Byron reflects on ‘full circle moment’ with cover | Sports News

As the newly topped NASCAR Cup Series common season champion, 2025 has been a milestone 12 months for William Byron. Along with his newest title, he is also set to characteristic on the cover of the first NASCAR console video recreation in 4 years.

Having begun his foray into racing, famously, by way of his immense success in iRacing earlier than taking to the wheel in his mid-teens, it’s only becoming that with NASCAR 25 having been developed by the aforementioned studios, Byron was chosen because the cover star, alongside Christopher Bell and Ryan Blaney.

“My younger self would never believe this! On the cover of @Nascar25Game. See y’all online soon,” he wrote on social media after the cover was first made public.

Reflecting on the current reveal of the cover, Byron advised 2014 Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick on his podcast that it was “pretty sweet,” including, “I think it’s one of those things that your high school buddies and stuff they send you pictures and they’re like, ‘Look at you when you were 13, 14 and you were just racing.’ 

“It’s a really cool… that’s a full circle moment. That’s a pretty neat experience and it kind of gave me a little bit of the chills.”

Byron advised Harvick that whereas his position during the development of the sport was minimal, he did play it at varied phases and supply suggestions.

As for Byron’s co-stars, Blaney jokingly commented during the cover reveal video, “Mom, I made it. I’m on the cover of a video game.” The 2023 Cup Series champion added, “The NASCAR video games growing up as a kid, they were super iconic.”

Meanwhile, Bell famous hope he “loved iRacing growing up. I used it a lot as a tool.”

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He went on so as to add, “I would be up all night playing that game…When iRacing was off of all actual data and physics from real life stuff and it was a simulation, it wasn’t just a video game.”

With the October 14 release date creeping ever nearer, iRacing, for which NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. serves as an government director, has lately had a number of drivers check the sport, together with the likes of Cup Series drivers Byron, Bell, and Noah Gragson and Xfinity Series drivers Connor Zilisch, Sammy Smith, and Anthony Alfredo, amongst others.

Another driver to have put the sport by means of its paces was Rajah Caruth of the Craftsman Truck Series, who defined how, “You can definitely tell that iRacing had a significant impact on this game from the driving characteristics, to the audio, the visuals, you can tell the footprint that iRacing had on this platform. And it’s a great thing because it just shows how next-level video games can be.”

NASCAR 25 is set to be made out there on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC by way of Steam (though this model will likely be launched later than on consoles).

Players will have the ability to compete within the Cup, Xfinity, Craftsman Truck and ARCA Menards Series within the type of fast races, seasons, or online races towards each other. The recreation will enable them not solely to race, however to make their own in-race choices, whereas speaking with crew chiefs and spotters all through. 

What’s more, gamers will have the ability to navigate their own NASCAR careers, starting within the ARCA Menards Series earlier than working their method up the ladder, customizing their automobiles, managing contracts, funds, workforce services and employees all through.