Following a dominant performance from Hendrick Motorsports' Kyle Larson at Bristol to score his second win of the season, plus the lone off-weekend of 2025 that followed, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Talladega Superspeedway for the running of the Jack Link's 500 on Sunday. This will be the first of two stops at the 2.66-mile Alabama track as the series will make a return trip on Oct. 19 for the second race in the Round of 8 in the playoffs.
While Larson is one of only five winners so far this season, don't be surprised if a surprise winner emerges on Sunday, given the unpredictability of Talladega. The track's 19 overtime finishes are second only to Daytona (25) and nine of the last 16 races on Talladega's high banks have featured a last-lap pass. First-time winners are also not uncommon as 12 drivers have picked up their first career Cup Series win at Talladega. Due to his consistency (six top 10s), HMS driver William Byron holds a 30-point lead over Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin entering the series' 10th race of the season.
As the series returns to the track following the Easter break and heads to Talladega for the first of two trips this season, these three drivers are in search of a rebound performance following Bristol.
3 drivers who need to rebound in Jack Link's 500 at Talladega
3. Carson Hocevar, No. 77 (Spire Motorsports Chevrolet)
Hocevar came away with an 11th-place finish at Bristol, but that did not tell the entire story. He ran inside the top five in both stages and could hold his own with the leaders. A slow green-flag pit stop trapped him a lap down and dropped him to 11th in the final running order, spoiling what should have been a solid top-five day. Hocevar was runner-up at Atlanta, when he ruffled some feathers along the way is his only top-10 of the season, but the speed and talent is there if driver and team can put a mistake-free race together.
In three starts at Talladega, Hocevar has a best finish of 14th last October, but proved earlier this season at Atlanta, a similar drafting-style track, that he can run toward the front and be in contention on these types of tracks. His aggressive nature has rubbed some drivers the wrong way and prevented him from finishing races at times, but his talent behind the wheel is evident. If he can avoid the Big One that usually presents itself over the course of 500 miles at Talladega, Hocevar could have a shot at his first Cup win on Sunday.
2. Justin Haley, No. 7 (Spire Motorsports Chevrolet)
Let's keep the discussion going with the Spire Motorsports organization. Currently in its seventh season in the Cup Series and second as a three-car team, improvements continue to be made on track. The entire organization is on pace for a personal-best average finish (20.8) nine races in. Haley has been a big part of the improvement, posting five finishes of 20th or better. He was inside the top 10 for both stages at Bristol, but faded to a 13th-place finish. To complicate matters, Spire Motorsports and Haley's crew chief Rodney Childers shockingly parted ways earlier this week on the heels of arguably their most complete race together.
Although it was a rain-shortened race, Haley has won at Daytona before in 2019 and seems to have a knack for superspeedway racing. While the success has not entirely translated to Talladega, Haley has two top-10s in his last three starts there and has led laps in all three. The change atop the pit box is definitely not ideal, but Haley's tendency to be toward the front on drafting-style tracks should serve him well as he looks to take advantage of the improved pace his car has been showing.
1. Alex Bowman, No. 48 (Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet)
Bowman's weekend at Bristol got off to an excellent start by earning his second consecutive pole at the track. He only led 39 laps before his HMS teammate Larson took over, but still managed to finish inside the top four in each stage and score some valuable points. A blown engine during the final stage erased any hopes of a much-needed positive result, dropping him to 37th. That was Bowman's third straight finish outside the top 25 after recording five top-10s in the first six races.
Talladega has been a hit-or-miss track for Bowman during his career. The 32-year-old has five career top-five finishes there in 18 starts and has led laps in seven of them. In his last five starts at the Alabama track, Bowman has two top-10s and two finishes outside the top 15. A nice, solid weekend is what Bowman needs to put an end to his recent misfortune, but his history at Talladega suggests that could be difficult to achieve this weekend.