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Kyle Petty equates 'franchise player' William Byron to Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Justin P Joy | Last updated 4/16/24

Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron has been one of the best drivers in the Cup garage since the 2022 season when the Next-Gen cars were introduced. With nine wins, he is leading the pack for most wins in the Next-Gen era and his three triumphs in 2024 from juts nine races shows he is not slowing down anytime soon.

Despite being teammates with two Cup champions in Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott, the No:24 driver has firmly established himself as the most valuable asset at Hendrick Motorsports. His maturity, potential and racing prowess alongside his technological knowledge gives him an edge over his experienced teammates.

Recently ex-NASCAR driver Kyle Petty highlighted William Byron’s importance at HMS. He pointed out that the 2024 Daytona 500 winner is a driver who is a franchise player such as Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch. These drivers not just get teams wins and championship, but also helps the teams to evolve in the technical side.

William Byron is not that kind of driver. Jeff Gordon was not that kind of driver. Neither was Kurt Busch, or Kevin Harvick in recent years. These are franchise players. These are players that not only see the racecar, they see the organization, and they see where the racecar can go. And they drive that bus. That’s what I’m talking about.

Kyle Petty told Eric Estepp.

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Kyle Petty explains why Kyle Larson is a different breed to William Byron

Before giving the franchise player verdict, Petty discussed the difference between Kyle Larson and William Byron. The No:5 Chevy driver is the only racer who has a genuine case to make in the discussion of who is the best driver at HMS.

Petty pointed out that Larson is a pure racer who doesn’t have much idea about the mechanical side of the car he is given, but he will drive the hell out of to win the event. He highlighted the prowess of Larson to get wins without needing to know anything about the cars.

We know the story of Kyle Larson. He gets in a car, and he drives the freaking wheels off of it. It doesn’t make — he doesn’t want to know what tires are on it. He doesn’t want to know what the springs are. He doesn’t want to know anything else. Give him a steering wheel, and a place to sit, and by god, he’s your guy. He’s your guy. Kyle Petty said.

To a certain extent, Kyle Petty has a point in the francize player claim. Byron is racer on the same meld as Gordon, and is understand the cars enough to help them evolve after every race. Byron having Gordon on his side every race also helps as well.

This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

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