Live updates from NASCAR at Talladega: Kyle Busch wins

Charlotte Observer NASCAR reporter Alex Zietlow will be passing along live updates during today’s race at Talladega Superspeedway. See the section below for the latest news. Results and analysis will be posted after the race.

All times are Eastern.

Find unofficial results from Sunday’s race at NASCAR.com.

Live updates: NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega

Stage 3

Lap 196: Kyle Busch! Stole one! What a finish! Bubba Wallace was in the lead, throwing blocks, and in the middle of one of his blocks he spun out — and it just so happened to be on the final lap. Busch just barely missed the 23 in his spin and then sped ahead of the rest of the field. Wallace’s wreck prompted a caution, but the white flag had already flown, so the race was all but over. Busch hangs on for the win. More to come.

Lap 189: Caution! Big wrecks! Has the most consequential wreck arrived on this most recent restart? Maybe. It happened when Ross Chastain got stuck in the middle of a run and initiated contact with Noah Gragson and prompted a bunch of wrecking from the front. Among those involved: Kyle Larson and Ryan Preece tangle in the carnage. HUGE hit. See below for more.

Lap 183: Wreck! Caution! With five laps to go, Corey LaJoie knocks into Joey Logano, and that sends him into the wall. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. also involved. What a finish we have in store in Talladega.

Lap 182: Five laps to go! Ryan Blaney, Aric Almirola, Noah Gragson, Kevin Harvick, Ty Gibbs, Ross Chastain and Bubba Wallace fighting for a win! The inside line led by Ryan Blaney has all the momentum right now. The Toyotas are reportedly good on fuel the rest of the way.

Lap 147: Green again! Bubba Wallace, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr., Aric Almirola, Chase Elliott, Noah Gragson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ty Gibbs, Christopher Bell are the Top 10 at the moment.

Lap 142: That’s probably not The Big One — but that’s a consequential wreck nonetheless! Harrison Burton goes spinning thanks to a push from Noah Gragson, and right behind him, Austin Dillon and Zane Smith and Austin Hill also find themselves in some carnage. Caution comes out, and cars file down pit road. Smith and Dillon done for the day.

Here’s a closer look at it:

Stage 2

Lap 120: Aric Almirola robs Chase Elliott of some history! The 10 car takes the Stage 2 win, but Elliott had the chance to become the first driver in Cup Series history to sweep the first two stages at Talladega Superspeedway. Wow. What a final-stretch move. The Top 10: Almirola, Elliott, Kevin Harvick, Bubba Wallace, Harrison Burton, Ryan Preece, Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Noah Gragson.

Joey Logano had a speeding on pit road penalty in Stage 2 and then went a lap down — but an ambitious move kept him as the leader of ther non-lead-lap cars, and now he got the free pass. He’s back on the lead lap now.

Lap 104: Green-flag pit stops come and go, cars cycle out. The Top 10 running now as the field settles in for one last long run of Stage 2: Martin Truex Jr., Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Bubba Wallace, Aric Almirola, Kevin Harvick, Corey LaJoie, William Byron, Harrison Burton.

Lap 98: Three-wide in Talladega! Wow the momentum on the outside line is remarkable. That lifts Bubba Wallace to the front of the field, and pushes Erik Jones to the Top 10. When was the last time you saw that? So cool.

Lap 90: Halfway through Stage 2: Martin Truex Jr., Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, Justin Haley, Kevin Harvick, Ross Chastain, Ryan Preece, Austin Cindric, Bubba Wallace and Christopher Bell make up the Top 10.

Lap 68: Green green green!

Lap 64: As cars filed down pit road, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. make huge leaps up the field by not taking any tires (only fuel). Hamlin is leading all cars off pit road. What we’re going to look like when we go green again: Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Justin Haley, Ross Chastain and Martin Truex Jr.

Other things to know: JJ Yeley suffers an equipment interference penalty; Chris Buescher is sent to the rear for running over the air hose, and Todd Gilliland is sent to the rear for a penalty on pit road, too.

Stage 1

Lap 60: Chase Elliott in a predictable place. NASCAR’s most popular driver won the last time he was at Talladega, and he captures the green-white checkered after Stage 1. It’s his first stage win of the season (after injury kept him out for so long). Others earning stage points (in order): Elliott, Alex Bowman, Ross Chastain, William Byron, Kyle Larson, Austin Cindric, Noah Gragson, Joey Logano, Ryan Preece, Daniel Suarez.

Lap 47: Green green green! Top 5 on the restart: Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman, Kyle Larson, Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez.

Lap 43: Chase Briscoe with an issue too heading down pit road. A lot of action! The right-front tire is stuck, and the car won’t roll off pit road, and that prompts a caution. Second yellow of the day. Man, that yellow has delivered Justin Haley, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Erik Jones some good fortune. They hadn’t yet fueled, and they each execute good stops under yellow, maintaining their positions while getting tuned up.

Briscoe trouble at pit entrance:

Lap 36: Woahhhhh! Tyler Reddick overshoots the turn heading onto pit road and spins out during the first of many green-flag pit stops. Some nice teamwork at play: Chevy cars Bubba Wallace, Martin Truex Jr., Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin form a draft line right after they depart pit road. The rest of the field files down pit lane too, all getting only fuel.

Here’s Reddick’s wild spin:

Lap 7: Green green green!

Lap 2: Early caution! Michael McDowell spins after having some sort of issue with his right-rear tire, knocking into the wall and putting the race on an early yellow. More to come on this. Before that: Aric Almirola got a pair of nice shoves from Chase Briscoe to take an early lead. He started on the outside and then moved inside. Denny Hamlin, who started on the pole, intentionally let Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell get in front of him on the inside.

Green flag at 3:21 p.m.: Let’s go racing!

2:40 p.m.: Some pre-race timing housekeeping: Driver introductions: 2:30 p.m.; Invocation: 3 p.m.; National Anthem: 3:01 p.m.; Command: 3:08 p.m.; Green Flag: 3:20 p.m.

2:32 p.m.: Three cars will be sent to the rear after pre-race inspection. That includes Austin Cindric, AJ Allmendinger and Todd Gilliland (all for unapproved adjustments).

2:25 p.m.: Can Brad Keselowski finally get his first win since becoming a co-owner at RFK Racing? If that first Cup win would come anywhere, it would be at Talladega, where he’s won a garage-leading six times.

Other headlines: Richard Childress Racing is appealing the points penalty Austin Dillon’s No. 3 team endured heading into Talladega, and Blaine Perkins is safely recovering after a nasty crash in Saturday’s Xfinity race. The Perkins family shared this statement with NASCAR: “Blaine is alert, in good spirits, and continues to be observed at a local hospital. We appreciate everyone’s thoughts and prayers. We will continue to provide updates as they are available.”

See the wreck here:

How to watch NASCAR race at Talladega

• Race: GEICO 500
• Place: Talladega Superspeedway
• Date: Sunday, April 23
• Time: 3 p.m. ET
• Purse: $7,857,314
• TV: FOX, 2 p.m. ET
• Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
• Distance: 500 miles (188 laps around the 2.66-mile track)
• Stages: Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 60), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 120), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 188)

Starting lineup at Talladega

Three cars will be sent to the rear after pre-race inspection. That includes Austin Cindric, AJ Allmendinger and Todd Gilliland (all for unapproved adjustments).

This story was originally published April 23, 2023 at 2:24 PM.

Alex Zietlow

The Charlotte Observer

Alex Zietlow writes about the Carolina Panthers and the ways in which sports intersect with life for The Charlotte Observer, where he has been a reporter since August 2022. Zietlow’s work has been honored by the Pro Football Writers Association, the N.C. and S.C. Press Associations, as well as the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) group. He’s earned six APSE Top 10 distinctions for his coverage on a variety of topics, from billion-dollar stadium renovations to the small moments of triumph that helped a Panthers kicker defy the steepest odds in sports. Zietlow previously wrote for The Herald in Rock Hill (S.C.) from 2019-22. Support my work with a digital subscription