NASCAR at Talladega 2016: Start Time, Ticket Info, Lineup, TV Schedule and More
Four drivers kiss the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series' Chase goodbye Sunday at the dreaded Talladega Superspeedway.
The Hellman's 500 is the third and final race of the Round of 12, with only Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick safe after winning the first two races of the round. Last week, Harvick put on a show in Kansas to assure he doesn't have to worry about Sunday's tricky restrictor-plate racing.
The same doesn't apply to big names such as Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski, two guys familiar with winning at the track and needing to pull off more magic to advance.
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In one of the deadliest races of the year, truly anything can happen. Here's everything to know beforehand:
Viewing Details
Where: Talladega Superspeedway
When: Sunday, 2 p.m. ET
Watch: NBCSN
Live Stream: NBC Sports
Tickets: ScoreBig.com
Sprint Cup Standings
| 1 | Jimmie Johnson | 3082 | 3 |
| 2 | Kevin Harvick | 3048 | 4 |
| 3 | Matt Kenseth | 3074 | 2 |
| 4 | Kyle Busch | 3072 | 4 |
| 5 | Carl Edwards | 3069 | 2 |
| 6 | Kurt Busch | 3062 | 1 |
| 7 | Martin Truex Jr. | 3058 | 4 |
| 8 | Joey Logano | 3045 | 1 |
| 9 | Austin Dillon | 3045 | 0 |
| 10 | Denny Hamlin | 3039 | 3 |
| 11 | Brad Keselowski | 3038 | 4 |
| 12 | Chase Elliott | 3020 | 0 |
| 13 | Tony Stewart | 2131 | 1 |
| 14 | Kyle Larson | 2120 | 1 |
| 15 | Chris Buescher | 2090 | 1 |
| 16 | Jamie McMurray | 2088 | 0 |
NASCAR at Talladega Lineup
| 1 | Jamie McMurray |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski |
| 3 | Austin Dillon |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick |
| 5 | Kasey Kahne |
| 6 | Trevor Bayne |
| 7 | Regan Smith |
| 10 | Danica Patrick |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin |
| 13 | Casey Mears |
| 14 | Tony Stewart |
| 15 | Clint Bowyer |
| 16 | Greg Biffle |
| 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr |
| 18 | Kyle Busch |
| 19 | Carl Edwards |
| 20 | Matt Kenseth |
| 21 | Ryan Blaney |
| 22 | Joey Logano |
| 23 | David Ragan |
| 24 | Chase Elliott |
| 27 | Paul Menard |
| 31 | Ryan Newman |
| 32 | Bobby Labonte |
| 34 | Chris Buescher |
| 35 | David Gilliland |
| 38 | Landon Cassill |
| 41 | Kurt Busch |
| 42 | Kyle Larson |
| 43 | Aric Almirola |
| 44 | Brian Scott |
| 46 | Michael Annett |
| 47 | AJ Allmendinger |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson |
| 55 | Reed Sorenson |
| 78 | Martin Truex Jr |
| 83 | Jeffrey Earnhardt |
| 88 | Alex Bowman |
| 93 | Matt DiBenedetto |
| 95 | Michael McDowell |
Drivers to Watch
Martin Truex Jr.
Four wins on the season or not, Martin Truex Jr. enters Sunday's race in seventh place, all of 13 points above the cutoff.
Truex has cooled off after looking like one of the sport's hottest drivers, winning in Chicago and Dover to make it to this round. Since then, he's finished no better than 11th and hasn't led a lap.
Obviously, now is the worst time for Truex to hit a slump, something he isn't shy about admitting.
“It’s a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately sport and to a huge extreme now in the Chase with this format,” Truex said, according to USA Today's Brant James. “You got to perform every single week. You have a bad week; it could ruin your whole season.”
Truex needs a strong finish, so it's worth pointing out he landed seventh in this event last year. If he can avoid the little mishaps here and there that have plagued his last two outings, it wouldn't come as much of a shock to see him steal a win, either.
Joey Logano
Joey Logano only has one win on the season and sits right behind Truex in the standings.
His Round of 12 has been an up-and-down affair, to say the least. He landed 36th in Charlotte before finishing third last week in Kansas. He didn't lead many laps (two), but the performance was strong enough to keep his head above water.
Now it's time to strike.
Logano won this race last year, leading all of 20 laps before taking the checkered flag. But fans know the drill—it was one win during an epic tear in which Logano swept the entire round.
Really, even counting the Charlotte performance, Logano has a finish of sixth or better in two out of his last three. He goes into Talladega holding a tiebreaker over Austin Dillon, who sits ninth, so the ball rests in his court.
All Logano has to do is remain steady, if not capture a little bit of that magic that helped him sweep the entire round last year.
Brad Keselowski
Brad Keselowski is one of the most head-scratching elements of Sunday's race.
One of NASCAR's biggest names, Keselowski sits 11th in the standings going into a race most despise.
Keselowski loves it.
"I don't think it is a must-win situation," Keselowski said, according to ESPN.com's Bob Pockrass. "I am not worried about it. I am going to go there and bust my butt to try to win, but I don't think it is a must-win yet."
One of the best restrictor-plate drivers around, Keselowski is maybe the only person who actually gets happy when his season comes down to a race at Talladega.
After taking this exact event during the Chase in 2014, as well as winning at Talladega earlier this year, the man entering the race 11th actually looks like the favorite to take the checkered flag.
So yes, Chase standings could look quite different by the time Keselowski has hit one of his favorite locales.
Stats and info courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.
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