Ryan Blaney narrowly wins GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway

7:53 p.m.: The GEICO 500 finished in wild fashion with Ryan Blaney edging out Ricky Stenhouse Jr. after a last second accident in the final scramble. Aric Almirola, Denny Hamlin, and Erik Jones rounded out the top five. Here are the full results from Monday’s NASCAR race.

7:45 p.m. 26 cars on the lead lap, Ryan Blaney stayed out and he’s in the lead. Harvick, Stenhouse, Buescher, and Custer are behind him and they also didn’t come in.

We’re looking at grip and gas vs. those that stayed out for the finish here at Talladega. This should be fun.

7:40 p.m. HERE WE GO. After 65 laps somehow without a wreck at ‘Dega, much less The Big One, Harvick spins out Jimmie Johnson who was competing for third. And that brings out the caution the entire field needed as everyone is on fumes because they haven’t been able to get gas since the end of Stage 2.

We’re going to overtime to finish this race, and so many drivers are about to pit because they’re just out of gas.

6:32 p.m. After a caution that saw a restart on Lap 118 of 120, Stage 2 saw Ricky Stenhouse Jr. overcome Ryan Blaney on the last lap to take the lead and win the stage. Stenhouse has the best record of any driver in NASCAR history at ‘Dega that’s run in at least 10 races, so he should be there at the finish.

Somehow we still haven’t had “The Big One” today, and 35 cars are on the lead lap. The Top 10 after Stage 2:

Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Ryan Blaney
Kyle Busch
Brad Keselowski
Christopher Bell
Joey Logano
Bubba Wallace
Cole Custer
Chris Buescher
William Byron

5:22 p.m. The drivers are back on the track, and with the warm-up laps needed to get back up to speed, the Top 10 stayed the same. Tyler Reddick wins his first-ever stage in the NASCAR Cup Series as he crosses the line under caution. The restart will be on Lap 62.

4:24 p.m. And three laps short of the end of the 60 lap Stage 1, we are in a rain delay as the skies open up and it starts pouring at Talladega. Here’s the Top 10 as they head to the pits to wait it out:

Top-10 at the rain delay:

Tyler Reddick
Alex Bowman
Joey Logano
Jimmie Johnson
Kyle Busch
Ryan Blaney
Kurt Busch
Brad Keselowski
Chase Elliott
William Byron

3:45 p.m. As we hit the mandatory caution at Lap 25 of 188, Joey Logano crosses the line in first place using the clean air and the high groove of the track. Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney, Cole Buescher, and Denny Hamlin round out the Top 5, and it looks like most drivers will take four tires.

3:15 p.m. The drivers are in their cars getting ready to take warm-up laps up as we get ready to race at ‘Dega, but not before some moving scenes in light of the hatred shown towards Bubba Wallace yesterday.

And here’s The King Richard Petty standing by the driver of his legendary #43 car, literally and figuratively, during the national anthem.

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NASCAR had to postpone Sunday’s Talladega race due to inclement weather, and it is now set for Monday afternoon. The GEICO 500 will start at 3 p.m. ET at Talladega Superspeedway, with the Cup Series race broadcasting on FOX.

Weather remains a bit of a concern. The National Weather Service is reporting a 70 percent chance of precipitation, with showers and thunderstorms “likely” after 2 p.m.

Martin Truex Jr. will open the race in the pole position, followed by Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, and Kevin Harvick. Brendan Gaughan and Garrett Smithley make up the last row of the race. The race order was determined by random draw of teams in specific positions based on owner points.

DraftKings Sportsbook has Chase Elliott installed as the favorite at +700. He’s followed by Joey Logano (+750), Brad Keselowski (+800), Denny Hamlin (+1000), and Ryan Blaney (+1200). Kevin Harvick is the current Cup Series points leader at 463. He’s followed by Elliott (455), Logano (434), Keselowski (412), and Blaney (411).

Talladega is always a high profile race on the schedule, but recent events have further added to it. Someone placed a noose in Bubba Wallace’s garage over the weekend, and NASCAR has begun an investigation. Given how locked down the racing series is during the Covid-19 pandemic, NASCAR will hopefully have a resolution soon. In the meantime, the pre-race will include drivers supporting Wallace by pushing his 43 car to the front of the grid in unison, where everyone will then stand around the car for the national anthem, per reporter Dustin Albino. Wallace is slotted 24th in the starting lineup.

We’ll be updating with all the highlights from the race this afternoon, and then have the full finishing order when the checkered flag drops.