Charlotte native William Byron took the checkered flag at Daytona International Speedway in the 2020 Coke Zero Sugar 400 for his first win in the NASCAR Cup Series. The victory also advanced Byron to the Cup Series Playoffs.
Byron joined WCNC Charlotte for a Q&A about his first win.
Q: "Now that you've had a few days to process your first win in the Cup Series, what are your thoughts and how are you feeling?"
A: "It's a range of emotions I mean from excitement to just relief. I'm excited for our team and just looking forward to what's ahead in the playoffs. Also, to think about all the people that have gotten me to this point and gotten me to a position where I can succeed in the Cup Series."
Q: "Going back to the final lap, do you remember what you were thinking when you crossed the finish line?"
A: "I told my friends I felt like I wasn't even in the seat of the car. I just felt like I was so excited, there was so much adrenaline I was just kind of like levitating up out of the car so it was just an incredible feeling crossing the line coming off of turn 4 and knowing that know no one is going to get to you and pass you and you've got it locked up. It's something that I’m really going to remember for a long time. I feel like I soaked this one up, just the journey it takes to get to be a winner in the Cup Series is so hard, so I had to really take it in."
Q: "Earlier today you tweeted out a promo with a message from Steve Smith Sr. Obviously, you're a Charlotte native so to have a legend that played for the Carolina Panthers supporting you in playoffs and to see that what did you think?"
A: "Oh, that's so cool. It becomes a really really small world at that point. I feel growing up as a Charlotte native the cool thing was, I saw a lot of people on Twitter that were talking about that from Charlotte whether it be Panthers players or anybody really from Charlotte so it's cool. Hopefully, we can just represent Charlotte throughout the playoffs and maybe bring the Championship home to North Carolina. That’d be really cool."
The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begin Sunday, September 6th at Darlington Raceway.