William Byron-the NASCAR star-across rumors of him playing flirty with pop sensation, Sabrina Carpenter. The gossip was based on an Instagram hoax that took off once Byron recently bagged the Daytona 500.
The 27-year-old started his 2025 NASCAR Cup Series in the dazzling winning way that brought him his second straight win at the Daytona 500. The heavily rain-induced race saw Byron soaring from ninth to first on that exciting final lap. He narrowly escaped a major pile-up involving Denny Hamlin and Austin Cindric as he maneuvered his way through the pack to have that thrilling victory.
An Instagram hoax was enough to spark rumors around dating.
Not surprisingly, in the wake of all this high-octane racing, the talk was mainly post-race focusing on an Instagram interaction between Byrons that somehow sparked speculation about a budding relationship between him and Sabrina Carpenter. A fake profile claiming to be Byron had made an innuendo comment on Carpenter's post of a Vogue photoshoot, that simply said, "Hii."
The comment quickly got fans talking and speculating its connection between the two stars. But Byron quickly clarified things in no time.
Byron Sets the Record Straight
In a talk with TMZ, Byron confirmed the hoax Instagram account and that there wasn't any truth to the dating rumors. However, he did extend an invitation to Carpenter to attend one of the NASCAR events, which he said was more like fun to him.
"They do a really good job with Photoshop nowadays," Byron joked. "It was a good parody account - it's like that NBA Centel account. They did a good job."
He added, "Maybe we can get her out to a race or something, that should be great. Or I can get to a show. That would be fun."
Career Milestones by Sabrina Carpenter
Thus while Byron is hitting all the headlines this racing season, Sabrina Carpenter would take the kind that has come her way. The 25-year-old pop sensation has won two Grammy Awards, "Best Pop Vocal Album" for Short n' Sweet and "Best Pop Solo Performance" for her summer anthem, Espresso.
Carpenter is currently on her Short n' Sweet tour. It brings into conclusion a record-smashing 2024 that has given Carpenter a powerful foothold as one of America's top pop artists.
At the time, NASCAR posted this status update.
Even with that Daytona 500 victory under his belt, Byron was going to lose his standing as king in the NASCAR circle early in the season for another manufacturer. However, both Daytone wins have secured an identity as a serious contender in this sport.
And as the great Cup Series of 2025 goes, their fans are certainly expecting much from the Byron duo on and off the track.