NASCAR 2026: Kevin Harvick says Cup Series star has potential to be 'multi-time champion'

NASCAR legend Kevin Harvick has claimed that Hendrick Motorsports star William Byron has what it takes to be a multi-time champion.

Byron has raced full-time in NASCAR's top division since 2018, making his debut at just 20 years old and so far, he's had a lot of success.

In 288 Cup Series races, the driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet has won 16 times, as well as racking up 65 top-five finishes and 120 inside the top 10.

Although he is yet to win his first championship proper, Byron did win the regular season crown in 2025 and has also reached the championship four in each of the last three seasons. At Phoenix in November, he was running second to Denny Hamlin in the latter stages of the race before a tire blowout caused him to wreck.

If all of that wasn't good enough, the 28-year-old has also won the last two Daytona 500s and heads into this year's Great American Race looking for a three-peat.

Kevin Harvick on William Byron potential

With all of that said, Byron does have some fierce competition in the Cup Series right now, with the likes of Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney and several others to contend with.

However, Harvick believes that Byron is now coming into his own and that he has the potential to go on and win multiple championships, despite such strong opposition.

The 2014 Cup Series champion made the comments when playing a game with his podcast co-hosts Mamba Smith and Kaitlyn Vincie, with the trio tasked to stay silent until they heard a better driver than Chase Elliott, Byron's Hendrick Motorsports teammate.

Harvick and company passed on Erik Jones, Carson Hocevar, Bubba Wallace, Chris Buescher, Austin Cindric, Alex Bowman and Shane van Gisbergen before speaking out when Byron’s name was read out.

“William’s better than Chase,” Smith said via Harvick Happy Hour on X.

Harvick added: “The thing that I like about William right now is he’s kinda coming into his own.

“I think that he has the potential to be a multi-time champion.”

William Byron will benefit from The Chase

Byron certainly has time on his side to achieve those championships, easily being able to race for the next 15 years if he so wishes, and perhaps even a little beyond that too.

The Hendrick Motorsports star is also one of the drivers who will benefit from The Chase returning, with his consistency and ability to score big points regularly likely to see him finish high up in the standings and, ultimately, challenge for the championship come the end of the season, only this time, it will be decided by a body of work and not just at Phoenix.

Byron's 2026 effort begins at Daytona on February 15, where he could make history and become the first person to win three consecutive 500s in a row.