This weekend, all three national series take on the 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama.
Photo: Jeff Ames/TRE
A victory by any playoff-eligible driver in the NASCAR Cup, Xfinity or Craftsman Truck Series will solidify their shot at a championship with a guarantee to race for a title in Phoenix.
Talladega serves as the middle race in the Round of 8 for all series.
NASCAR Cup Series’ YellaWood 500 Race
Sunday, Oct. 19
188 laps
Stages end on laps 60, 120, 188
NBC, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90
Last year’s winner: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images
With 40 drivers entered for the race, the Cup Series will feature a full field.
Notable part-time entries include:
Austin Hill: No. 33 Richard Childress Racing
Anthony Alfredo: No. 62 Beard Motorsports
Casey Mears: No. 66 Garage 66
B.J. McLeod: No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports
Odds for the NASCAR Cup Series Talladega Race
Ryan Blaney, a three-time Talladega winner, is the opening odds-on favorite to win Sunday, per the Caesar Sportsbook as of Tues., Oct. 14.
Ryan Blaney +950
William Byron, Joey Logano +1000
Austin Cindric, Chase Elliott +1200
Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson +1800
Kyle Busch, Bubba Wallace +2000
Chris Buescher, Denny Hamlin +2200
Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe, Ryan Preece +2500
Alex Bowman, Ross Chastain, Tyler Reddick +2800
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. +3000
Josh Berry, Carson Hocevar, Michael McDowell +3500
Ty Gibbs, Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez +4000
Todd Gilliland +4500
Austin Dillon, Justin Haley +5000
Noah Gragon, Zane Smith +5500
A.J. Allmendinger, Cole Custer, John Hunter Nemechek, Shane Van Gisbergen+6500
Ty Dillon +7500
Austin Hill, Riley Herbst+10000
Anthony Alfredo, Cody Ware +25000
Casey Mears, B.J. McLeod +50000
NASCAR Xfinity Series’ United Rentals 250
Saturday, Oct. 18
94 laps
Stages end on laps 25, 50, 94
CW, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90
Last year’s winner: Sammy Smith
Photo by Dominic Aragon/TRE
No driver will miss the field with 38 drivers entered for the 38 spots.
Notable entries include:
Caesar Bacarella: No. 5 Alpha Prime Racing
Nick Leitz: No. 07 SS-Green Light Racing
Brendan Queen: No. 11 Kaulig Racing
Garrett Smithley: No. 14 SS-Green Light Racing
Aric Almirola: No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing
Kaz Grala: No. 24 Sam Hunt Racing
Jordan Anderson: No. 32 Jordan Anderson Racing
David Starr: No. 35 Joey Gase Motorsports
Josh Williams: No. 45 Alpha Prime Racing
Joey Gase: No. 53 Joey Gase Motorsports
Leland Honeyman Jr.: No. 70 Cope Family Racing
TBA: No. 74 Mike Harmon Racing
Mason Maggio: No. 91 DGM Racing x JIM
Connor Mosack: No. 99 Viking Motorsports
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ Love’s RV Stop 225
Friday, Oct. 17
85 laps
Stages end on laps 20, 40, 85
FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90
Last year’s winner: Grant Enfinger
Photo: Getty Images, courtesy of NASCAR Media
The Truck Series will also feature a full field with no one missing the race; 36 drivers for 36 entries.
Notable entries include:
Brent Crews: No. 1 TRICON Garage
Norm Benning: No. 6 Norm Benning Racing
J.J. Yeley: No. 7 Hendrick Motorsports
Kris Wright: No. 16 McAnally Hilgemann Racing
Jason White: No. 22 Reaume Brothers Racing
Frankie Muniz: No. 33 Reaume Brothers Racing
Josh Bilicki: No. 41 Niece Motorsports
Caleb Costner: No. 74 Mike Harmon Racing
Parker Kligerman: No. 75 Henderson Motorsports
Corey LaJoie: No. 77 Spire Motorsports
Dominic Aragon is currently the editor-in-chief for The Racing Experts.
From Grants, New Mexico, USA, Aragon started watching NASCAR in 2004 and has been covering the sport since 2009. Aragon is a 2012 graduate of Grants High School and a May 2016 graduate of the University of New Mexico with a B.A. in Mass Communications & Journalism. Aragon has worked in local and national media, as a musician, and an educator. He is co-author of the 2024 book “All of It: Daytona 500 Champion Tells the Rest of the Story” with racer Geoff Bodine.
Aragon, his wife Feliz, and son Christopher currently reside in Grants, New Mexico, USA.
You can reach Dominic at daragon@theracingexperts.net.