, a severe weather warning was issued within eight miles of the track, and fans and teams were advised to evacuate the stadium immediately, prompting NASCAR to cancel the race.
William Byron comments on his contact with Corey LaJoie in Atlanta
On Lap 80, Corey LaJoie had climbed up to 24th, but he collided with William Byron, sending Byron spinning from 23rd. LaJoie admitted to his team that he miscalculated in thinking he was clear and misread the situation.
Lajoie's car received very minor damage, but Byron had a flat tire and had to spend time on pit road putting his car back together. After the race, Byron blamed himself.
"That was probably my mistake there..." he said to Fox Sports.
William Byron went on to win the race which was called off due to a severe rain warning. When NASCAR called the race, Daniel Suárez was second and Allmendinger was third. The top five were completed by Michael McDowell and Kyle Busch.
