Jeff Gluck

USA TODAY Sports

Our series of weekly NASCAR driver interviews continues with William Byron, a Kyle Busch Motorsports rookie who currently leads the Camping World Truck Series in points and wins (five). Byron was recently signed to a Hendrick Motorsports development deal, which will see him race for JR Motorsports in the Xfinity Series next season.

Q: What is an errand or chore in your daily life people might be surprised to learn you do yourself?

A: Well, probably just going to school. I just moved into college at Liberty University (which sponsors Byron). It’s something that’s unique and probably isn’t something that every race car driver is doing.

Are you in a dorm? Do you have a roommate?

Yeah, I am in the dorm. My roommate is from Colorado, so he’s a Broncos fan. I’m going to have to put my Panthers poster over his to stay strong. (Laughs)

Q: If you could do any race over again, which race would you choose?

A: Gosh. Probably Bristol (earlier this month). That place is like running a hamster wheel, because you’re going so fast and everything happens so fast. So when I took the lead, I was running like a hamster. I should have probably just calmed down when I got the lead and made sure I could keep the truck from getting loose. But we had a broken shock, so maybe not.

Q: The longest race of the year is 600 miles. How long of a race could you physically handle without a driver change?

A: It would depend if it was cool outside. Like if it was a night race and it was 70 degrees or something, I could probably race for 800 miles. The Coke 600 has always been one of my favorite races, but it’s super long. So for the satisfaction of everybody, I think the 600 is as long as I’d want to go. People would start getting pretty loopy inside the race car after that.

William Byron, 18, signs with Hendrick Motorsports

I know you’re very much into iRacing, so what’s the longest you’ve ever sat and done that at one time?

Back in March, they had like a 500-lap Bristol race on iRacing. I did that, and my eyes were glued to the computer screen. I couldn’t hardly see anything after awhile; I had computer eyes. Then I was sitting in this chair that I thought was going to be comfortable, but I didn’t realize how much my legs were going to be cramped up afterward. It wasn’t the best idea!

Q: Let’s say president of NASCAR was an elected position voted on by the drivers — and you decided to run. What would one of your campaign promises be?

A: I’d say just having shorter weekends. I’d be the biggest advocate for less practice. Sometimes it’s a waste of time. We have three practices for three hours, and it’s just not necessary. I’d probably do two 45-minute practices and go race. And night races are pretty cool to me, so I’d try to do more of those.

Q: At the start of this year, exactly 857 drivers had ever raced in the truck series. Where do you rank among those 857?

A: Hopefully in the top 100. I think I still have a lot to do. There’s a lot of guys who have won more races and guys raced in different eras. Hopefully if I keep racing, I can rack up some more wins in the Truck Series and I can chase guys like Kyle (Busch, who is second on the all-time Truck wins list with 45). I’d like to keep racing in it and keep getting wins.

Q: What do you think your reputation is — and is that reputation accurate?

A: I think it is pretty accurate. Hopefully people think of me as a nice guy; I don’t think I’ve done a lot of things to make people mad. That’s always good thing as a rookie!

But I think people might have underestimated how much time I put into the sport, just because I got into it later than a lot of people (Byron didn’t start racing until four years ago). I've watched a lot of tape and film and I study a lot.

Are we talking stuff like YouTube?

Yeah, just watching YouTube races. And I’m a big fan, so I’ve watched races from when I grew up as a kid — which for me was probably 2004 or ’05. I can think of all these memories of Tony Stewart winning races and climbing the fence at Martinsville — that was my first race I went to, and I wanted to stay for the burnout. So I think I have a good understanding of the sport that way.

Q: A famous chef wants you to invest in the new restaurant he’s opening, but he wants you to pick the cuisine. What type of food would your restaurant serve?

A: I’d say hibachi-style food. And they’d be able to do it outside of the show, but it would still be just as good.

So they wouldn’t flip the shrimp in your mouth and stuff?

Yeah, I’m not into all of that. (Laughs) They wouldn’t cook the food in front of you. Just give me the food.

Q: What is the most daring thing you’ve done outside of racing?

A: I’m kind of a wimp when it comes to heights, so I did this Slingshot ride where it launches you straight up into the air. I did that at Daytona Beach (Fla.) and Myrtle Beach (S.C.). It was pretty wild. I had a death grip on the handlebars to make sure I didn’t fall out.

Doesn’t that flip you all over the place too?

Oh yeah. It launches you the first time, and then you start doing flips and you’re pointed down at the ground. It’s a disaster to me. (Laughs)

Q: In a move to generate more excitement, NASCAR decides in an upcoming race it is going to require every driver to have a passenger in the car. You get to pick the passenger. Who do you choose?

A: I’d say probably my dad (Bill) or my sister (Kathryn). My dad has done the Richard Petty Driving Experience, but he’s never raced, so I think it would be hard for him to understand what it’s really like until he gets in one. It’s definitely more intense from the passenger seat, too. I did a dirt Late Model test and I was in the passenger seat, and I was holding on for dear life. (Laughs)

And I’d pick my sister because she’s just on totally different ends of the world. She works in banking and she doesn’t know a ton about racing, so I think she’d get a kick out of being in the car for a race.

So your sister isn’t much of a race fan?

I mean, she follows my racing, but she’s like a brain-o. (Laughs) So she’s different than me.

Q: How often do you talk inside the car without hitting the radio button?

A: Probably not a ton. I’m always thinking to myself and focusing on the race. When the caution comes out, I realize my mouth is wide open and my mouth always gets dry.

That’s funny. So you don’t realize you’re doing it until the caution comes out?

Yeah, and then I’m reaching for the water bottle. (Laughs) It’s weird, when I’m driving, I’m just like this (makes a face where his eyes are wide open and his mouth is agape).

Open letter to Chase Elliott: Enjoy the ride

Q: Who will win the Sprint Cup in 2021?

A: I mean, hopefully me. But realistically, probably somebody like Chase Elliott or Kyle (Busch). Kyle will be closer to his 40s then, but he’ll still be racing us all for the championship.

Q: I’ve been asking each driver to give me a question for the next interview. Last week was Greg Biffle, and his question was: Do you think you’ll beat Greg Biffle’s single-season wins mark of nine victories in the Truck Series? You've got five now.

A: I’ve looked at it, actually. (Laughs) But I don’t know if I can do that. I mean hopefully, but that’s a pretty impressive win mark. He set the bar pretty high.

And do you have a question for the next interview? It’s with Denny Hamlin.

I’d ask him what his rookie year was like in the Cup Series. What challenges did he face and how fun was it?

Follow Gluck on Twitter @jeff_gluck