Sports
With Daytona 500 win, William Byron has arrived as NASCAR's next superstar
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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Can’t-miss prospect. Prodigy. Future superstar. These are all labels that were placed on William Byron as he ascended NASCAR’s development ladder. Some drivers who have this heavy praise lavished on them don’t meet the expectations. Somewhere along the way, the rocket fizzles and the once-promising career doesn’t pan out as envisioned. They plateau. The opportunities don’t materialize.
It’s a story that has played out many times throughout NASCAR’s history. But Byron is quite the exception. Already, at age 26, he’s proven to be the can’t-miss prospect that didn’t miss.
He won big in his lone year in the Truck Series in 2016. He won the 2017 Xfinity Series championship as a rookie. Driving for Hendrick Motorsports since his Cup debut, he earned Cup Series Rookie of the Year honors in 2018, then qualified for the playoffs the next season and every season since. And after his Daytona 500 triumph Monday night, he now boasts 11 victories at NASCAR’s top level. Maybe that figure seems low at first blush considering Byron is in his seventh year in Cup, but since 2020 — the season he won his first race — his 11 wins are more than former Cup champions Joey Logano (9), Martin Truex Jr. (8), Kyle Busch (7), and Brad Keselowski (5) have during that same span.
Whatever “it” is that separates great drivers from those merely good, Byron has it in abundance. And he’s only going to get better as he gains additional experience. His initial foray into racing came via iRacing, an online racing simulation, and he didn’t start driving actual race cars until he was a teenager, as opposed to most other Cup drivers who started much younger in Legends or go-karts.
“That talent is one thing, but then the race craft and the work ethic and all these other things that come along with it,” Hendrick vice chairman Jeff Gordon said while celebrating in victory lane. “How you communicate what a race car is actually doing so your team can make it go faster and how you work together as a team. That’s the remarkable thing to me. And clearly, he’s unique and special in a way that …”
Before Gordon could finish his thought, the roar of the ongoing Xfinity Series race interrupted him. Nonetheless, his point was obvious: Byron is a unicorn. A generational talent who every step along the way has risen to meet the expectations before him, regardless of how high the bar is set.
“Everybody said he had natural talent,” Byron’s mother, Dana Byron, said about her son. “He caught on so quickly (when he first started racing) that by a couple of months in, he was beating everybody. At first, he wasn’t and then he just kept studying and studying and practicing.”
Byron maybe didn’t need a Daytona 500 win to cement his status as NASCAR’s next superstar. He already stamped his mark last year in a breakout 2023 season that included winning a series-best six races and ranking first in top-fives, top-10s and average finish, as well as second in laps led.
William Byron hugs his mother, Dana, after winning Monday’s Daytona 500. “Everybody said he had natural talent,” Dana Byron says of her son’s rise in NASCAR. (James Gilbert / Getty Images)
But one tremendous season does not define a career nor make a legacy. This comes over time, stacking one great season after another, filled with gaudy statistics like Byron racked up last year. If you only do this once, well, people tend to throw around the dreaded “F” word (fluke).
A student of the sport, Byron understands this reality. He’s seen drivers win big one year, stumble the next and never recapture their winning mojo. Those around him say this is part of what motivates him. Team owner Rick Hendrick described Byron as carrying a “chip” with him into the 2024 season, and Byron agreed.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever get that chip off my shoulder,” Byron said. “It’s always been there. It’s just I’m very quiet about it. I don’t know. There’s always reasons to find. We didn’t win the championship (last year, when he finished third), and we don’t get talked about the most, and other people get more publicity, things like that, and I feel like I just — whatever I find, I use as motivation.
“It’s just the way I’ve always been internally. I don’t express that a lot. But it definitely burns inside. I feel like that’s what fuels your offseasons a lot of times is just what can I find, what little edge can I find to be the best. There’s still tons to learn. I can be a lot more complete in the car, and I feel like your race craft and things are always evolving, and just trying to be a better version inside the car with my team.”
Even within the Hendrick organization, Byron is often looked at as the “other guy,” something that he readily acknowledges — and that adds motivation. When your teammates include Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott, each former Cup champions widely regarded as among NASCAR’s elite, it can be easy to get glossed over.
The only way to change this perception is to win, both races and championships.
“I use it all as fuel, so just keep it coming,” Byron said. “All the preseason predictions and everything.”
What Byron is, though, and what Larson and Elliott are not yet, is a Daytona 500 winner. Within Hendrick, only Byron carries this distinction. He also has more wins than Larson and Elliott since the start of last season.
“Today was a major step,” Gordon said. “I think the Championship Four last year and then following that up with the Daytona 500, he’s well on his way.”
This point Byron drove home Monday night before a national television audience, emphatically announcing his status as NASCAR’s next superstar. Not only has he arrived, it’s also clear that he’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
GO DEEPER
Anonymous NASCAR garage poll: Who wins the Cup crown? Biggest disappointment?
(Top photo: Jeff Robinson / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Sports
Legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg slams notion of overseas Super Bowl: ‘Convention of Americana’
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It’s no secret one of the NFL’s top priorities is continuing to build its brand globally.
But with the addition of more international games in different countries, including the NFL season reportedly kicking off on a Wednesday with a game in Melbourne, Australia in 2026 (it will technically be Thursday for Australians), the question must be asked: Will the Super Bowl end up overseas?
Legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg can’t see it happening despite all the international momentum.
A wide view of play in the first half during an NFL International Series game at Wembley Stadium. (Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images)
“The Super Bowl has become a convention of Americana,” Steinberg told Fox News Digital during a recent phone call. “So, it’s not just an entertainment event – it’s a cultural event. Big business, big politics, big entertainment and big sports, along with fans, all coalesce in the city. To take that overseas, I think would be difficult.”
The NFL’s first regular-season game in its history was 2005, when the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers traveled to Mexico City to play. But two years later, the league launched its “International Series,” a game between the New York Giants and Miami Dolphins at Wembley Stadium in London, England that kickstarted the push to continue bringing NFL games to overseas fans.
BROADCASTER TIM BRANDO SUGGESTS SPORTS FANS GET CONFUSED WHERE TO WATCH GAMES AS STREAMING TAKES OVER
Of course, every league wants to expand its reach, and the NFL has done a tremendous job of scheduling more games by the year, while also interacting in different ways with those fans, whether it’s through the NFL Draft or other activations.
In 2026, there will be a record nine international regular-season games played, spanning across four different continents and seven different locations.
Leigh Steinberg attends the 39th Annual Leigh Steinberg Super Bowl Party at Storek on Feb. 7, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images)
Other than Melbourne and London, where there will be three games, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Munich, Madrid and Mexico City will all be host sites for the NFL in 2026.
But while fans continue to consume these games, some marking it on their calendars to travel to watch their favorite teams, do the teams themselves like it?
“They have mixed feelings,” Steinberg said. “They actually like the travel aspect of it, seeing different cultures and other things. But it takes a physical toll. I mean, to fly from [the West Coast] to London is 12 hours. Then, to fly back, it’s 14 hours. When you start moving east in Europe, it gets longer than that. So, it takes a physical toll.
“I think that if you ask the coaches, they don’t love international games, because it takes them out of the routine and schedule.”
Steinberg believes there needs to be more research done on the effects that jetlag and travel have on the human body, and whether it’s impacting the quality of play as well.
There’s no stopping the global push by the league, but will there come a point where it’s too much, especially for players and coaches to handle during a grueling season?
STEINBERG’S COMEBACK
While talking all things football, Steinberg also discussed life and how his fight through adversity led to him writing “The Comeback: A Playbook for Turning Life’s Setbacks into Victories.”
Leigh Steinberg speaks onstage during the 39th Annual Leigh Steinberg Super Bowl Party at Storek on Feb. 7, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images)
Steinberg had built an empire by representing the best athletes in the world, but he also dealt with alcoholism and financial struggles, ultimately bringing him to rock bottom. But he rebuilt himself through those hard times, and with this book, he’s hoping to help others do the same.
Also sharing stories of athletes dealing with similar adversities, Steinberg believes all readers should come away with this lesson learned.
“Internal introspection,” he said. “A realistic understanding of your own values and priorities, whether it’s short-term economic gain, long-term economic security, spiritual values, family. It’s to have clarity internally in terms of what really constitutes a fulfilling life. Then, coming up with a plan to get back to that.”
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Sports
Boys’ basketball player of the year: Maxi Adams of Sierra Canyon
When you’re already an All-American in high school and several new players show up perhaps as talented as you, the challenge is developing chemistry and seeing who’s going to remain humble and unselfish for the good of the team.
Maxi Adams, Sierra Canyon’s 6-foot-8 senior, was the big man on campus until another All-American, Brandon McCoy, showed up this season, along with Brannon Martinsen, a former Trinity League player of the year. Not only did Adams welcome them, he adjusted his game and changed his role.
“Anything for the win,” he said. “Trust the coach’s game plan.”
Maxi Adams of Sierra Canyon rises to deliver a dunk against Harvard-Westlake in Open Division championship game.
(Steve Galluzzo)
Adams continued to contribute as a scorer, rebounder and defender, and when the games got much more important in the playoffs, he asserted himself and delivered, such as a 26-point performance in the Southern Section Open Division final.
The North Carolina-bound Adams has been selected The Times’ boys basketball player of the year for the 2025-26 season.
Sierra Canyon went 30-1 and won the Southern Section Open Division championship and state Open Division title even though Adams was injured in the first quarter of the state final. He averaged 16 points and 7.2 rebounds with 10 double doubles.
“He’s a great player,” said Harvard-Westlake coach David Rebibo, whose team lost three times to Sierra Canyon.
Adams’ development of his skills and maturity over his four years of high school, first at Narbonne, then Gardena Serra and his final two seasons at Sierra Canyon, have been impressive. He went from being uncomfortable as a freshman to being versatile, confident and a leader as a senior.
His willingness to embrace the changes at Sierra Canyon this season were key.
“It wasn’t hard,” he said. “We played well together and spent a lot of time together. At the next level, you’re going to have to be able to play with great players. I just carry that forward.”
His older brother, Marcus, was a standout at Narbonne and played this past season at Arizona State after previously being at Cal State Northridge. For Maxi to handle things this season with his brother far away showed he’s ready to embark on his own journey in college basketball.
As for his mentality, Adams said, “We come to work every single time. We put in the time.”
Sports
No 12 High Point falls short of Sweet Sixteen bid after late run by four-seed Arkansas
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No. 12 High Point put everyone on notice for the second time in as many games this March Madness, but could not find the same success.
After advancing to the Round of 32 following an upset victory over No. 5 Wisconsin, the Panthers’ season ended after No. 4 Arkansas ran away from them late Saturday night.
High Point led by as many as five early in the game, and they were up 56-52 with 14:17 to go after going on a 12-2 run.
Both teams exchanged buckets for several minutes, with no one expanding their respective leads by more than three points for a little while.
High Point Panthers head coach Flynn Clayman and guard Rob Martin (3) react in the second half against the Arkansas Razorbacks during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. (Craig Strobeck/Imagn Images)
With 7:04 to play, the Panthers took a 72-71 lead, to which the Razorbacks responded with a 10-2 run, putting them up by seven and giving them their largest lead of the night.
The game was then quickly tied at 83 after a wild run by High Point, but over the final 3:19, Arkansas outscored High Point, 11-5, to snatch the victory, despite a valiant effort from the Panthers.
High Point Panthers forward Terry Anderson (5) drives against Arkansas Razorbacks forward Malique Ewin (12) and forward Billy Richmond III (24) in the second half during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. (Craig Strobeck/Imagn Images)
VANDERBILT’S HAIL MARY SHOT MISSES BY NARROWEST OF MARGINS AS NEBRASKA ADVANCES TO SWEET 16 IN EPIC FASHION
Arkansas was favored by 11.5, and while they couldn’t cover, it was another Sweet 16 appearance for legendary head coach John Calipari.
Two Panthers, Rob Martin (30) and Cam’Ron Fletcher (25), combined for 55 points, but Darius Acuff Jr. of Arkansas trumped everyone by dropping 36.
Arkansas will face the winner of No. 1 Arizona and No. 9 Utah State in the Sweet 16.
High Point Panthers head coach Flynn Clayman and forward Braden Hausen (15) react in the second half against the Arkansas Razorbacks during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. (Craig Strobeck/Imagn Images)
High Point’s victory over Wisconsin on Thursday marked their first ever in March Madness after making the tournament last year for the first time.
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