NASCAR CUP SERIES: PLAYOFFS | CHAMPIONSHIP 4

November 2, 2025

Chase Briscoe

William Byron

Press Conference

An Interview with:

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. William, you apologized to Denny immediately. Why was that something that was important for you to do?

WILLIAM BYRON: I don't know. It just doesn't seem right. Yeah, I mean, I think just kind of seeing him, he had beat us, and we're running second, four laps to go, you go into the wall and cause a caution. It sucks, right? I don't want to be that guy, even if I'm in the Championship 4. Doesn't really matter. Don't want to change the outcome. So it sucks.

Q. What ultimately happened in turn three?

WILLIAM BYRON: Yeah, I felt something a little funny on that lap. Was trying to figure out if it was a tire. I guess we were coming to three laps to go. I was trying to figure out left rear, right rear. About the time I hit the brakes into three, it laid down on the right side of the car and went straight.

Yeah, I was hoping it would be a left rear so I could kind of get back, but...

Q. Chase, is this a race of what could have been? Felt like you never really had a chance with everything that went on.

CHASE BRISCOE: I mean, yeah, a little bit. I mean, I definitely felt like I was more than capable. Just to go from the back to the front that many times. I would have loved to have just been able to race straight up.

I got back to second, was able to run William down there. Thought I was really, really good. I blew like the second or third tire.

Yeah, definitely it's a race of what could have been. But yeah, I don't know, I feel like hopefully people felt like we were here and in contention. We weren't average running position-wise up there a whole lot. Certainly I felt like, I don't know, we had one of the strongest cars for sure.

If we could have started up front, not even started up front, but not had issue after issue, we would have been in the mix.

I thought we did everything right as far as pit stops, obviously car speed and balance. The tires just didn't go our way.

Q. William, where was Denny so better than you, especially that last stage?

WILLIAM BYRON: Yeah, he was just faster. I thought he was, like -- trying to get leverage on him, I felt like he always had leverage on me in restart scenarios, whether I was on the inside. We were both kind of racing different, in different situations. I was on the bottom the one restart. He was outside of me. I couldn't get the throttle down. He could kind of pinch me off.

I just felt like he was quicker on the short run. He would get those 10 to 15 car lengths. I could come back on the long run. Too much to overcome.

Q. Any point in the last stage where you were thinking maybe you should back off and hope he's the one with the tire issue?

WILLIAM BYRON: No, I don't think they work that way. It's hard to figure out why they did what they did. I don't know. I feel like I had runs that I was faster on the short run, beat up the tires more. That last run felt pretty normal. It was just we were all running as hard as we could. Maybe that's why.

Q. Chase, what is the mindset when you have to keep resetting multiple times throughout the race coming from the rear?

CHASE BRISCOE: Just stay in it. My whole career has been never give up, you never know what can happen. I feel like I race with that. I've had it multiple times throughout my career where you cannot give up in these races.

I go back to I want to say 2020 Homestead, I was seven laps down, came back to run third. This year Vegas, we were four laps down, came back to be on the lead lap. You just never know what can happen. One caution can change everything.

Our car was obviously good enough, I could just go from the back right back to the front. I knew my car was good. Just trying to stay in it. You never know. Late cautions can happen, pit strategy, whatever.

Yeah, I think just my whole career's been don't give up. I feel like I race with that.

Q. Both of you guys are young. This will not be your last opportunity to be here. Does that help soften the blow a little bit, or is it still too soon?

WILLIAM BYRON: I don't look at it that way. I just look at it this could be your last opportunity. I don't think really ahead in terms of what's down the road. I mean, I'd love to be in this opportunity again. You never know how things are going to work out.

CHASE BRISCOE: Yeah, I mean, I would say the same. I mean, this is my first year at JGR, right? Hopefully we continue to be one of the elite teams. But it can change at any point. You don't know this could be your last one. Hopefully I can be in a lot more championship situations.

You're never guaranteed anything in this sport. Especially from a speed standpoint, everything else. SHR, my rookie year, the year before they won 17 Cup races, then the downfall happened. You never know when that light switch can be.

Yeah, you're never guaranteed being here again. Yeah, it stings a little bit.

Q. Do you feel like you'll have some lessons learned from being in this position, dealing with all the junk that happens the week?

CHASE BRISCOE: Yeah, you know, honestly the race and the whole week didn't really feel any different than a normal weekend. I thought that it would when the race actually started. Maybe it would have if I was up front the whole race. I was always coming from behind. I had so much going on, I never really even thought, Hey, this is the championship race.

I don't know. It stings right now because, like I said, you never know if you're going to get another opportunity.

Q. With the things that you -- you guys feel like both of you can walk away from this knowing that you gave everything you had, didn't leave anything out there?

CHASE BRISCOE: Yeah, I mean, I know when I lay my head down tonight, I feel like I did my job to the best of my ability. Yeah, I'm happy I know with my effort. Obviously I would have loved for things to go different.

Yeah, I felt like that was one of the best Cup races I've ran, for sure.

WILLIAM BYRON: Yeah, I think you put everything into it, like he said. Yeah, I felt like we were deserving to run where we were. So yeah.

THE MODERATOR: William and Chase, congratulations on an outstanding season. Thanks for the time.