Race Weekend Central

NASCAR Makes Changes to Talladega Qualifying Ahead of Fall Races

Many consider Talladega SuperSpeedway as the ultimate wild card in NASCAR’s 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup, as anything can happen in the course of 500 miles on the biggest oval NASCAR competes on.

Now, there’s even more intrigue to the race down in Alabama.

On Thursday, NASCAR announced a new qualifying format for the Oct. 17-19 race weekend that features the Camping World Truck Series Fred’s 250 and Sprint Cup Series Geico 500 that includes shortening the qualifying rounds and added a third – each five minutes in length.

The new NASCAR National Series qualifying format at Talladega consists of the following as a whole:

  • Three rounds with the first round divided into two groups of competitors. The first qualifying round is five minutes in length for each group.
  • Competitors will be assigned to a first qualifying round group based on the random draw held earlier in the event.
  • The 24 fastest competitors from either of the first qualifying round groups will advance to the second round. Remaining competitors will be sorted based on their speed, in descending order.
  • There will be a 10-minute break after the completion of the first qualifying round and the 24 remaining competitors that advance to the second round will have their times reset.
  • The second qualifying round is five minutes in length, with the 12 fastest competitors advancing to the third and final round. Remaining competitors will earn positions 13-24 based on their speed, in descending order.
  • Following a five minute break, the 12 eligible competitors that advance to the final round will have their posted speeds reset.
  • The final qualifying round is five minutes in length, with the fastest lap speeds determining positions 1-12, in descending order.


“This revision in national series qualifying at Talladega should be more exciting for our fans,” NASCAR’s Robin Pemberton said of the changes. “It will feature a more accelerated pace, provide greater opportunity for team strategy to come into play and it should more closely resemble actual racing conditions.” 

Qualifying for the Camping World Truck Series Fred’s 250 will take place on Oct. 17 at 5:30 p.m. ET and will air live on FOX Sports 1. Qualifying for the Geico 500 takes place on Oct. 18 at 4:30 p.m. ET and will air on ESPN News.

Meanwhile, the Fred’s 250 Truck Series will be broadcast on Oct. 18 at 1 p.m. ET on FOX and the Geico 500 will be broadcast on Oct. 19 at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN. It is a cutoff race in the Chase, as the championship field will be cut to eight drivers after that weekend.

About the author

Justin starts his second year with the Frontstretch in 2014, responsible for Sprint Cup news in our e-newsletter twice a week. Also a Frontstretch Power Rankings contributor, he acts as “super sub” filling in for various columns throughout the season. He resides out in Missouri.

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