Race number 10 on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Jack Link's 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, which is the third superspeedway race of the year. Talladega is also the seventh consecutive track which is also on the "Chase" playoff schedule.
23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick has been the points leader for the entire season thus far, having opened up the year by becoming the first driver in Cup Series history to start a season with three consecutive victories. He has won five of nine races so far in 2026, and no other driver has won more than one.
He entered Sunday's 188-lap Jack Link's 500 around the four-turn, 2.66-mile (4.281-kilometer) high-banked Lincoln, Alabama oval with a 105-point lead over Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin in the point standings, meaning that there is no way for him to lose the points lead this weekend with only 75 points up for grabs.
Here's a look at the top 10 in the standings heading into Talladega.
NASCAR Cup Series standings before Talladega
Rank | Driver | Points | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota | 457 | 0 |
2 | Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | 352 | -105 |
3 | Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford | 337 | -120 |
4 | Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | 319 | -138 |
5 | Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet | 314 | -143 |
6 | Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet | 305 | -152 |
7 | William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet | 275 | -182 |
8 | Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota | 275 | -182 |
9 | Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford | 264 | -193 |
10 | Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | 261 | -196 |
A full starting lineup for Sunday's race can be found here and was determined by the qualifying metric after Saturday's single-car qualifying session was rained out.
Follow along with our standings updates from Talladega as the Jack Link's 500 unfolds.
NOTE: Only the top 10 drivers are included after the first two stages.
NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega: Standings updates
NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega: Standings after Stage 1
1 - Tyler Reddick - 461 (0)
2 - Denny Hamlin - 352 (-109)
3 - Ryan Blaney - 343 (-118)
4 - Ty Gibbs - 319 (-142)
5 - Kyle Larson - 314 (-147)
6 - Chase Elliott - 305 (-156)
7 - William Byron - 275 (-186)
7 - Bubba Wallace - 275 (-186)
9 - Brad Keselowski - 273 (-188)
10 - Chris Buescher - 266 (-195)
NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega: Standings after Stage 2
NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega: Full standings after Jack Link's 500
Full race results can be found here.
The Wurth 400 is the 11th race on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule, and it is set to be shown live on Fox Sports 1 from Texas Motor Speedway beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss any of the action!
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