Entry List

The official 2021 YellaWood 500 NASCAR CUP Series entry list features top NASCAR drivers set to compete at Talladega Superspeedway, highlighting the full lineup of race participants and teams.

YellaWood 500

Sunday, October 3rd, 2021

Talladega Superspeedway, Lincoln, AL

  • 15 Ford
  • 6 Toyota
  • 19 Chevrolet

  • Talladega Superspeedway
  • YellaWood 500
  • Pole Winner: Denny Hamlin
  • Age: 40
  • Team: No. 11 - FedEx Express Toyota
  • Owner: Joe Gibbs Racing
  • Crew Chief: Chris Gabehart
  • Start positions set by NASCAR's Performance Metrics Qualifying (PMQ).
  • Denny Hamlin won the Pole Award for the YellaWood 500 by having the highest total PMQ.
  • PMQ is a total number calculated on four performance metrics from the previous race:
  • 15% of the driver's fastest lap time position.
  • 25% of the driver's final race finish position.
  • 25% of the owner's final race position.
  • 35% of the Owner Points position.

  • Monday, October 4th, 2021
  • NASCAR Wire Service - Reid Spencer
Bubba Wallace scores historic triumph in rain-shortened NASCAR Cup race at Talladega

An opportune caution and a sudden rain shower helped make Bubba Wallace the second African-American driver ever to win a NASCAR Cup Series race.

Wallace held the lead in Monday's rain-delayed YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway when Ryan Preece turned into the outside wall off the bumper of Chris Buescher's Ford to cause the fifth caution of the event.

As the cars circled under the yellow, rain drenched the 2.66-mile race track. NASCAR brought the cars to pit road on Lap 118 of a scheduled 188. After another shower thwarted track-drying attempts, NASCAR called the race and declared Wallace the winner.

Wallace is the first black driver to win a race in NASCAR's premier series since Wendell Scott took the checkered flag at Speedway Park in Jacksonville, Fla., on Dec. 1, 1963.

It was the first victory for 23XI Racing, a team that debuted this year with driver Denny Hamlin and Basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan as co-owners. Drivers outside the respective Playoffs won all three Talladega races in NASCAR's top three divisions this week. All were first-time winners.

Wallace's victory came at the same track where the sport came together to support him after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and after a noose—later found not to be directed at Wallace—was discovered in his garage stall.

"Man, I'm just so proud of everyone at 23XI," Wallace said. "New team coming in and getting a win late in the season. I know a lot of history was made today, I believe, which is really cool, but it's about our guys, about our team, about what was done.

"I appreciate Michael Jordan, I appreciate Denny for believing in me and giving me the opportunity… It's pretty fitting that it comes here at Talladega."

Wallace was choked up when asked about the historic significance of his achievement.

"I never think about those things, and when you say it like that, it obviously brings a lot of emotions, a lot of joy to my family, fans, friends… You've got to stay true to your path and not let the nonsense get to you and stay strong, stay humble, stay hungry.

"There've been plenty of times when I wanted to give up. You surround yourself with the right people, and moments like this that you appreciate."

Team Penske drivers Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano improved their chances of transferring into the Round of 8 in the Playoff with second- and third-place finishes. Kurt Busch was fourth, followed by Christopher Bell, Chris Buescher, Hamlin and Kevin Harvick.

The wreck that ultimately made a winner of Wallace severely damaged the Playoff hopes of William Byron, whose Chevrolet was collected by the spinning car of Preece. Byron was relegated to 36th in the finishing order and likely will need a victory in Sunday's Bank of America Roval 400 at Charlotte to advance to the Round of 8.

"He (Preece) was just coming down the track, and I was kind of trying to run a third lane," Byron said of the wreck. "Just part of Talladega. We'll go to the Roval, try to win that one and advance that way."

Byron was the last of three Hendrick Motorsports drivers to get swept up in an accident. Kyle Larson was the first. By the time the first sudden rain shower of the day darkened the asphalt in Turns 1 and 2 and forced a stoppage on Lap 74, Larson's fortunes already had taken a turn for the worse.

A strong push from Byron's Chevrolet turned Justin Allgaier's Camaro sideways as the cars thundered through the tri-oval on Lap 56. Allgaier shot up the track into Larson's Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, severely damaging the front suspension and the sheet metal on the driver's side of the car.

Larson was able to make minimum speed after a restart on Lap 65. The caution for the five-car wreck that crippled Larson's car also encompassed the end of Stage 1, won by non-Playoff driver Chris Buescher.

On Lap 67, Larson shredded his right front tire, which was cocked at an angle toward the outside wall when he resumed racing. He lost three laps on pit road and fell to 39th in the running order as his crew made frantic repairs.

Attrition elevated Larson to 37th at the finish, but he lost the security he had as a six-time winner in the series this year. The regular-season champion leaves Talladega second in the standings but just 22 points above the current cutoff for the Round of 8.

A multicar chain-reaction wreck after the resumption of the action brought an early end to Alex Bowman's afternoon. On Lap 98, Chase Elliott pushed the Chevrolet of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. into the rear bumper of Bowman's Chevy, turning the No. 48 Camaro into the outside wall and out of the race.

"The 9 (Elliott) just shoved me one last time there, and it got the 48 loose," Stenhouse radioed to his team.

Bowman was fighting for the race lead when he was turned by the contact from Stenhouse's car.

"Yeah, just dumped over on the left rear and turned us around really bad," Bowman said. "Bummer for the Ally 48 team. We had a fast car; we were leading there. That's just superspeedway racing and the box that we're put in by these racetracks. You'll have that. Bummed to have torn up race car, but we'll move on and try to go win the Roval."

Kyle Busch was another victim of the Lap 98 wreck, but the two-time Cup champion remains nine points above the current cut line—tied with defending champion Chase Elliott—heading to the Round of 12 elimination race on Sunday at the Charlotte Roval.

Harvick is nine points below the cutoff, with Bell 28 points in arrears and Byron and Bowman 44 and 52 points on the outside, respectively.

  • Drivers Entered: 40
  • Laps Scheduled: 267
  • Laps Actual: 117 - Race Shortened
  • Margin of Victory: Under Caution Seconds
  • Time of Race: 2 Hours 23 Minutes 24 Seconds
  • Average Speed: 130.218
  • Cautions: 5 for 27 laps
  • Lead Changes: 35
  • Green Flag Passes: 8,852 (98.4 passes per green flag lap)

  • Talladega Superspeedway
  • 53rd Annual YellaWood 500
  • Race Winner: Bubba Wallace
  • Age: 27
  • Team : No. 23 - McDonald's Toyota
  • Owner: Michael Jordan
  • Crew Chief: Robert Barker
  • Bubba Wallace won the 53rd Annual YellaWood 500, his first victory in 144 Cup Series races.
  • This is his first victory and third top-10 finish in 2021.
  • This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in nine races at Talladega Superspeedway.
  • Brad Keselowski (second) posted his 13th top-10 finish in 27 races at Talladega Superspeedway. It is his 14th top-10 finish in 2021.
  • Joey Logano (third) posted his 11th top-10 finish in 27 races at Talladega Superspeedway.
  • Anthony Alfredo (10th) was the highest finishing rookie.
  • Denny Hamlin leads the point standings by 19 points over Kyle Larson.
  • This is the first time in history there has been a winner from all three series in a single weekend at the same track.
Brad Keselowski in victory lane
Talladega, Alabama - April 25, 2021 : Brad Keselowski, driver of the #2 MoneyLion Ford, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 25, 2021 in Talladega, Alabama.
Sean GardnerGetty Images
ENTRY
#
DRIVER
HOMETOWN
DOB
AGE
MAKE
SPONSOR
TEAM
CREW CHIEF

1
10
Tampa, FL
Mar 14, 1984
37
Ford
Smithfield
2
2
Auburn Hills, MI
Feb 12, 1984
37
Ford
Discount Tire
3
11
Chesterfield, VA
Nov 18, 1980
40
Toyota
FedEx Express
4
22
Middleton, CT
May 24, 1990
31
Ford
Shell Pennzoil
5
4
Bakersfield, CA
Dec 8, 1975
45
Ford
Busch Light #Hunt4Busch
6
1
Las Vegas, NV
Aug 4, 1978
43
Chevrolet
Monster Energy
7
18
Las Vegas, NV
May 2, 1985
36
Toyota
M&M's
8
19
Mayetta, NJ
Jun 29, 1980
41
Toyota
Bass Pro Shops
9
34
Phoenix, AZ
Dec 21, 1984
36
Ford
Love's Travel Stops
10
6
South Bend, IN
Dec 8, 1977
43
Ford
Kohler Generators
11
96
Cedar Rapids, IA
Jul 7, 1989
32
Toyota
Carnomaly
12
3
Lewisville, NC
Apr 27, 1990
31
Chevrolet
Breztri
13
47
Olive Branch, MS
Oct 2, 1987
34
Chevrolet
SunnyD
14
77
Riverton, IL
Jun 6, 1986
35
Chevrolet
Brandt
15
5
Sacremento, CA
Jul 31, 1992
29
Chevrolet
Cincinnati
16
48
Tuscon, AZ
Apr 25, 1993
28
Chevrolet
Ally
17
12
High Point, NC
Dec 31, 1993
27
Ford
Menards / Maytag
18
7
Kannapolis, NC
Sep 25, 1991
30
Chevrolet
Schluter Systems
19
53
Cedar Rapids, IA
Feb 8, 1993
28
Chevrolet
Sparks
20
9
Dawsonville, GA
Nov 28, 1995
25
Chevrolet
Adrenaline Shoc
21
21
Grass Valley, CA
Jul 27, 1991
30
Ford
Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center
22
17
Prosper, TX
Oct 29, 1992
28
Ford
Violet Defense
23
43
Byron, MI
May 30, 1996
25
Chevrolet
US Air Force: Special Warfare
24
78
Wauchula, FL
Nov 17, 1983
37
Ford
NASCAR 21 Ignition
25
37
Berlin, CT
Oct 25, 1990
30
Chevrolet
Kroger / Velveeta
26
99
Monterrey, Mexico
Jan 7, 1992
29
Chevrolet
Good Sam
27
51
Greensboro, NC
Nov 7, 1995
25
Chevrolet
Nurtec ODT
28
42
Alva, FL
Dec 4, 1992
28
Chevrolet
Clover
29
23
Mobile, AL
Oct 8, 1993
27
Toyota
McDonalds
30
24
Charlotte, NC
Nov 29, 1997
23
Chevrolet
Axalta
31
41
Ladera Ranch, CA
Jan 23, 1998
23
Ford
Autodesk / HaasTooling.com
32
15
Ligonier, PA
Apr 27, 1992
29
Chevrolet
Boom Mobile
33
52
Menomonee Falls, WI
Jun 3, 1995
26
Ford
Junction Fuels
34
8
Corning, CA
Jan 11, 1996
25
Chevrolet
Realtree
35
00
Weyers Cave, VA
Sep 15, 1997
24
Chevrolet
8 Ball Chocolate Whiskey
36
116
Winamac, IN
Apr 28, 1999
22
Chevrolet
LeafFilter Gutter Protection
37
20
Norman, OK
Dec 16, 1994
26
Toyota
Rheem
38
66
Melbourne, Australia
Aug 28, 1986
35
Ford
Rich-Mar Florist
39
14
Mitchell, IN
Dec 15, 1994
26
Ford
Rush Truck Centers / Mobil Delvac 1
40
38
Ridgefield, CT
Mar 1, 1999
22
Ford
Georgia Peanuts