Talladega Superspeedway is the host of the antepenultimate race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs and the middle race of the semifinal round of 8.
Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin has already punched his ticket to the Championship 4 by winning the South Point 400 this past Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to open up the round of 8, and seven other drivers have a chance to join him by winning Sunday's YellaWood 500.
The 2024 Talladega playoff race was not won by a playoff driver, so there are no guarantees. Next weekend's round of 8 finale at Martinsville Speedway could very well feature all seven of those drivers vying for the remaining three Championship 4 spots at Phoenix Raceway.
Spire Motorsports' Michael McDowell took the pole position for Sunday afternoon's 188-lap race around the four-turn, 2.66-mile (4.281-kilometer) high-banked oval in Lincoln, Alabama, and Joe Gibbs Racing's Chase Briscoe joined him on the front row.
A full starting lineup can be found here.
Follow along with our YellaWood 500 race updates from Talladega.
NASCAR at Talladega: Stage 1 results
1st - Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
2nd - Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
3rd - John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
4th - Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
5th - Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
6th - Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
7th - Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
8th - Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
9th - Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
10th - Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
NASCAR at Talladega: Stage 2 results
1st - Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
2nd - Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
3rd - Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
4th - William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
5th - Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
6th - Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
7th - Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford
8th - Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
9th - John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
10th - Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
NASCAR at Talladega: Full YellaWood 500 results
NASCAR playoff picture after Talladega
The round of 8 finale is scheduled to be shown live on NBC from Martinsville Speedway beginning at 2:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 26. Start a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss any of the action from the Xfinity 500!