In a 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season that has seen nine canceled qualifying sessions due to inclement weather, Talladega Superspeedway was among the first to see its session axed back in April.
But the weather forecast for this weekend at the four-turn, 2.66-mile (4.281-kilometer) high-banked oval in Lincoln, Alabama oval is exactly what you'd want to see as a NASCAR fan, and we have every reason to believe that Saturday's qualifying session will be the fourth in the first eight playoff races that actually takes place as planned.
Because Talladega is a superspeedway, there are set to be two rounds of single-car qualifying for Sunday's 188-lap YellaWood 500, rather than just one. The top 10 drivers from the first round are set to advance to the second round to battle for the pole position.
The qualifying order was determined by the same metric that has been used all season (30% owner standings, 70% most recent race result), although in the postseason, the non-playoff drivers are all slotted in before the 16 playoff drivers are considered, to guarantee that the playoff drivers are the last 16 to qualify.
Follow along with our YellaWood 500 qualifying updates from Talladega.
NASCAR Cup Series starting lineup at Talladega
Round 1
1 - Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 186.047
2 - Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet - 185.47
3 - Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford - 185.416
4 - Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 185.409
5 - Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet - 185.377
6 - Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet - 185.373
7 - Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 185.144
8 - Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.983
9 - Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet - 184.951
10 - Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 184.918
11 - Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet - 184.858
12 - Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet - 184.847
13 - Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.79
14 - Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota - 184.776
15 - Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet - 184.719
16 - Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford - 184.694
17 - William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.683
18 - Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.6441
19 - Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford - 184.644
20 - Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet - 184.63
21 - Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford - 184.516
22 - Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford - 184.356
23 - Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.31
24 - Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.264
25 - Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota - 184.225
26 - Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.211
27 - Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford - 184.0261
28 - Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford - 184.026
29 - Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota - 183.889
30 - Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet - 183.85
31 - Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford - 183.758
32 - John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota - 183.691
33 - Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota - 183.638
34 - Casey Mears, No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet - 183.227
35 - Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford - 183.224
36 - Daniel Dye, No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet - 183.01
37 - A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet - 182.553
38 - Joey Gase, No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet - 182.157
39 - Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford - 181.797
40 - Gray Gaulding, No. 66 Garage 66 Ford - 181.106
Round 2
1 - Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 186.065
2 - Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet - 185.949
3 - Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet - 185.877
4 - Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet - 185.707
5 - Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford - 185.607
6 - Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 185.549
7 - Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet - 185.506
8 - Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 185.301
9 - Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota - 185.101
10 - Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet - 184.822
Full starting lineup
1 - Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
2 - Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
3 - Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
4 - Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
5 - Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford
6 - Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
7 - Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
8 - Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
9 - Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
10 - Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
11 - Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet
12 - Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
13 - Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
14 - Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota
15 - Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
16 - Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
17 - William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
18 - Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
19 - Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford
20 - Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet
21 - Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
22 - Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford
23 - Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
24 - Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet
25 - Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
26 - Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
27 - Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
28 - Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
29 - Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
30 - Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
31 - Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
32 - John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
33 - Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
34 - Casey Mears, No. 62 Beard Motorsports Chevrolet
35 - Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford
36 - Daniel Dye, No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Chevrolet
37 - A.J. Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
38 - Joey Gase, No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet
39 - Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford
40 - Gray Gaulding, No. 66 Garage 66 Ford
NBC's live coverage of the YellaWood 500 from Talladega Superspeedway is set to begin at 2:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 25. Start a free trial of FuboTV today and don't miss any of the action from now until the end of the 2026 season!
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