William Byron fastest in Richmond NASCAR Cup practice

The top speeds all came from the first 20-minute session with Byron leading the way with an average lap speed of 117.101 mph.

Byron turned out to be the only car in practice to top the 117-mph mark.

Byron mentioned that Richmond is consistently impressive and he expects the same this time. He observed that they recently painted lines on the frontstretch, which might affect the strategy of running the lower line for better traction. However, the key factor will still be effectively managing the tires.

Chase Elliott achieved the second-highest speed at 116.364 mph, while Chris Buescher secured the third spot with a speed of 116.134 mph. It is worth noting that both drivers belonged to Group A as well.

Tyler Reddick set the fastest pace in Group B, taking the lead with a speed of 113.804 mph.

Among those drivers who ran at least 10 consecutive laps, Byron had the top average speed (113.740 mph). Aric Almirola and Bubba Wallace were second and third, respectively, in that category.

Group A

Byron was among the first to hit the track and turned out to have the fastest average lap speed at 117.101 mph.

During the session, Byron did make a minor contact with the wall at Turn 1. However, there seemed to be no adverse impact on his No. 24 Chevrolet.

Elliott achieved the second-highest speed of 116.364 mph, while Buescher secured third place with a speed of 116.134 mph.

Erik Jones and Almirola completed the top five positions.

Group B

Reddick, who was fastest last week in practice, topped the second group with an average lap speed of 113.804 mph.

Kevin Harvick achieved the second-highest speed of 113.607 mph, while Kyle Larson secured the third position with a speed of 113.402 mph.

Michael McDowell and Joey Logano rounded out the top five.

In the last minute of the session, a warning was issued due to the presence of debris on the frontstretch. It seems that Harvick unintentionally drove over the debris in his No. 4 Ford car.

Derek Kraus substituted for A.J. Allmendinger in Kaulig Racing’s No. 16 Chevrolet while Allmendinger participated in the Xfinity Series race at Road America on Saturday.