At Talladega Superspeedway has always been a special event, but for one driver and team it is a very special weekend indeed.
One of the most recognizable cars on any track is the black number three Richard Childress Racing car that was driven by Dale Earnhardt Sr for over 20 years.
This weekend that number three car returns to the track with an Earnhardt at the wheel for the Xfinity Series Ag Pro 300 at Talladega Superspeedway. The grandson of Dale Sr and the nephew of Dale Jr, Jeffrey Earnhardt will take the wheel of the iconic number three car complete with the white and black fire suit that was so familiar to Earnhardt fans.
And to make the event all that more special, Larry McReynolds returns to the top of the pit box to serve as crew chief after trading in his calculator for a microphone 21years ago to work with FOX sports.
After no practice, Jeffrey Earnhardt was the first car on the track to qualify for the race on Saturday afternoon. He clocked a time of 52,604 seconds. A time that kept Earnhardt at the top of the leaderboard until near the end of the first round. Only Ty Gibbs and Austin Hill ran a better lap time in round one.
Forty-one teams brought cars to the track to vie for one of 38 starting spots in the race. After the first round of qualifying CJ McLaughlin, Jesse Iwuji, and Natalie Decker failed to make the race.
With a time of 52.454 seconds, Jeffrey Earnhardt puts the black number three car on the pole!
Speaking on his first career pole, Earnhardt said, “I’m taking the moment in, man. I’d be lying if I said there was no pressure, honestly. What the black number three means to me is, you know, the champion, the man himself, my grandpa. He was my superhero. So, there’s definitely pressure. But I’m just honored to even have this opportunity to be out here in this car.”
On making his first ever start for Richard Childress Racing Earnhardt said, “it’s incredible. It just really has me speechless. I didn’t… This is what we hoped to happen, but I didn’t know for sure that I would be capable of it. Obviously Richard brings fast cars and I feel like I’m a good driver, but you never know until you’re given the opportunity. I think we were able to put it all together today and hopefully we can do the same tomorrow.”
Car owner Richard Childress also spoke on seeing the number three on the track again, “it’s been pretty amazing. Just to see the black three car back on the track with an Earnhardt in it, it’s just kind of touching to me anyway because I was always a big Earnhardt fan. And this is Earnhardt country.”
Back on the pit box as crew chief, Larry McReynolds said, it’s cool to be back down here trust me.”
The starting lineup for the Ag Pro 300:
Jeffrey Earnhardt
Austin Hill
Sheldon Creed
Landon Cassill
Ty Gibbs
AJ Allmendinger
Brandon Jones
Daniel Hemric
Riley Herbst
Brandon Brown
Justin Allgaier
Ryan Sieg
Brett Moffitt
Myatt Snider
Anthony Alfredo
Jeb Burton
Chandler Smith
Noah Gragson
Kaz Grala
Sam Mayer
JJ Yeley
Josh Berry
Jeremy Clements
Gray Gaulding
Mason Massey
Drew Dollar
Bayley Currey
Ryan Vargas
Alex Labbe
David Starr
Joey Gase
Joe Graf Jr
Josh William
Matt Mills
Kyle Sieg
Shane Lee
Caesar Bacarella
Ryan Ellis
Matt Mills, Brandon Jones, Ryan Ellis, Caesar Bacarella, Shane Lee, Riley Herbst, and David Starr were all moved to the back of the field after their crews made unapproved adjustments to the cars.
Stages one and two of the race are 25 laps each with stage three lasting 63 laps for a total of 113 laps around the 2.66 mile track.
Driver of the number three car in the Cup Series Austin Dillon and Kurt Busch join Adam Alexander in the FOX Sports broadcast booth for today’s race.
And the Dash-4-Cash returns for round three with Austin Hill, Landon Cassill, AJ Allmendinger, and Brandon Jones all competing for the $100,000 prize.
Jeffrey Earnhardt brings the field down for the green flag start of the race from the inside lane with Austin Hill alongside and Ty Gibbs behind. Earnhardt edges out for the lead with the drivers two wide across the field. Ty Gibbs comes up from the inside lane to atake the lead. Drivers get three wide across the track.
Ty Gibbs leads the first lap with Jeffrey Earnhardt in second; Ryan Sieg, Austin Hill, and Josh Berry round out the top five.
Lap three, Ty Gibbs leads the field on the outside lane with Jeffrey Earnhardt leading the inside lane. Sam Mayer leads the middle row which is further back in the field.
Lap four, Ty Gibbs has he lead with Jeffrery Earnardt taking the spot briefly before Gibbs retakes the lead.
Lap five Ty Gibbs leads the race with Ryan Sieg in second; Jeffrey Earnhardt, Josh Berry, and Brandon Brown rounding out the top five.
Lap six, Jeffrey Earnhardt and Ty Gibbs swap the lead back and forth depending on which line is moving.
Lap 10, Jeffrey Earnhardt leads the race with Austin Hill in second; Landon Cassill, Sheldon Creed, and Ty Gibbs round out the top five.
Lap eleven, Ryan Ellis brings out the first caution flag of the race when the tire comes apart. There is also some debris on the track – part of the tire carcass.
The teams were given four sets of tires for today’s race.
Several of the drivers come down pit road for service. Drivers can run 42 to 44 laps on a single load of fuel. Pitting now, the drivers have the option to stay out at the end of the first stage.
Jeffrey Earnhardt brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 15 with Austin Hill alongside on the outside lane. Earnhardt and Hill go side by side until Austin Hill gets out in front for the lead.
Lap 16, the top five are Austin Hill, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Landon Cassill, AJ Allmendinger, and Sheldon Creed.
Lap 17, Ryan Ellis is the only driver not on the lead lap with all 38 drivers on the track.
Lap 19, Austin Hill holds on to the lead with AJ Allmendinger in second; Ryan Sieg, Sheldon Creed, and Justin Allgaier rounding out the top five.
Lap 20, Sheldon Creed passes Austin Hill for the lead.
Lap 21, Austin Hill retakes the lead.
Lap 21, the top five are Austin Hill, Sheldon Creed, Josh Berry, Justin Allgaier, and Ty Gibbs.
Lapp 22, Josh Berry takes the lead briefly before Austin Hill retakes the lead as the two drivers lead each lane.
Lap 23, Josh Berry leads the inside lane and the race, but swaps it back and forth with Austin Hill.
Josh Berry wins stage one.
The top 10 at the end of stage one :
Josh Berry
Ty Gibbs
AJ Allmendinger
Landon Cassill
Austin Hill
Justin Allgaier
Noah Gragson
Anthony Alfredo
Sam Mayer
Brett Moffitt
Most of the drivers come down pit road for service including those who made a pit stop during the caution. Taking fuel only, Josh Berry wins the race off of pit road.
After staying out on the track, Anthony Alfredo brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two on lap 31 from the inside lane and goes side by side with Brandon Brown before taking the lead.
JJ Yeley passes to take the lead.
Lap 32, JJ Yeley leads the race with Noah Gragson in second and Anthony Alfredo in third; Sam Mayer and Brandon Jones round out the top five.
Lap 34, Sam Mayer takes the lead.
Noah Gragson passes Sam Mayer for the lead.
Lap 35, the top five are Noah Gragson, Josh Berry, Anthony Alfredo, Sam Mayer, and Brett Moffitt.
Lap 40, Austin Hill is the leader with Anthony Alfredo in second; Brandon Brown, Noah Gragson, and Sam Mayer round out the top five.
Lap 41, after droping back in the field, Jeffrey Earnhardt has moved back up to the top 10.
Lap 43, Austin Hill leads the race with Sam Mayer in second; Brandon Jones, Brett Moffitt, and Sheldon Creed round out the top five.
Lap 45, Sam Mayer is the new leader with Justin Allgaier in second.
Lap 46, Justin Allgaier is the leader with Sam Mayer in second; Austin Hill, Brandon Jones, and Ty Gibbs round out the top five. Jeffrey Earnhardt is in seventh palce.
Mason Massey brings out the caution flag when he hits the wall after losing a tire and catches up a few other drivers. Josh Berry, Brett Moffitt, Ryan Ellis, JJ Yeley, and Chandler Smith were also involved.
Josh Berry wins stage two under caution.
The top 10 at the end of stage two:
Josh Berry
Sam Mayer
Austin Hill
Brandon Jones
Tu Gibbs
Brandon Brown
Drew Dollar
Myatt Snider
Jeffrey Earnhardt
Jeb Burton
Brandon Jones gets penalized for not coming down pit road in single file. He will have to restart the race from the back of the field.
Lap 55, Austin Hill brings the field down for the green flag start of stage three with Sam Mayer on the outside. Hill edges out for the lead with a push from Ty Gibbs.
Leaders are double file with some drivers three wide back in the field.
With 57 laps remaining in the race, Austin Hill has the lead with Ty Gibbs in second; Sheldon Creed, Riley Herbst, and Justin Allgaier rounding out the top five.
JJ Yeley, Chandler Smith, and Mason Massey are out of the race .
Fifty-Five to go, Austin Hill has the lead with Ty Gibbs in second; Sheldon Creed, Justin Allgaier, and Ryan Sieg round out the top five.
Lap 62, Austin Hill holds on to thel ead with Ty Gibbs on his bumper; Sheldon Creed, Justin Allgaier, and Noah Gragson round out the top five. Jeffrey Earnhardt is in 10th place.
The rear bumper panel of Josh Berry’s car comes off leaving debris on the track and brings out the fourth caution flag of the day. The drivers within their window to fill up with fuel and make it to the end of the race.
The field comes down pit road for service with many drivers taking fuel only. Ty Gibbs wins the race off of pit road.
Lap 72, Ty Gibbs brings the field down for the green flag restart with Austin Hill alongside. Getting a push from Noah Gragson, Austin Hill edges out for the lead.
Austin Hill leads the race with Noah Gragson in second; Sheldon Creed, Ty Gibbs, and Riley Herbst round out the top five.
Forty to go! Austin Hill leads the race with Ty Gibbs in second; Noah Gragson, Riley Herbst, and Sheldon Creed round out the top five with Jeffrey Earnhardt just out side the top five in seventh place.
The caution flag comes out with 37 laps remaining in the race for a crash involving Brandon Jones, Ty Gibbs, Drew Dollar, David Starr, Ryan Sieg, Ryan Ellis, and Daniel Hemric were all involved. Ty Gibbs gets his first DNF of the season when his car goes to the garage on the wrecker.
Lap 82, Austin Hill brings the field down for the green flag restart with Sheldon Creed on the outside. Getting a push from Noah Gragson, Austin Hill edges out for the lead.
Lap 83, Austin Hill leads the race with Sheldon Creed in second; Noah Gragson, AJ Allmendinger, and Riley Herbst round out the top five.
Thirty to go! Austin Hill has a tenth of a second lead on Sheldon Creed; Noah Gragson, AJ Allmendinger, and Landon Cassill round out the top five.
With 25 laps to go, Austin Hill has the lead with Sheldon Creed in second; Noah Gragson, AJ Allmendinger, and Landon Cassill round out the top five.
Ty Gibbs has been checked and released from the infield care center. He apologized for his involvement in the crash.
With the laps winding down, Lap 90, the drivers have been somewhat aggressive throughout the race but have begun amping it up and are getting very aggressive on the track as they battle for space.
Lap 93, 20 to go! Austin Hill continues to lead the race with AJ Allmendinger in second; Justin Allgaier, Riley Herbst, and Sheldon Creed round out the top five.
Lap 97, Matt Mills brings out the caution flag when he hits the wall; causing significant damage to his car.
Austin Hill brings the field down for the green flag restart with AJ Allmendinger alongside on lap 102 and gets a push from Justin Allgaier finally puts Hill out in front for the lead.
Lap 103, the top five are Ausitn Hill, AJ Allmendinger, Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer, and Jeb Burton.
Ten to go, the drivers are two and three wide across the track.
The seventh caution flag comes out for a big crash back in the field. Myatt Snider has the rear bumper from Kaz Grala’s car. Sam Mayer, Brandon Jones, Drew Dollar, Ryan Vargas, Kaz Grala, Joe Graf Jr, and Brandon Brown were all involved.
Lap 110, Austin Hill brings the field dow nf for the green flag restart with Justin Allgaier alongside. Sam Mayer gives Justin Allgaier a push for the lead but gets loose after contact from AJ Allmendinger and hits Austin Hill; both drivers get into the inside wall.
The race goes into overtime!
Lap 114, Justin Allgaier brings the field down for the green flag restart with AJ Allmendinger alongside. Getting push form Sheldon Creed, Justin Allgaier edges out front for the lead but AJ Allmendinger gets out in front just as the caution flag comes out when Gray Gaulding and Caesar Bacarella make contact. Sheldon Creed is also involved. Creed and Bacarella both hit the wall hard.
AJ Allmendinger brings the field down for the second green/white/checker finish on lap 119 with Justin Allgaier alongside on the outside. Jeb Burton gives Allmendinger a good push but Justin Allgaier comes up from the outside to take the lead.
The caution flag comes out when Jeremy Clements gets stalled on the track.
Throughout the field, crew chiefs have told their drivers to save fuel.
Justin Allgaier brings the field down for the third overtime restart on lap 123 with AJ Allmendinger alongside. Justin Allgaier pulls away from the field. Noah Gragson takes the lead with AJ Allmendinger in second getting a push form Ryan Sieg. Jeffrey Earnhardt is in fourth. Justin Allgaier is out of fuel and out of the way.
Noah Gragson takes the white flag!
Ryan Sieg gets loose but saves the car. Jeffrey Earnhardt comes from fourth to take second.
Noah Gragson wins the race and gives car owner Dale Earnhardt Jr another Talladega win with Jeffrey Earnhardt finishing second.
This is Gragson’s first Talladega win and his second of the season and climbs the fence with his team to celebrate.
AJ Allmendinger finishes third to win the Dash-4-Cash prize for his second Dash-4-Cash win The final Dash-4-Cash race is at Dover.
The unofficial results of the Ag Pro 300:
Noah Gragson
Jeffrey Earnhardt
AJ Allmendinger
Landon Cassill
Ryan Sieg
Anthony Alfredo
Riley Herbst
Joey Graf Jr
Myatt Snider
Brett Moffitt
Josh Berry
Alex Labbe
Drew Dollar
Shane Lee
Jeb Burton
Joey Gase
Bayley Currey
Kyle Sieg
Josh Williams
Ryan Vargas
Gray Gaulding
Justin Allgaier
Jeremy Clements
Sheldon Creed
Caesar Bacarella
Brandon Jones
Austin Hill
Sam Mayer
Kaz Grala
Brandon Brown
Matt Mills
Ryan Ellis
David Starr
Daniel Hemric
Ty Gibbs
JJ Yeley
Mason Massey
Chandler Smith