| NASCAR Cup SeriesTalladega SuperspeedwayJack Link’s 500Team Chevy Post-Race ReportApril 26, 2026 |
| MEDIA RESOURCES: Photo Gallery | Race AdvancesChevrolet Newsroom |
| · In a three-lap dash to the finish, Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar became a first-time winner in NASCAR’s premier series – taking the checkered flag in the Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The victory, Chevrolet’s second in the series this season, was celebrated by a manufacturer-leading representation in the top-10, with Hocevar leading Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott in the third and fourth positions, respectively; Hyak Motorsports’ Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in sixth; Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain in seventh; and Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch in 10th. · The victory marked the Bowtie brand’s series-leading 46th all-time NASCAR Cup Series win at Talladega Superspeedway. Chevrolet drivers have now earned the victory in five of the nine NASCAR Cup Series races held during the Next Gen era at the Alabama venue – a feat accomplished by five drivers from five different Chevrolet organizations. RACE RECAP: Stage One: With the lineup set by the rulebook, Kyle Larson turned last weekend’s season-best finish into a front row starting spot for the Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Taking the green flag for Stage One, Larson drove his Chevrolet to the command position heading into Turn One, but it was Austin Dillion that quickly made his charge towards the front. Jumping to the outside to create a third lane, Dillon turned an 18th-place starting position into a battle for the lead in the opening laps. In just 20 laps, the lead pack saw a seven-car breakaway that included a trio of ECR-powered Chevrolet’s – led by Cody Ware in fifth, with the Richard Childress Racing teammates, Busch and Dillon, in tow. With the introduction of new stage lengths for drafting-style tracks, pit strategies saw the three lead pack Chevrolet-powered machines make their first trip to pit road on Lap 41 to start the green flag pit cycle. A mix bag of pit road calls saw the Richard Boswell-led team opt for a two-tire and fuel stop. Once the field cycled through, Dillon found his way back to the top lane and patiently went to work to climb back through the field – finding his way back up to the top position to lead the Bowtie brigade through the two-thirds mark of Stage One. A long opening stage saw a split between an one- and two-stop strategy. The No. 3 Chevrolet were among those that opted to make a second trip to pit road, leading a group of Chevrolet drivers for a scheduled stop on Lap 69 – ultimately cycling up to the 17th position to lead the two-stop strategy cars. As the stage hit a single-digit lap countdown, there was still a group of cars that chose to stretch the green flag run. With fresh right-side tires and just enough fuel, the radio to Dillon told the Team Chevy driver to “go hard” for the push towards the first green-white checkered flag. With the top-nine cars stretching their fuel to make it a one-stop stage, it was Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain that led Team Chevy in 10th to end Stage One. Stage Two: The 40-lap Stage Two saw Chastain lead the field to the green flag from a position on the front row. With a shorter stage on the horizon, a sense of urgency quickly came across the field as the lead pack saw spurts of four-wide racing. Dicey moves at the front transpired into the “Big One” on Lap 115 that ultimately collected 26 cars. Among those with race-ending damage included the Hendrick Motorsports duo of Larson and Byron. Chastain remained in the battle for the lead throughout the remainder of Stage Two, with the 2022 Talladega winner going on to pick up the stage win. Final Stage: The start of the final stage saw six drivers from five different Chevrolet organizations sitting in the top-10 of the running order. For the first time of the day, Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar found his way to the front of the lead pack – trading position for the lead throughout the opening laps of Stage Three. Sitting back on the front row for the restart with three laps to go, Hocevar edged towards the lead with fellow Team Chevy driver, Alex Bowman, at his back bumper. Sitting in the top position as he led the field to the white flag, a wreck in the lead pack brought out the caution to ultimately end the race for Hocevar to pick up his first career win at NASCAR’s highest level. |
| Team Chevy Unofficial Top-10 ResultsPos. Driver 1st – Carson Hocevar3rd – Alex Bowman4th – Chase Elliott6th – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 7th – Ross Chastain10th – Kyle Busch  Chevrolet’s season statistics with 10 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:Wins: 2Poles: 1Top-Fives: 18Top 10s: 34Stage Wins: 7 |
| The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at Texas Motor Speedway with the Würth 400 presented by LIQUI MOLY on Sunday, May 3, at 3:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. |
| NASCAR Cup SeriesTalladega SuperspeedwayJack Link’s 500Team Chevy Post-Race ReportApril 26, 2026 |
Carson Hocevar Drives to First Career NASCAR Cup Series Win at Talladega Superspeedway |
| MEDIA RESOURCES: Photo Gallery | Race AdvancesChevrolet Newsroom |
| · In a three-lap dash to the finish, Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar became a first-time winner in NASCAR’s premier series – taking the checkered flag in the Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The victory, Chevrolet’s second in the series this season, was celebrated by a manufacturer-leading representation in the top-10, with Hocevar leading Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott in the third and fourth positions, respectively; Hyak Motorsports’ Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in sixth; Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain in seventh; and Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch in 10th. · The victory marked the Bowtie brand’s series-leading 46th all-time NASCAR Cup Series win at Talladega Superspeedway. Chevrolet drivers have now earned the victory in five of the nine NASCAR Cup Series races held during the Next Gen era at the Alabama venue – a feat accomplished by five drivers from five different Chevrolet organizations. RACE RECAP: Stage One: With the lineup set by the rulebook, Kyle Larson turned last weekend’s season-best finish into a front row starting spot for the Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Taking the green flag for Stage One, Larson drove his Chevrolet to the command position heading into Turn One, but it was Austin Dillion that quickly made his charge towards the front. Jumping to the outside to create a third lane, Dillon turned an 18th-place starting position into a battle for the lead in the opening laps. In just 20 laps, the lead pack saw a seven-car breakaway that included a trio of ECR-powered Chevrolet’s – led by Cody Ware in fifth, with the Richard Childress Racing teammates, Busch and Dillon, in tow. With the introduction of new stage lengths for drafting-style tracks, pit strategies saw the three lead pack Chevrolet-powered machines make their first trip to pit road on Lap 41 to start the green flag pit cycle. A mix bag of pit road calls saw the Richard Boswell-led team opt for a two-tire and fuel stop. Once the field cycled through, Dillon found his way back to the top lane and patiently went to work to climb back through the field – finding his way back up to the top position to lead the Bowtie brigade through the two-thirds mark of Stage One. A long opening stage saw a split between an one- and two-stop strategy. The No. 3 Chevrolet were among those that opted to make a second trip to pit road, leading a group of Chevrolet drivers for a scheduled stop on Lap 69 – ultimately cycling up to the 17th position to lead the two-stop strategy cars. As the stage hit a single-digit lap countdown, there was still a group of cars that chose to stretch the green flag run. With fresh right-side tires and just enough fuel, the radio to Dillon told the Team Chevy driver to “go hard” for the push towards the first green-white checkered flag. With the top-nine cars stretching their fuel to make it a one-stop stage, it was Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain that led Team Chevy in 10th to end Stage One. Stage Two: The 40-lap Stage Two saw Chastain lead the field to the green flag from a position on the front row. With a shorter stage on the horizon, a sense of urgency quickly came across the field as the lead pack saw spurts of four-wide racing. Dicey moves at the front transpired into the “Big One” on Lap 115 that ultimately collected 26 cars. Among those with race-ending damage included the Hendrick Motorsports duo of Larson and Byron. Chastain remained in the battle for the lead throughout the remainder of Stage Two, with the 2022 Talladega winner going on to pick up the stage win. Final Stage: The start of the final stage saw six drivers from five different Chevrolet organizations sitting in the top-10 of the running order. For the first time of the day, Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar found his way to the front of the lead pack – trading position for the lead throughout the opening laps of Stage Three. Sitting back on the front row for the restart with three laps to go, Hocevar edged towards the lead with fellow Team Chevy driver, Alex Bowman, at his back bumper. Sitting in the top position as he led the field to the white flag, a wreck in the lead pack brought out the caution to ultimately end the race for Hocevar to pick up his first career win at NASCAR’s highest level. |
| Team Chevy Unofficial Top-10 ResultsPos. Driver 1st – Carson Hocevar3rd – Alex Bowman4th – Chase Elliott6th – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 7th – Ross Chastain10th – Kyle Busch Chevrolet’s season statistics with 10 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:Wins: 2Poles: 1Top-Fives: 18Top 10s: 34Stage Wins: 7 |
| The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at Texas Motor Speedway with the Würth 400 presented by LIQUI MOLY on Sunday, May 3, at 3:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. |
| Post-Race Driver Quotes: Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletFinished: 7th“I thought we executed the day really well. We got really fortunate through a lot of scenarios. We were in the right lane there at the end to not get caught up in the last wreck. There was an emphasis on stage points in January for this No. 1 team, and we’ve struggled getting up there. A point in Stage One and the Stage Two win was good. Brandon (McSwain, crew chief) has been on us to unload better so we can get stage points on downforce tracks. Overall, it was a great effort for this No. 1 Jockey VentraCool Air Chevrolet team.” Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletFinished: 19th “Not the way we wanted our day to end but our Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Long Beard XR Chevrolet had speed. We were in position to have a shot at it on the last lap which is a positive. I went to the middle and next thing I know, I had contact from behind and around we went. We were still able to finish but it could have been a much better day. Still very proud of the effort from everyone at RCR and ECR.” Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletSidelined by damage sustained in the “Big One” in Stage Two. Finished: 40th “There was a big stack-up and I was just in the middle of it. It was a bummer for this No. 5 Valvoline Chevrolet team. Just another Talladega result for us, but we got ourselves back there. I don’t know what happened on our first pit stop, but we didn’t get as much fuel in it that we needed to. I was saving fuel and got shuffled to the back. We had to take a little longer on the next pit stop, so we lost the draft and had to restart in the back to start Stage Two. It was starting to get hairy there at the start of the stage, so I wasn’t surprised to get wrapped up in that crash. It’s just an unfortunate end to the day.” Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletFinished: 10th “Solid run. We were good early, we just didn’t keep it clean all day. I felt like we had a really good race car early there, we got caught up in the wreck in the second stage and bent her up a little bit, but the guys were able to repair the Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet to get us back in the top 10. I hate it for Austin [Dillon], I think he was going to be a top 5 guy, but they got wrecked in that last one on the start finish, but good job to us. Definitely good to get a good finish. We wanted more, I felt like we were capable of more, but we’ve got to take the top 10 result right now and be happy with that.” Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletFinished: 4th “It was an OK day for the No. 9 Prime Video Chevrolet team. You try to do the best you can to execute and put yourself on those first couple of rows. We kept getting really close, but we just lacked a little bit there to put ourselves just one row forward. I think that would have made a big difference for us. Nonetheless, it was a solid day. Super happy for Carson (Hocevar, race winner). He’s been really close many times. Glad to get Team Chevy a win. Between Alex (Bowman) and everyone there on the bottom, I thought we were doing a good job keeping him in it. Happy it worked out for one of us.” William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletSidelined by damage sustained in the “Big One” in Stage Two. Finished: 35th “I was just trying to get slowed down so I didn’t get any major impacts. It didn’t feel like I hit that hard, but somebody got me in the right-front and I got damage to the suspension. It was cool to have Phorm Energy on our Chevrolet this weekend. It’s a new partner for us, so I wish we could have gotten a better finish for them. We didn’t have the best Stage One, in terms of how the strategy shook out. We kind of cycled back a little bit. We were just trying to get back towards the front, but we didn’t get the chance. It’s a bummer, but we’ll regroup and get ready for Texas (Motor Speedway) next weekend.” Jesse Love, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletFinished: 27th“Today was a bummer in our 1-800-PACK RAT Chevrolet. Even though we made it to the end of the race, our day ended pretty early after we ended up with damage in the Big One. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get it fixed up competitively. We were okay to start the race. We had to save fuel, and crashing is always a risk when you have to save fuel in the first couple of stages. Still thankful for the opportunity and looking forward to my next Cup race.” Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletFinished: 3rd“Just happy that we survived. I don’t have many big hits left in me, so coming home with a solid finish was nice. We found ourselves in a good spot and did what we could there at the end. Congratulations to Carson (Hocevar, race winner) and the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet team. It’s cool to get the win for Team Chevy and the Hendrick Engine Shop. We did all we could, and glad we could push hard to get a Chevrolet into victory lane. It was a solid weekend and we’re looking forward to building off it.” Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports ChevroletFinished: 1stSince you’ve come to the Cup Series, you have done things your own way, and I’m just going to start with this victory celebration. Kind of your own way right here?“Yeah, I feel like every time I’ve ever just seen the crown, I never really got to hear them. I had this thought up for a while. I’ve messed it up every which way to not be able to do it. I didn’t care if it took 20 minutes or whatever, I was going to figure out how to do it. It took a while. I’m out of breath. I am just so thankful. This is the biggest dream I have ever thought of. Thank you to everybody at Spire Motorsports, Jeff Dickerson and Chevrolet. I couldn’t have done it a better way. Hopefully my grandpa’s watching. My grandma passed away last year, so I’m so thankful that I can give my grandpa a trophy now. We rode the Dente today, that’s for sure. I mean just unbelievable… it’s a dream.” |