"The sky's the limit" for Xfinity Series rookie William Byron

“I think the sky’s the limit,” Byron told Motorsport.com.

That bar is awfully high when you consider Byron amassed a record seven wins last year and won three poles in his rookie season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

Even though he’s only experience in an Xfinity car came in test sessions within the past month, Byron has already got his JR Motorsports team excited about the possibilities.

“I’m super excited. I love to watch the young guys,” said veteran team owner Rick Hendrick, who signed Byron to a multi-year contract last season. “I don’t know whether it makes me feel young again – I don’t know what it is.

“William, I’ve been so impressed with him. In his first test in an Xfinity car, two laps in, our guys said, ‘He’s at the edge on speed, at the edge of grip.’ ”

Byron, 19, said he thought the preseason tests at Phoenix and Atlanta went well and he appreciated the chance to get a feel on two very different kinds of tracks before the season got underway.

“I least I’m not starting cold-turkey at Daytona and getting in a car for the first time. I know what the guys feels like and everything. I will just be a matter of being around cars for the first time and obviously, it’s a big race.”

Byron will make his first Xfinity start in Saturday’s Powershares QQQ 300 at Daytona International Speedway. In his only other appearance at the track, last season in Trucks, he started and finished 13th.

“I think there are few things that are different between the Trucks and Xfinity. The way I sit in the car is quite different. The way they move around on the track is different,” he said. “Honestly, though, with less downforce (on Xfinity cars), it’s good for me. I’m not used to driving the car another way.

Strong group of drivers around him

Byron will have plenty of experience to draw on at JR Motorsports.

Veterans Elliott Sadler and Justin Allgaier both return to JRM’s Xfinity lineup this season and both made it to the Championship 4 at Homestead, Fla. Michael Annett is also running full-time for JRM in the series this year.

“We’ve got four cars full-time and we’ll have a fifth one this weekend with Kasey (Kahne), so it’s good to have all those veteran guys around me and we can lean on each other and be able to trade notes,” he said.

“Elliott has really helped me a lot getting comfortable with these cars and understanding how to work in the draft and how to race on a mile-and-a-half. All of that is very helpful.”

With admittedly so much to learn, why is Byron so confident he could have another stellar season?

“I’ll definitely have the resources this year and I’ve definitely been put into a great position,” he said. “So, I want to prove everyone right who has believed in me and prove the others wrong. I want to be able to compete for wins and reach my dreams – which is competing and racing in the Cup series.”

Five more to watch in Saturday’s Xfinity season opener

Elliott Sadler – Sadler ended up second in the series standings last year, losing to Daniel Suarez in the season finale at Homestead. There’s no reason to think the veteran has any less desire to capture his first NASCAR title.

Matt Tifft – Tifft will compete full-time in the series this year with Joe Gibbs Racing, having missed much of last season after having surgery to remove a brain tumor. In 11 career starts, he has one top-five and six top-10 finishes.

Daniel Hemric – The Richard Childress Racing driver moves to Xfinity after spending last season with Brad Keselowski Racing in Trucks. He’ll work with an experienced team and crew chief in Danny Stockman Jr., who led Austin Dillon to a series championship in 2013.

Cole Custer – Custer moves to a new series and with a new team at Stewart-Haas Racing. He ran five races for JRM last season with four different crew chiefs and earned one top-five and two top-10 finishes.

Tyler Reddick – Reddick knows how to win at Daytona, capturing the Truck series season opener in 2015 while running for Brad Keselowski Racing. He’s running a partial schedule this season with Chip Ganassi Racing in the No. 42 Chevrolet. His teammate, Brennan Poole, is running full-time in the series this year.