William Byron hasn’t had much trouble making a name for himself in the auto racing world.
The rookie driver will arrive at New Hampshire Motor Speedway today atop the Camping World Truck Series standings thanks to wins in Kansas, Texas, Iowa, Kentucky and Pocono, this season and a total of eight top-five finishes.
Not bad for an 18-year-old with hopes of someday competing for the Sprint Cup. Until then, he’ll be splitting time between the track and classes at Liberty University in Virginia. The school also sponsors Byron.
Off the track, he assumes the life of a regular college student; eating in the dining hall, living in a dorm with a roommate, keeping up with homework and studying for exams.
“On campus, I’m a completely normal kid,” Byron said. Of being a NASCAR driver, “it’s not the first thing I tell people. But a lot of people embrace it and it’s kind of neat.”
On the track, Byron has been anything but normal. His quick ascent began four short years ago when he bought his first Legends car. It quickly turned into a worthy investment, winning four series championships in 2013.
Byron, of Charlotte, N.C., turned pro in 2014 and was Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series. A year later, he won the United Site Services 70 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and was later crowned the K&N Pro Series East Champion.
He gave team owner Kyle Busch five wins this year, but his sights now are set on winning the truck series Chase, which kicks off with the UNOH 175 on Saturday in Loudon.
“You definitely can’t let the pressure get to you,” Byron said. “With the Chase starting, it’s an even playing field. It’s time to reset and turn the page to a new chapter here.
“New Hampshire is one of my favorite tracks,” Byron said. “For whatever reason, I really enjoyed it last year in the K&N car. But it’s all about how you perform now ultimately.”
In August, news broke that Byron will race in the Xfinity series next season for Rick Hendrick’s JR Motorsports, co-owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr.
“Mr. Hendrick is giving me the opportunity next year to be on the team, and it’s a credit to all the people that have believed in me,” Byron said. “That’s how sports stories are made.”
In January, NASCAR announced the Chase format would be applied to the Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series this season. Loudon will host the inaugural Chase race for the truck series Saturday at 1 p.m. in the UNOH 175.
The Chase format has proven to be a success for NASCAR as it tries to attract a broader fan base. According to a press release, last year’s Chase attracted the most viewers NASCAR had seen in a season finale in nearly 10 years. It shows fans enjoy a comprehensive elimination format to determine the series champion, similar to NCAA’s move to establish an FBS college football playoff in 2014.
“Winning has never been this important,” said NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France.
Some of the sports young drivers competing in the truck series Saturday say the format brings a new level of competition to the season’s final races.
“This puts an exclamation point on everything,” said Ben Kennedy, a 24-year-old driver for GMS Racing who made the Chase thanks to his first career win at Bristol in August. “I don’t know a person who isn’t excited for the truck and Xfinity Chase. It has definitely ramped up the intensity.”
The Camping World Truck Series Chase will begin with eight drivers and feature two elimination rounds. The Chase will conclude at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 18 where the top finisher among the final four eligible drivers will be crowned champion.
The Xfinity Series Chase, which begins Saturday at Kentucky Speedway, will feature 12 drivers and two elimination rounds. The Xfinity Chase will also finish at Homestead on Nov. 19. in a race between the final four.
NASCAR has strong southern roots, but the sport has seen a significant expansion over the last several years with more drivers coming from all corners of the U.S.
Joey Logano, one NASCAR’s most popular drivers, hails from Connecticut and is said to consider Loudon his home track.
But Logano won’t be the only driver enjoying a sense of home this weekend.
Kaz Grala, a 17-year-old driver in the Camping World Truck Series, grew up outside Boston and attends private school in Massachusetts while working on his racing career.
“This is 100 percent my real, true home track,” Grala said Wednesday. “I get a ton of family and friends that will come here.”
Grala did not qualify for the Chase, but will be on the track Saturday for the UNOH 175.
Another native of the area is NBC’s lead auto racing producer Matt Marvin, who grew up in Massachusetts and was a self-described “newbie” to NASCAR when the network acquired the rights to broadcast the Sprint Cup Series in 2013.
“It’s absolutely a homecoming,” Marvin said as the series comes back to Loudon.
Both New Englanders said the region’s interest in auto racing has grown significantly in a short time.
“The southern base is super strong and always will be, but the sport has definitely fanned out,” Marvin said.
“I think the New England NASCAR fans are more passionate, more diehard than anywhere else in the country,” Grala said. “We just need more of them.”
Matt Kenseth, the now two-time defending champion at the Magic Mile after winning in July, returns to New Hampshire seventh on the Chase grid, 11 points above the 13th-place cutoff.
Of course, another strong finish in Loudon would only benefit Kenseth. But if he falters he’d have the confidence to bounce back in Dover, where he won in May. Kenseth has 18 top-10 finishes at Loudon in 33 career races. In his last seven races at NHMS, Kenseth has cracked the top-10 six times and has won three of those.
(Nick Stoico can be reached at 369-3339, nstoico@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @NickStoico.)