BEARD MOTORSPORTS
Jack Link’s 500
Date: April 27, 2025
Event: Jack Link’s 500
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway
Format: 188 laps, broken into three stages (60 laps/60 laps/68 laps)
Race Winner: Austin Cindric of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)
Stage 2 Winner: Bubba Wallace of 23XI Racing (Toyota)
Beard Motorsports Finish:
● Anthony Alfredo (Started 31st, Finished 30th / Running, completed 188 of 188 laps)
Notes:
● Alfredo started the race in 31st place and quickly positioned the No. 62 Fortify Building Solutions tight within the pack which went three and four-wide around the track through the first 20 laps.
● The first stage turned into an eventful one as the race was slowed by caution on two occasions. Alfredo was able to avoid the melee and finished the stage in 34th place. The No. 62 team elected to stay out at the end of the first stage placing Alfredo at the front of the field to start the second stage.
● The Fortify Building Solutions Chevrolet driver maintained a position at or near the front of the field throughout most of the second stage, swapping the lead back and forth as the different lines would move up and back. By the time he had to make a trip to pit road for routine service on lap 101 Alfredo had lead seven different times for a total of 19 laps. After losing the draft following his trip to pit road for service Alfredo briefly found himself down one lap. Once the lead lap cars made their respective trips to pit road the No. 62 was back on the lead lap.
● The final stage started quietly as cars patiently logged laps. Alfredo firmly planted the No. 62 Chevrolet tight in the pack. A round of green-flag pit stops took place with less than 30 laps to go. Service took a little longer on the No. 62 and caused Alfredo to lose the draft. Like earlier in the race he briefly went down a lap to the leaders until everyone had to make their final stops for fuel. The fueling issue however resulted in Alfredo running out of gas as he came to the start/finish line. He would finish the day in 30th place.
Race Notes:
● Austin Cindric won the Jack Link’s 500 to score his third career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his first of the season and his first at Talladega. His margin of victory over second-place Ryan Preece was .022 of a second.
● There were four caution periods for a total of 22 laps.
● Thirty-four of the 39 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● William Byron remains the championship leader after Talladega with a 32-point advantage over second-place Kyle Larson.
Anthony Alfredo, driver of the No. 62 Fortify Building Solutions Chevrolet:
“It was awesome to lead the laps we led and run up front during the second stage. It was important to show what we can do as a team and for me personally. I want to show everyone I deserve to be in a Cup car full time by going out there, throwing big blocks and controlling the lanes but being smart and not doing anything egregious. I really enjoyed being able to do that and it was really important for Beard Motorsports. Obviously Linda and Amie are the only female NASCAR team owners and I take a lot of pride in driving their racecar and honored to be trusted behind the wheel every time we come to a superspeedway. We had Fortify Building Solutions and Hypersteel on board as well. We were all gutted to miss the Daytona 500 so I was going to go out there and put on a show and make sure we made the most out of this race. Unfortunately, the strategy didn’t work out there quite at the end for us to be a part of the finish up front. We still led a lot of laps and certainly have something to build on.”
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Würth 400 presented by LIQUI MOLY on Sunday, May 4 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. The race begins at 3:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
