William Byron made a daring fuel gamble in the NASCAR Cup race at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, hoping to outpace Denny Hamlin and secure a second victory this season. Unfortunately, Byron ran out of fuel on the final lap, forcing an unscheduled pit stop that dashed his chances of winning and left him with a disappointing 28th place finish.
This high-stakes decision sparked discussion on Monday’s edition of NASCAR Inside The Race Live, where co-hosts Steve Letarte, Jeff Burton, and Todd Gordon analyzed Byron’s performance and the consequences of his fuel strategy.
Near Misses Mark Byron’s 2024 Season So Far
William Byron kicked off the season with a strong statement by winning the Daytona 500 for the second year in a row. However, several other victories have narrowly slipped through his grasp, often due to circumstances beyond his control. For example, Byron dominated at Darlington but finished second after a poor late-race pit call. He repeated this pattern at the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte, leading much of the race before finishing behind Ross Chastain.
Most recently, Byron was in contention at Michigan’s two-mile oval in the Irish Hills region. His failure to conserve enough fuel for the race’s final segment was costly. Instead of potentially having four wins this season, Byron remains at just one due to these missed opportunities.
The fact is (Byron had) two dominant performances, no trophies,
Steve Letarte remarked.
This one (Michigan), not as dominant but in the mix, in the conversation, in position once again (and) fell short.
—Steve Letarte, NASCAR Inside The Race Live co-host
Weighing the Crew Chief’s Tough Decisions
While Byron’s fuel shortage was disappointing, credit was given to his crew chief Rudy Fugle for the aggressive strategy he opted to follow. Many crew chiefs might have instructed Byron to conserve fuel by a wide margin in order to guarantee he reached the finish line. Instead, Fugle pushed Byron to balance speed with fuel-saving tactics, aiming to keep Byron in the lead as long as possible.
I love the radio, (how) Rudy Fugle was Hey man, go as fast as you can and save as much as you can and don’t lose the lead,’
Letarte said, praising the difficult balance Fugle asked Byron to maintain.
And those are nearly impossible to do. I didn’t think it was going to be possible, but I love that they were willing to run out of gas.
—Steve Letarte, NASCAR Inside The Race Live co-host
Letarte added that Fugle could have directed Byron to conserve more fuel and secure a modest finish, but the lure of victory, especially early in the season with points and momentum in mind, justified the risk. According to Letarte, Byron may have underestimated how many laps he could save before running dry, expecting to fall short by a lap or two but hoping for a late-race caution to extend his range.
That was the strategy call for the 24, he just came dry and had to pit coming in (with) one to go. You look at a caution, a typical five-lap caution probably buys you three laps.
—Steve Letarte, NASCAR Inside The Race Live co-host
The Fine Line Between Winning and Losing Big
The gamble is inherent in NASCAR’s fuel strategy, often described with the words of singer Kenny Rogers:
You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em and know when to fold ‘em.
The decision to push the car hard while saving just enough fuel to stay in contention can either lead to a dramatic win or a sudden failure.
Todd Gordon highlighted how such a decision depends heavily on the driver’s position in the race.
If William Byron’s running third, Rudy calls this race differently. But when you’ve got the win in front of you, you can’t give that up, you’ve got to take the gamble. This team has had speed every week, it seems like they’re always in the mix, it’s just and it shows overall they’re No. 1 on speed for the year because they’ve done a great job of consistently being a top five car,
Gordon said, underscoring the team’s consistent competitiveness despite the recent setbacks. —Todd Gordon, NASCAR Inside The Race Live co-host
The Broader Impact on Byron’s Championship Pursuit
William Byron’s choice to push aggressively with fuel management in the Michigan race reflects a broader strategy in his championship campaign, where the emphasis is on winning rather than settling for steady points finishes. Each race presents a gamble between risk and reward, and this recent setback may encourage the team to fine-tune their calculations under pressure.
Although Byron’s gamble did not pay off at Michigan, the lessons learned could help the team capitalize on future opportunities, keeping them firmly in contention for the NASCAR Cup title this year. His speed and consistency remain a significant threat to competitors like Denny Hamlin, Ross Chastain, and others across the season.
