This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series travels to Alabama for the final superspeedway race of the year. Coverage of the YellaWood 500 begins with atCountdown to Green 1:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Race coverage starts at 2 p.m. ET with the green flag around 2:15 p.m. ET. It can be heard on MRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).
Records and facts
Last year's YellaWood 500 will probably be best remembered for a huge crash in the closing laps that not only set up a Green-White-Checker restart, but resulted in the revamped Damaged Vehicle Policy for 2025 in the NASCAR Cup Series. The race was delayed for quite a while.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. snatched the lead right before the crash. He was able to hold on in overtime to take the win. Brad Keselowski was second, then William Byron, Kyle Larson and Erik Jones.
Among active drivers, Brad Keselowski has the most victories with six. Blaney and Joey Logano have
three wins each, while four different drivers (Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin and Jimmie Johnson (not entered)) have two each.
All-time, Dale Earnhardt had the most success at Talladega, winning 10 times. The last of his 76 career wins came in the 2000 Winston 500 with his infamous charge from 18th in the final three laps. Dale Earnhardt Jr. with six wins is tied for
second all-time with former teammate Jeff Gordon and Keselowski. Bobby Allison, Buddy Baker and Darrell Waltrip all have four wins each.
Track Facts
Track / Race Length: 2.66-mile tri-oval, 188 laps (500.08 miles)
Banking: 33
degrees
Frontstretch: 4,300 feet, banked 18 degrees in tri-oval
Backstretch: 4,000 feet, banked minimal
Grandstand Seating: 78,000
Pit Road Speed: 55 mph
Pace Car Speed: 65
mph
Opened: 1969
Website: http://www.talladegasuperspeedway.com
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/TALLADEGA
Twitter:http://twitter.com/TALLADEGA
Pre-Race Schedule:
Qualifying: Saturday, Oct. 18, 1:30 p.m. ET on TruTV/HBO Max
Say What?!
"There’s definitely a difference. I hate calling them wild cards because I just hate saying that – but it’s a race where a lot of things can happen. A wreck can take out a few cars more than normal, so it just becomes interesting that way. I don’t know if I’m a huge fan of that where it is in the playoffs, but the rules are the rules and we’re gonna play by them. That’s the whole thing with this whole playoff
system. When we start in Daytona, those are the rules. We all know it. We all know the schedule. We all know how everything goes and it’s up to us to figure out how to do it the best. They’re not gonna change because we don’t like it. They are what they are, so let’s go figure out how to win with it." - Joey Logano
"Talladega is
unpredictable and all about survival. A lot of it is mental as well. You have to be mentally sharp throughout the whole race and especially towards the end when it gets hectic. We had a decent finish last weekend at Las Vegas [Motor Speedway] and hopefully we can keep that momentum going." - Alex Bowman
"Talladega’s one of those places where you have to be patient and smart all race long. We had a great car in the spring and
finished fourth, which showed what this team is capable of. Everyone’s been working hard, and I’m looking forward to getting back out there and building on that." - Noah Gragson
Phil Allaway is the Frontstretch newsletter manager. He can be reached at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com. Photo is courtesy of Nigel Kinrade Photography.
