William Byron just did what three other drivers could not, according to MotorBiscuit. After winning the 2025 regular season championship, he faced a nasty curse that seemed impossible to break. The last three champions who won the regular title all went winless the very next year. That streak ended on Sunday. Byron dominated the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway to avoid joining that sad list of losers.
The stats tell a wild story. Byron led 362 of the 500 laps in that race. He swept every stage too. This win marks his first of the 2026 Cup Series season. It was also his first victory since last year’s Xfinity 500 at the same track. According to MotorBiscuit, this win keeps him off a recent trend that no driver wants to be part of. He broke a pattern that started in 2022 with Chase Elliott and continued through 2025 with Tyler Reddick.
The Curse of the Regular Season King
History shows this is a rough spot to be. In 2022, Chase Elliott won the regular season crown but went winless in 2023. He missed seven races that year due to a broken leg and a suspension. Martin Truex Jr. won the title in 2023, but he went winless in 2024. That was his final season as a full-time driver. Tyler Reddick won the title in 2024, and he went winless in 2025. The pattern was clear and scary for Byron heading into 2026.
Before Sunday, Byron had not won a single race in the first 34 races of 2026. He was in danger of adding his name to that bad group. Per Beyond the Flag, no regular season champion had won a single race the following year since the Next Gen era began. Byron snapped that drought with a masterclass performance. He finished fourth among the title contenders last year, just like the others who failed to win again.
Can He Finish Strong?
Byron is still only 12th in points with two races left in the campaign. He is not in the championship hunt for this year, but the win matters for his legacy. He has now won four times at Martinsville, all since 2022. His most recent win before Sunday came during the 2025 playoffs. This victory proves that winning the regular title does not have to kill a driver’s season. He avoided the unique statistical trend that doomed his peers.
Now the focus shifts to Homestead-Miami Speedway for the final race. Can he close out the year with another victory? He dominated that track in 2021, so he knows how to run fast there.
