It’s the biggest track on the NASCAR circuit – Talladega Superspeedway – and the site of numerous “Big Ones”.
Thirty-eight drivers come to Talladega for the Geico 500.
In what NASCAR calls a cost saving move, there is no longer any practice sessions at Talladega Superspeedway. The drivers first see the track when they make a qualifying run.
The teams lineup the cars on pit road in preparation for making a qualifying run; but NASCAR saw “something they didn’t like” on the Hendrick Motorsports number five car driven by Kyle Larson. Errant roof rails strike again. Larson was not allowed to make a qualifying run, his car chief has been ejected for the weekend, and Larson will have to serve a passthrough penalty once the green flag drops. The move is considered an unapproved adjustment.
Xfinity Series regular Anthony Alfredo is the first driver on the track to qualify and posts a time of 53.411 seconds around the 2.66 mile track.
Shane van Gisbergen makes his Cup Series oval debut at Talladega.
Unlike most races, the drivers have not been divided into two groups but will make one big run with the top 10 drivers moving on to a second round of qualifying to set the pole.
Michael McDowell is the first driver to break the 53 second mark with a time of 52.741 seconds.
Michael McDowell, Kyle Busch, Todd Gilliland, Austin Cindric, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr, Austin Dillon, Christopher Bell, Chris Buescher, and Chase Elliott will all move on to round two of qualifying.
The first driver on the track for round two of qualifying is Chase Elliott. He posts a time of 53.122 seconds.
With a time of 52.609 seconds Michael McDowell puts his number 34 car on the pole for his second pole this season.
The starting lineup for the Geico 500:
Michael McDowell
Austin Cindric
Todd Gilliland
Kyle Busch
Austin Dillon
Martin Truex Jr
Joey Logano
Chris Buescher
Chase Elliott
Christopher Bell
Ryan Preece
Alex Bowman
William Byron
Bubba Wallace
Ty Gibbs
Harrison Burton
Shane van Gisbergen
Tyler Reddick
Daniel Hemric
John Hunter Nemechek
Ryan Blaney
Brad Keselowski
Denny Hamlin
Anthony Alfreda
Daniel Suarez
Chase Briscoe
Justin Haley
Erik Jones
Josh Berry
Zane Smith
Corey LaJoie
Ross Chastain
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Cody Ware
Carson Hocevar
Noah Gragson
BJ McLeod
Kyle Larson
Stages one and two of the race are 60 laps each with stage three lasting 68 laps for a total of 188 laps. The drivers can run around 42 laps on a single load of fuel and will have to make a pit stop in each of the stages.
Michael McDowell brings the field down for the 110th race on the high banks tri-oval at Talladega with Austin Cindric alongside. Before a packed house Michael McDowell and Austin Cindric go side by side as drivers get spread out three and four wide through the field. McDowell leads lap one.
Lap two, Michael McDowell has the lead with Austin Cindric in second; Todd Gilliland, Kyle Busch, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five.
New dad to be, Bubba Wallace leads the lane in the high line; while other drivers take to the middle of the track. Michaael McDowell leads the race from the inside lane on lap five.
Lap five, the entire field are now three wide with Austin Cindric leading the center lane.
Austin Cindric, Michael McDowell, and Martin Truex Jr each lead a lane and swap the lead back and forth.
Lap six, Martin Truex Jr takes the lead with Bubba Wallace in second.
Lap seven, Daniel Hemric is the leader with Ross Chastain in second; Chastain started the race in 32nd place.
Lap eight, the top five are Daniel Hemric, Michael McDowell, Ross Chastain, Corey LaJoie, and Martin Truex Jr.
Lap 10, After starting the race in 37th place, BJ McLeod leads the race.
Lap 12, Kyle Larson is passed to go one lap down; but he is the only driver not on the lead lap.
Drive 14, the drivers have already begun saving fuel.
Lap 16 Chase Briscoe takes the lead of the race.
Lap 17, there have been seven lead changes at the start/finish line so far.
Lap 18, Justin Haley leads the race with Chase Briscoe in second.
Lap 22, Martin Truex Jr has the lead in a three wide battle. Martin Truex Jr, Chase Briscoe, and Justin Haley each lead a lane.
Lap 23, Justin Haley is out in front.
Lap 25, Martin Truex Jr leads the race but Justin Haley comes up on the inside to retake the lead.
Lap 30, the entire field is three wide with Martin Truex Jr leading the way; Chase Briscoe, Justin Haley, BJ McLeod,, and Daniel Hemric round out the top five.
Lap 34, Chase Briscoe and Martin Truex Jr swap the lead back and forth; depending on how the lanes move back and forth.
Martin Truex Jr and Bubba Wallace are having some major radio issues with bleed throughs from other places.
Lap 40, JB McLeod gets into the wall but saves the car and makes it to pit road. He reports that he has no fuel pressure. The track stays green with Martin Truex Jr leading the race.
Lap 41 Noah Gragson is the new leader as green flag pit stops begin with Justin Haley and Chase Briscoe.
Lap 42, Chase Elliott leads the race with Anthony Alfredo in second.
Green flag pit stops continue with many drivers taking fuel only. Tires are not a major issue at Talladega.
Denny Hamlin spins out on pit road.
Zane Smith and Daniel Suarez are caught speeding on pit road and will have server a pass through penalty.
Lap 44, a big group of drivers make their green flag pit stops. Shane van Gisbergen leads the race.
Van Gisbergen brings a group down pit road for service. Brad Keselowski is the new leader.
Lap 46, Chase Elliott leads the race.
Joey Logano was caught speeding on pit road.
Chase Briscoe had to make a second trip down pit road with a flat tire.
Lap 51, Austin Cindric has the lead.
Denny Hamlin reports that he spun out because he hit water – it rained earlier in the day. There are a few weepers at the end and entrance of pit road.
With just six laps remaining in stage one, Kyle Larson is in front of the pack.
After having to serve pass through penalties, Daniel Suarez and Chase Briscoe are a lap down; Zane Smith is two laps down.
Daniel Suarez comes down pit road for tires.
Final lap in stage one, Kyle Larson in in front of the pack but it is Austin Cindric who wins the stage.
The top 10 at the end of stage one:
Austin Cindric
Chase Elliott
William Byron
Ryan Blaney
Kyle Busch
Harrison Burton
Christon Bell
Brad Keselowski
Tyler Reddick
Alex Bowman
Kyle Larson is the “lucky dog”.
Martin Truex Jr is having some fuel pressure issues but makes it to pit road.
Drivers come down pit road for service with Kyle Busch winning the race off of pit road.
Tyler Reddick makes a second trip down pit road.
Chase Briscoe and Daniel Suarez take the wave around.
Several of the drivers make a second trip down pit road to top off the fuel cells.
Denny Hamlin has an extended stop on pit road for a repair to the car.
Kyle Busch brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two on lap 67 with Chase Elliott alongside. Ryan Blaney takes the lead with Austin Cindric in second.
Lap 68, drivers are beginning to form the third line on the outside.
There have been 13 leaders so far.
Lap 70, Shane van Gisbergen leads the race.
Anthony Alfredo takes the lead with Noah Gragson in second.
Lap 71, Noah Gragson is the new leader.
Lap 72, Kyle Larson is in the top five!
Lap 76, John Hunter Nemechek is the new leader; the 15th so far. There has been a total of 34 lead changes so far.
Lap 78, Zane Smith and BJ McLeod are the only drivers not on the lead lap; each are two laps down.
Lap 79, John Hunter Nemechek and Noah Gragson battle for the lead.
Lap 85, John Hunter Nemechek holds on to the lead with Noah Gragson in second; Corey LaJoie, Chris Buescher, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 93, John Hunter Nemechek has the lead; he has led the most laps so far with 18.
Chase Briscoe made a solo green flag pit stop.
Lap 96, drivers are three wide with Chris Buescher, Noah Gragson, and Denny Hamlin in a battle for the lead.
Lap 100, Chris Buescher takes the lead. Drivers are running laps four seconds slower.
Lap 102 drivers begin making green flag pit stops. In a four wide battle off of pit road, Corey LaJoie gets caught up in a puddle and spins out. The track stays green.
Joey Logano leads the race as green flag pit stops continue. The top 12 drivers have yet to make a pit stop.
Just 10 laps remain in stage two, with Denny Hamlin in the lead drivers come down pit road for service. Denny Hamlin misses his pit box with two other drivers getting into the grass.
Christopher Bell is caught speeding on pit road and will have to serve a passthrough penalty.
Joey Logano brings the remaining drivers down pit road for service.
Ryan Blaney is caught speeding on pit road and wil have to serve a passthrough penalty.
Lap 113, Chris Buescher threads the needle to take the lead.
Lap 118, Joey Logano gets back in front with Austin Cindric in second.
Lap 119, Kyle Larson takes the lead.
Kyle Larson and Joey Logano battle for the lead.
Joe Logano wins stage two.
The top 10 at the end of stage two:
Joey Logano
Austin Cindric
Kyle Larson
Austin Dillon
Ross Chastain
Tyler Reddick
Chris Buescher
Chase Elliott
Ryan Preece
Ty Gibbs
Drivers come down pit road for service with
Joey Logano wins the race off of pit road.
Kyle Larson reports some issues with his dashboard.
Lap 126, most of the field comes down pit road to top off the fuel cells. The top nine drivers stayed out on the track.
Joey Logano brings the field down for the green flag start of stage three with Ross Chastain alongside. Kyle Busch give Ross Chastain a push to the lead.
Lap 129, with a push from Austin Cindric, Joey Logano retakes the lead.
The top 20 drivers are separated by just one second!
Lap 134, Chase Elliott makes contact with Christopher Bell; Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe, Justin Haley, and Zane Smith were also involved to bring out the first caution flag of the race for an on track incident.
Ross Chastain is the leader of the race…by mere inches.
Christopher Bell becomes the first driver out of the race.
All but nine of the lead lap drivers come down pit road for fuel. Joey Logano wins the race off of pit road. Anthony Alfredo is the leader.
Lap 138, all but six of the drivers come down pit road to top off the fuel cells. Joeh Berry is the leader.
Lap 140, Josh Berry brings the field down for the green flag restart and holds off Noah Gragson to take the lead.
Drivers quickly get three wide as the battle for the win heats up with just 48 laps remaining in the race.
Daniel Hemric takes the lead with Ross Chastain in second.
Lap 141, Michael McDowell gets back out in front for the lead.
With Michael McDowell’s lead, the Cup Series has reached 300 lead changes in the 2024 season.
Just 44 laps remaining in the race, Michael McDowell leads the race from the inside lane.
With 37 laps to go, Michael McDowell leads the race with Todd Gilliland in second; Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, and Cody Ware round out the top five.
Lap 152, the Toyota drivers bring their cars down pit road to top off the fuel for the race to the end.
In an effort to catch up to the main pack, Bubba Wallace makes contact with Erik Jones; sending Jones into the wall. Denny Hamlin and John Hunter Nemechek were also involved. Nemechek gets into Hamlin; sending Hamlin into the wall. The drivers got out of line as they went over the tunnel bumps.
Bubba Wallace, Erik Jones, and Denny Hamlin are out of the race.
Drivers come down pit road with the top half dozen staying out on the track including Tyler Reddick and Carson Hocevar.
Michael McDowell wins the race off of pit road.
Carson Hocevar makes a pit stop and gives the lead over to Tyler Reddick.
With just 28 laps to go, Tyler Reddick brings the field down for the green flag restart with Michael McDowell alongside. Michael McDowell and Tyler Reddick battle back and forth for the lead.
Michael McDowell takes the lead.
There are 31 cars on the lead lap with 24 laps to go.
Twenty to go, Michael McDowell holds on to the lead with Tyler Reddick and Brad Keselowski battling for second in a side by side battle.
With 18 laps to go, Tyler Reddick moves up on the outside lane to take the lead.
Michael McDowell moves up to battle Tyler Reddick for the lead.
Two by two, 16 deep; only two seconds searate the field.
Sixteen to go, Michael McDowell is back out in front.
Fifteen to go, Michael McDowell leads the race with Brad Keselowski in second.
With 14 to go, Martin Truex Jr gives Tyler Reddick a push to the lead but Michael McDowell retakes the lead into turn one.
FOX Sports broadcaster Mike Joy said that Noah Gragson is on Brad Keselowski like a dog on a mailman.
Ten to go, Tyler Reddick and Michael McDowell continue to battle for the lead.
With seven laps remaining in the race, Michael McDowell has led 34 laps so far – his car number.
With just five laps remaining in the race, an outside lane begins to form.
Three to go, the outside line collapsed when Ty Gibbs jumped out in front of the line; stacking them up.
Two to go, Michael McDowell and Tyler Reddick continue to battle for the lead.
Tyler Reddick takes the white flag but Michael McDowell continues to battle for the lead.
Brad Keselowski makes his move going into turn four and spins out Michael McDowell after an attempted block to cause the BIG ONE! Tyler Reddick slips through to win the race.
This is Reddick’s first win of the season and first win at Talladega to become the 52nd driver to win a race.
All of the drivers involved in the crash have climbed out of their cars and walked away.
While Tyler Reddick climbs the fence in celebration, car owner Michael Jordon holds Reddick’s son and gives him a high five. Tyler Reddick gives the checkered flag to a young fan.
Ford dominated the weekend by sitting on the pole and winning stages one and two; but in the end, Chevrolet wins the race.
Corey LaJoie hit the wall and flipped the car; he ended up under Josh Berry’s car before landing on his side and sliding down the track.
The results of the Geico 500:
Tyler Reddick
Brad Keselowski
Noah Gragson
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Alex Bowman
Anthony Alfredo
William Byron
Todd Gilliland
Daniel Hemric
Harrison Burton
Martin Truex Jr
Chase Briscoe
Ross Chastain
Ryan Preece
Chase Elliott
Josh Berry
Carson Hocevar
Corey LaJoie
Joey Logano
Ryan Blaney
Kyle Larson
Ty Gibbs
Austin Cindric
Cody Ware
Chris Buescher
Daniel Suarez
Kyle Busch
Shane van Gisbergen
Zane Smith
Austin Dillon
Michael McDowell
BJ McLeod
John Hunter Nemechek
Justin Haley
Erik Jones
Bubba Wallace
Denny Hamlin
Christopher Bell