YellaWood 500 at Talladega Set With Full 40-Car Field as Round of 8 Rolls On

NBC carries coverage Sunday with a 1:30 p.m. ET broadcast and a 2:00 p.m. green flag.

Overview

The 500-mile Cup race spans 188 laps at Talladega and serves as the penultimate event of the Round of 8 in the NASCAR playoffs.
A complete 40-car entry list includes four part-time entries: Austin Hill (No. 33), Anthony Alfredo (No. 62), Casey Mears (Garage 66 Ford), and BJ McLeod (Live Fast Motorsports).
Denny Hamlin is already locked into the Championship 4 after his Las Vegas win; Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, and Chase Briscoe sit above the cutline, with William Byron, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and Ryan Blaney below it.
Previews highlight Tyler Reddick, Austin Cindric, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Alex Bowman, and Justin Haley as drivers to watch, noting Cindric as the most recent Talladega winner and Stenhouse as the defending fall winner.
Team news shaping the weekend includes Spire Motorsports confirming Justin Haley will not return in 2026, adding a notable subplot for a driver with strong superspeedway form.