Talladega belonged to Spire Motorsports. It all started on Saturday when Michael McDowell grabbed the pole position with a speedy 182.466 mph, leaving all the playoff Chevrolets and Fords in the dust, especially edging out race winner Chase Briscoe. Meanwhile, Carson Hocevar put the pedal to the metal as soon as the green flag dropped at the 2025 YellaWood 500.

And the No. 77 Chevy driver looked every bit a winner. Despite starting 32nd, the 22-year-old quickly gained track positions as the laps ticked on, and even looked poised for victory. But this meant tangling with experienced playoff contenders, and in true ‘Hurricane’ Hocevar style, his aggressive move derailed Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron’s day.

Carson Hocevar stands tall amid his aggressive racing

Speaking post-race, Hocevar didn’t mince words. He said, “I mean, I don’t know if there really like was a game plan. We’re all just racing to win. There’s 100% rule out there, so I have to run 100%. So, yeah, I was just pushing all I could. And I wasn’t getting any help, obviously, from a Toyota behind me. Uh, and that was the first time I got pushed through the trial, but I’m just proud of our car and our effort.”

The 22-year-old driver was running 4th when the incident occurred. While battling with William Byron, who was hot on his heels, Carson raced aggressively, pushing and shoving the No. 24. Ultimately, Byron was spun off the bumper of Carson and went from a potential top-five finish to 25th. When asked about whether he thinks he raced fairly and did everything right, the Spire Motorsports ace didn’t hold back; he said, “ No, I mean, sometimes you do all you can do.”

The No. 77 driver remained aggressive but calculated, showing his understanding of the draft and the importance of transposition on a superspeedway like Talladega. In the final stage, the young ace made the most of the opportunities presented by late-race cautions and the multilane pack racing.

Carson Hocevar showed incredible resilience and skill at Talladega, overcoming tire issues early in the race and a road speeding penalty to battle through the tight pack. He finished 9th in Stage 1, climbed back to 3rd by the end of Stage 2, and drove his way to a spectacular sixth-place finish. He gained 26 positions in the process and earned valuable points while exploring, navigating a draft, and avoiding the chaos of the superspeedway.

But things swung dramatically for Byron by the end of Sunday’s race. The No. 24 driver was 16 points below the cut line on the final lap, going down the backstretch, before ending up 36 points behind Larson after the checkered flag was waved at Talladega. This marked the second straight race that William Byron wrecked from inside the top five.

The regular-season points leader will now go to Martinsville Speedway outside the playoff cutline. But with Joe Gibbs Racing’s Chase Briscoe lifting the trophy and finalizing his spot in the Championship 4, things look a lot worse for Hendrick Motorsports.

HMS drivers’ playoff bid is in hot water after a chaotic Talladega showdown

While Byron grapples with his own playoff challenges, his teammates, Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson, had their own misfortunes at the YellaWood 500.  Elliott’s day ended early as he was caught in the crossfire of a stage 1 wreck. The driver got doored by Austin Cindric, who was also involved in the wreck, and Elliott found himself spinning sideways and taking additional hits from Austin Dillon.

The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion had entered the Talladega race 23 points below the cut line, and he now leaves for Martinsville sitting 62 points below it. It will definitely be a difficult path to the championship 4 at Phoenix, and Elliott is surely in a must-win position. Playoff-wise, Kyle Larson is in a better spot than his teammates, but despite posing a threat to the field, he wasn’t able to win and lock his position for Phoenix.

Kyle Larson was battling fuel issues. As the race went into overtime, fuel was tight across the field, and that forced several drivers to pit under the final caution. However, Larson and his No. 5 crew gambled on the fuel mileage and decided to stay out. But when the green flag waved, his car began to sputter, and the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion fell through the pack.

The 33-year-old crawled across the line in 26th, which was a heartbreaking result for him. As things stand, Larson is currently occupying the fourth playoff spot in the championship standings and is just one point behind Christopher Bell. With the race at Martinsville on the horizon, ‘Yung Money’ will be aiming for nothing less than a win. With all three HMS playoff drivers finding themselves in precarious positions and with 2 spots available, all eyes will be focused on the Chevys as they attempt to turn things around.