The common thread between recent NASCAR Cup winners starts with the letter B

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Ryan Blaney could be next. Or maybe it will be Alex Bowman. Then again, Christopher Bell already has won three times this season and could add to his total Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

In a world where "A" means the best, it is the B's that are winning in NASCAR.

The first five points races of the Cup season have all been won by a driver with a last name that begins with B.

William Byron won the Daytona 500. Bell won the next three races. Josh Berry won last weekend's race at Las Vegas.

"That's just a funny stat, a funny coincidence," said Berry, who will start second at Homestead. "I guess if your last name starts with a B, you're feeling pretty good this weekend at least."

OK, so if not you Josh Berry, then who will win this weekend to continue the streak?

"Ryan Blaney," Berry said. "He's been super fast every week and just kind of had some misfortune."

Denny Hamlin, a three-time Homestead winner, notes the "interesting trend" of the B's winning this year and said if not him, his pick to continue that streak also would be Blaney.

That's not going out on a limb. Blaney has finished runner-up at this track the past two years. Tyler Reddick passed Blaney on the last lap to win last fall.

"Obviously had good runs here the last couple years; just trying to figure out a way to close them out," said Blaney, who will start sixth. "I had the race won last year and I didn't do a very good job on the last lap and lost the race for us."

But it's not just a recent trend of drivers with the last name of B winning so often in NASCAR. Of course, it helps that eight of the 37 drivers in Sunday's Homestead race have last names that start with B.

Along with Bell, Byron, Blaney, Berry and Bowman, the group includes Kyle Busch, Chase Briscoe and Chris Buescher.

Since the beginning of the 2023 season, drivers with a last name that begins with B have won 45.5% of the races (35 of 77). Since 2022, drivers with last name that begins with B have won 39.8% of the races (45 of 113).

"I'd love to keep it going," said Buescher, who will start 11th.

But Buescher has another idea that could help him return to Victory Lane for the first time since last year's playoff race at Watkins Glen.

"I was walking with Christopher Bell and I was joking with him that I'm going to change my first name back to Christopher since it's working pretty solid there for him," Buescher said.

True, but don't discard the B theory just yet.

Four of the top five qualifiers for Sunday's race all have last names that start with B.

"At least we're the ones starting up front," said Bowman, who won his sixth career pole Saturday. "I think we'll have a shot it. If there's a conspiracy that's getting me a win, I'll take it."

Carson Hocevar has added a silent B to beginning of his last name on social media in hopes of being the next driver to win. But he didn't have the B added to his driver's uniform.

"I need that," he said.

But he was the only driver questioned willing to change his last name to include a B.

Reddick isn't phased by the success of the B's.

"It'll work itself out soon," he said.

Chase Elliott laughed at the idea of changing his name to add a B.

Then he said: "No, I don't think so. … I think we'll just try to win."