NASCAR Cup Series

Martin Truex Jr. knows all too well about the Talladega Superspeedway saying, “Expect the Unexpected.” His status record in the last four visits to the 2.66-mile tri-oval is marked in red, an ominous motorsports color that indicates a DNF (did not finish).

Since September of 1969, Talladega Superspeedway has been the place for heart-stopping racing entertainment. With the draft keeping drivers tightly together at 200 mph, it is no surprise that the track has earned a name for itself as NASCAR’s Most Competitive track. The 2.66-mile tri-oval boasts several of the sport’s records, including 88 lead changes (twice) and a tie for the closest finish in a points race when Jimmie Johnson beat Clint Bowyer by .002 seconds in the 2011 GEICO 500. The competition is so intense that races at Talladega are often considered unpredictable as the mammoth track has produced its share of the most unexpected winners, and a few crazy “Big One” incidents along the way.

Talladega Preview: The Series returns to Talladega Superspeedway for Sunday’s 500-mile race around the 2.5-mile track. In 25 starts at Talladega, Hamlin has secured five top-five and nine top-10 finishes, and captured his first and only win at the 2.66-mile track in spring 2014, which marked his first points-paying restrictor plate victory.

AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 47 KROGER CLICKLIST CAMARO ZL1 - RACING AT TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY: "I have a very love/hate relationship with Talladega Superspeedway," Allmendinger said. "I've had some races where we've run up front, and then I've had some races where I've been upside down on the backstretch."

Ford leads all manufacturers with 15 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wins in 2018 and comes into this weekend’s Playoff event on a streak that has seen it win six straight and seven of the last eight races at Talladega Superspeedway.

This NASCAR Playoff doubleheader weekend at Talladega Superspeedway marks 30 years since former IMSA GTP driver Lyn St. James earned a special place among drivers who have shattered records at the mammoth venue.

With his win at Dover on Sunday, Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Chase Elliott not only secured his second victory of the season, but he also punched his ticket to the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Playoffs. Even though Elliott doesn’t have to worry about the unpredictability of Talladega Superspeedway’s 1000Bulbs.com 500 Sunday affecting his immediate postseason advancement, the Dawsonville, GA, native plans to go all-out in his return to NASCAR’s largest track this weekend because he knows his performance can certainly have long-term championship implications.

Do not count your chickens before they hatch. That was the lesson we got in Dover on Sunday. A lot of things can happen between the time the egg emerges from the backside of the hen to when that little pecker bursts from the shell. A lot of bad things.

Kyle Busch: Busch started on the pole at Dover and led 21 laps on his way to an eighth-place finish. "I'm just glad to survive with a decent finish," Busch said. "The 'Monster Mile' claimed a few victims on Sunday. Talladega's 2.66 mile track could be even more monstrous. Then we get Kansas Speedway's 1.5 mile track. It doesn't scare anyone, except prospective ticket buyers."

Brad Keselowski’s chances for a top-five finish at Dover International Speedway were derailed in the closing miles of the race, leaving Keselowski with a 14th-place finish in the final rundown. The driver of the Wurth Ford Fusion is seventh in the MENCS driver standings, 47 points behind the leader and 21 head of the ninth-place cutoff position.