About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement TALLADEGA, Ala. - Kyle Larson seemed to be still in shock in a post-race interview after his thrilling overtime victory in Sunday's YellaWood 500 victory at Talladega Superspeedway. The California native not only won perhaps the most critical race in the 2026 NASCAR Chase for the Cup Series Championship but also saw most of his 10-race Chase competitors fall out of contention with a variety of large wrecks and tire issues.
Larson commented on his first victory in 58 outings on NASCAR's Superspeedways, (Daytona and Talladega) and third win in eight Chase races, "I'm very shocked that I won and how the (Chase) points played out. Unbelievable, crazy, happy to finally get a superspeedway win! Never in a million years I thought I'd (win) and leave here plus 73 points. It feels so good to get our first superspeedway win and the points implications. Never on the last lap (of the two-lap overtime shootout) when I was stuck in traffic did I think I was going to win. It worked out how it was supposed to work out.! I was the beneficiary of the Chevy teamwork today…it's a bit of relief to win on a superspeedway."
For the rest of the drivers in title contention with 2026 Chase points leader Larson, Talladega was the unpredictable nightmare that the fast, 2.66-mile superspeedway has a tradition of being. Christopher Bell was the first Chase contender bitten by the Talladega curse. Bell, suffered a tire failure in the first stage that tore up his rear fender and repairs placed him many laps behind and out of race contention.
Ryan Blaney was the next Chase contender to fall out after being hit from behind by Bubba Wallace, triggering a huge wreck that damaged several cars and put Blaney's fast Team Penske Mustang which had led several laps behind the wall.
Chase points contender Joey Logano led many laps and appeared to have the fastest car, winning the second stage and leading much of the final stage. Logano, blocked in front by Ross Chastain (almost a lap down in front of the race leaders), battled alongside Larson for the lead with less than five laps remaining.
Logano could not get around the blocking Chevy of Chastain and had the two Hendrick Chevy teammates Larson, being pushed by William Byron, on his inside. Another Chevy of Carson Hocevar was behind Logano whose fast Team Penske Mustang was totally boxed in.
As Logano struggled to get out of the Chevy "box" and around Chastain for the lead, Hocevar hit Logano's rear and pushed him sideways triggering a horrific multi-car wreck that saw Logano's car climb the wall in the tri-oval a flip on its roof and skid across the start-finish line in a shower of sparks as many other cars piled into the melee.
This wreck brought the race to a red flag halt in action as the safety team successfully got the shaken 3-time NASCAR Cup champion from his battered race car. Riley Herbst plowed head-on into the inside turn one wall and had to be rescued from his destroyed race car. He was taken to the infield care center with what was reported to be a wrist injury.
This late-race, multi-car wreck eliminated two more of Larson's closest and threatening Chase contenders as both Logano and Hoosier Chase Briscoe were eliminated by the huge wreck. When the track was cleared of the debris and wrecked race cars, Larson, who was running on the bottom lane pushed by his teammate Byron, had escaped the big wreck.
With all his closest Chase contenders out of contention, Larson found himself in a very advantageous position on the front row with his teammate behind in the NASCAR overtime two-lap shootout. Not only could he win his first superspeedway race, but more importantly he could take a commanding lead in the 2026 NASCAR Chase points battle with the win.
Larson, with help of Byron, got the jump on Todd Gilliland on the drop of the green flag and led going down the backstretch, but was passed by Austin Hill and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. as several potential winners battled for the win. Larson fell from first to 11th as the drivers took the white flag.
Larson drove low and with a critical push from Chevy driver Ross Chastain battled back to the lead beating Byron by less than a car length to the checkered flag. The incredible final lap charge saw Larson come back from 11th to first place and victory in less than half lap.
Finishing behind winner Larson and second place Byron was Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in third. Chastain and Cole Custer rounded out the top five.
A disappointed early Chase points leader and favorite Denny Hamlin, who finished eighth, commented on his dashed hopes on his coveted first NASCAR Cup title as the NASCAR teams head to Martinsville for the ninth race in the 2026 Chase which concludes at Homestead-Miami Speedway in two weeks, "As long as he (Larson) can keep four wheels on it….he's the champion again."
Source: Sports
