TC Daily Pit Stop: Who Are the Top NASCAR Cup Series Drivers Statistical Leaders in 2023 (So Far)?
TC Daily Pit Stop: Wednesday, June 14th, 2023
Heading into NASCAR’s Only Full Off Week of 2023, Which Drivers Have the Most Wins in 2023?
We are 16 races into the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, and after Sonoma Raceway, two drivers stand above the rest as far as race wins go in the series… William Byron and Kyle Busch.
The two Chevrolet drivers have three wins on their records so far this season, which ranks as the most in the series, currently.
Byron scored back-to-back wins at Las Vegas and Phoenix, and an additional win at Darlington during throwback race weekend. Meanwhile, Busch scored a win in his second-ever start with Richard Childress Racing, which came at Auto Club Speedway, and he followed that up with triumphs at Talladega and Gateway.
While Byron and Busch both have two wins this season, Martin Truex Jr., who leads the regular-season point standings over Byron, just picked up his second win of the season this past weekend at Sonoma Raceway.
Kyle Larson, likewise, has two victories this season as well and could threaten Byron and Busch as the wins leader in the series as we head into the second half of the year.
Other drivers that have won in the NASCAR Cup Series so far this season include Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Who Leads Some of the Other Major Statistical Categories So Far in 2023?
Byron tops the list of drivers with the most top-fives this season with seven, just under a 50% top-five finish rate, while Byron, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Busch, and Christopher Bell are all tied for the Series lead in top-10 finishes this season with nine.
Byron has led the most laps this year as well, with 717 laps led, the next closest competitor in that statistical category is Kyle Larson with 588.
When it comes to average finish, it’s Martin Truex Jr., who leads the way among full-time racers with an average finish of 11.4. Alex Bowman, who missed three races due to a broken back, actually ranks second with an average finish of 12.0 this year.
William Byron Leads the Series in Stage Wins — And it Isn’t Even Close
With the NASCAR Cup Series closer — competition-wise — than it’s seemingly ever been, it is incredible to see the domination that William Byron has put on from a Stage-Winning perspective.
The driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 has won SEVEN of the possible 33 Stages so far in 2023, which puts him in a class all by himself.
Ross Chastain, who has four Stage Wins this season, is the next highest, which means that Byron has nearly doubled the second-place driver in Stage Wins this year. Overall, Byron has amassed 164 Stage Points this season, which leads all other drivers as well.
VIEW FULL RANKINGS OF STAGE WINS AND STAGE POINTS
Who Has the Least Incidents and Who Has the Most Incidents Among Full-Time NASCAR Cup Series Drivers This Season?
While William Byron and Ryan Blaney are right in the thick of the hunt for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Regular-Season championship, both drivers have had a VERY different path to getting there.
While Byron, who has three race wins, and seven Stage Wins, has navigated a mostly stress-free path to this point, as evidenced by only recording four on-track incidents through the opening 16 races of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, it’s been a different story for Blaney.
Blaney, who sits third in points after 16 races has just one win, and he has been involved in the most on-track incidents of any NASCAR Cup Series competitor this year with 15.
While it doesn’t mean that Blaney has caused 15 incidents, it’s indicative that he’s had some less-than-favorable luck on track. And if he’s third in points without luck, you wonder how much better he could be if his luck turns around in the second half of the year.
While Blaney has the most on-track incidents, followed by Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson with 14, Byron’s four incidents are the least of any full-time driver this year.
Chris Buescher, Corey LaJoie and Justin Haley all rank just behind Byron with only five on-track incidents this year.