Cup Series Preview Sunday, October 25, 2026

Yellawood 500

Talladega Superspeedway

Laps 188 Distance 500 mi Type superspeedway Coverage NBC · 2:00 PM ET Stages 60 / 120 / 188

2.66

asphalt

Surface

Race Date

Sunday, October 25, 2026

2:00 PM ET

Pre-Race Race Day Post-Race

Band A · The Hook

Your watchlist, historical context, and race-week curiosities.

Your Drivers' Outlook

Historical Context

Tyler Reddick has 20 starts at Talladega Superspeedway with 2 wins and a 16.1 average finish.
Chase Elliott has 22 starts at Talladega Superspeedway with 2 wins and a 14.3 average finish.
Chris Buescher has 20 starts at Talladega Superspeedway with a 16.3 average finish.

Based on Cup Series results at Talladega Superspeedway from 1949-2026.

DID YOU KNOW?

Dale Earnhardt finishes in the top 10 at Talladega Superspeedway 64% of the time across 47 starts.

Dale Earnhardt's track record

LAST TIME HERE

Dale Earnhardt has led 1,484 laps at Talladega Superspeedway — more than anyone else.

Dale Earnhardt's stats

Band B · The Story

The narrative arc, drivers to watch, and race-weekend color.

Band C · The Data

Schedule, predictions, entry list, track history, fantasy, and betting angles.

TV & Start Time

What channel is the Yellawood 500 on?

The Yellawood 500 airs on NBC on Sunday, October 25, 2026 at 2:00 PM ET, broadcast from Talladega Superspeedway. The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule splits between FOX, FS1, TNT, NBC, USA, and Amazon Prime Video.

What time does the NASCAR Cup race start today?

The Yellawood 500 green flag is set for 2:00 PM ET on Sunday, October 25, 2026, airing on NBC. All NASCAR start times are listed in Eastern Time.

NR-Rating Track Rankings

#	Driver	Badge	Elo Rating	Starts	Wins	Last Finish
1	Chase Elliott	Prev Winner	1517	19	2	P4(2026)
2	Daniel Suarez		1497	11	0	P12(2026)
3	Kyle Busch	Prev Winner	1496	27	1	P10(2026)
4	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	Prev Winner	1495	23	2	P6(2026)
5	Chris Buescher		1493	18	0	P2(2026)
6	William Byron		1493	16	0	P35(2026)
7	Tyler Reddick	Prev Winner	1488	14	1	P14(2026)
8	Alex Bowman		1486	18	0	P3(2026)
9	Ryan Blaney	Prev Winner	1485	23	3	P37(2026)
10	Bubba Wallace	Prev Winner	1483	17	1	P36(2026)

NR-Rating: Elo-based rating from the NR-Rating prediction model. Higher = stronger at this track type. = Previous winner at this track

NR-Rating Predictions

Last updated: Wed, May 13, 2026, 07:50 AM ET

#	Driver	Tier	Exp. Finish	Win %	Top 5 %	Top 10 %
1	Tyler Reddick Best in Field	Favorite	13.6	11.2%	39.9%	56.7%
2	Chase Elliott	Favorite	10.4	11.0%	40.0%	57.2%
3	Chris Buescher	Favorite	13.6	10.4%	38.7%	55.9%
4	Ryan Blaney	Favorite	13.9	9.9%	37.8%	54.8%
5	William Byron	Favorite	13.9	8.9%	35.2%	51.4%
6	Daniel Suarez	Favorite	15.1	7.8%	33.7%	51.2%
7	Kyle Busch	Contender	15.1	7.0%	33.2%	49.8%
8	Alex Bowman	Contender	15.1	6.2%	30.4%	48.6%
9	Bubba Wallace	Contender	16.0	5.7%	28.8%	47.4%
10	Brad Keselowski	Contender	16.0	5.3%	26.8%	45.6%
11	Denny Hamlin	Contender	16.0	4.5%	24.8%	43.8%
12	Christopher Bell	Contender	17.4	3.9%	22.7%	41.0%
13	Ross Chastain	Contender	17.4	3.8%	20.2%	39.3%
14	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	Contender	18.5	3.3%	18.0%	36.2%
15	Casey Mears	Mid-Pack	18.5	3.2%	16.0%	33.6%
16	Erik Jones	Mid-Pack	18.5	3.1%	17.0%	34.8%
17	Kyle Larson	Mid-Pack	18.5	2.9%	17.3%	35.8%
18	Carson Hocevar	Mid-Pack	19.4	2.8%	15.1%	30.5%
19	Michael McDowell	Mid-Pack	20.0	2.5%	13.7%	29.4%
20	Austin Cindric	Mid-Pack	20.1	1.8%	12.3%	28.3%
21	A.J. Allmendinger	Mid-Pack	20.1	1.7%	11.2%	26.9%
22	Joey Logano	Mid-Pack	20.5	1.4%	10.6%	26.6%
23	John Hunter Nemechek	Mid-Pack	20.5	1.2%	9.7%	25.6%
24	Ryan Preece	Mid-Pack	21.1	1.0%	8.9%	24.8%
25	Ty Gibbs	Mid-Pack	22.9	0.9%	5.3%	17.1%
26	Ty Dillon	Mid-Pack	21.1	0.9%	8.3%	22.9%
27	Chase Briscoe	Dark Horse	21.7	0.9%	6.6%	19.8%
28	Katherine Legge	Dark Horse	22.8	0.9%	5.8%	18.3%
29	Zane Smith	Dark Horse	22.9	0.9%	5.1%	16.4%
30	Todd Gilliland	Dark Horse	22.9	0.8%	4.8%	15.7%
31	Riley Herbst	Dark Horse	23.7	0.7%	4.0%	13.2%
32	Austin Dillon	Dark Horse	23.4	0.6%	5.0%	16.0%
33	Shane van Gisbergen	Dark Horse	23.4	0.5%	4.8%	14.8%
34	Cole Custer	Dark Horse	23.4	0.4%	4.3%	15.3%
35	Connor Zilisch	Dark Horse	23.4	0.4%	4.9%	15.9%
36	B.J. McLeod	Dark Horse	25.5	0.3%	2.0%	7.8%
37	Noah Gragson	Dark Horse	24.0	0.3%	3.0%	10.3%
38	Josh Berry	Dark Horse	24.0	0.3%	3.0%	10.3%
39	Cody Ware	Dark Horse	27.9	0.2%	1.5%	6.1%

Win probabilities reflect full-field Monte Carlo simulations. A 10% pWin means roughly 1-in-10 chance of winning — higher than most bettors realize for a 36-car field where the average driver has ~2.8% odds. Top 5 and Top 10 percentages similarly reflect simulated outcomes, not historical averages. Learn how the model works.

Predictions powered by NR-Rating model (MAE: 8.5 positions)

Prediction Scorecard

Go Bowling at The Glen: Model picked Chase Elliott at P1 → Actual P24

(1/5 top-5 hits)

38% top-5 hit rate across 11 races

History at Talladega Superspeedway

Cup Series data from 1949-2026 (29 races)

Recent Results

Year	Race	Winner	Margin	Team	Laps Led
2026	Jack Link's 500	Carson Hocevar	+0.114	Spire Motorsports	19
2025	YellaWood 500	Chase Briscoe	—	Joe Gibbs Racing	16
2025	Jack Link's 500	Austin Cindric	—	Team Penske	7
2024	YellaWood 500	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	—	JTG Daugherty Racing	19
2024	GEICO 500	Tyler Reddick	—	23XI Racing	13

Laps Led Leaders

Driver	Total Laps Led
Joey Logano	547
Brad Keselowski	310
Ryan Blaney	293
Denny Hamlin	280
Jimmie Johnson	256

Track Type Tendencies

superspeedway

Superspeedway races at Talladega Superspeedway are defined by pack racing and drafting. Results are less predictable than any other track type — the field stays tight and late-race wrecks reshape the outcome.

Manufacturer strategy and drafting alliances matter as much as raw speed. Longshot winners are more common here than anywhere on the schedule.

Fantasy

Dominator Plays

Joey Logano 547 laps led

Brad Keselowski 310 laps led

Ryan Blaney 293 laps led

High laps-led totals at this track

Value Picks

Zane Smith 11.00 avg, 0 wins

Todd Gilliland 13.70 avg, 0 wins

Daniel Suarez 13.73 avg, 0 wins

Strong avg finish but no wins — lower ownership

Explore More

Track History