Larson Wins Talladega in a Photo Finish to Move Closer to a Third Cup Title

Kyle Larson claimed his first career victory at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday, pulling off a remarkable late rally that pushed him closer to a third NASCAR Cup Series championship.

The defending champion and points leader was out front as the field took the white flag. He was then shuffled out of line and fell back to 11th place. Larson surged through the pack in the final moments and edged his teammate William Byron at the finish line in a photo finish.

The win ended a long wait at the Alabama track, where Larson had gone winless in his first 23 career starts. It was also his third victory of the Chase, which came after he failed to win in any of the first 26 races of the 2026 season. The 34-year-old driver now has a firm grip on the title.

Larson now holds a 73-point lead with two races remaining. A driver can earn between one and 76 points in a single race, so Larson could mathematically clinch the championship at Martinsville Speedway next Sunday on NBC.

His advantage grew because trouble hit almost all of his rivals. Second-place Christopher Bell wrecked while coming to pit road in the first stage. Near the end of the second stage, Ryan Blaney and Tyler Reddick were taken out in a large crash. Late in the race, Joey Logano and Chase Briscoe were caught up in the biggest accident of the afternoon.

That crash brought out a red flag with five laps to go. Logano, a three-time Cup Series champion, was running fourth when he lost control, and his car went airborne and landed on its roof. The wreck became a 15-car pileup on the frontstretch that also involved Briscoe, Brad Keselowski, Austin Cindric, Josh Berry and Riley Herbst. Herbst appeared to lose the brakes on his No. 35 Toyota before hitting the inside wall at nearly full speed.

Safety crews needed several minutes to return Logano's No. 22 Ford to its wheels, and he climbed out of the car to cheers from the crowd. "I just got a push in the wrong spot there," Logano said. He thanked the safety team and said the roll cage did not appear to be crushed this time, adding that he was "just happy to be alive."

Herbst, who missed a race earlier this season with a head injury, exited his car with help from safety workers. He leaned against the car for a moment before taking off his helmet.

Denny Hamlin, the other remaining title contender, was damaged in the second-stage crash but held on to finish eighth. In the standings, Larson leads Hamlin by 73 points. Bell is 74 back, followed by Briscoe at 79 and Logano at 100.