Best of the Rest: Talladega Round 2 Edition

Spooky season hits NASCAR as teams arrived in Talladega, for the annual fall race weekend. Talladega, one of the largest tracks (and known as a superspeedway) on the schedule at 2.66 miles around. The track has always been a source of pure chaos and monster wrecks, especially during the fall events.

The diabolical choice to include such a wildcard track in one of the final races towards the championship (four drivers will make it to Phoenix), always provides a chance for the hidden gems in the field to shine.

The Xfinity Series race in particular produced two high car-count accidents (aka the Big One), allowing the front of the field to change from the usual contenders.

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Love’s RV Stop 225

Winner: Not Corey Heim (Giovanni Ruggiero)

#17 Giovanni Ruggiero: The ARCA graduate has shown steady improvement in his rookie season at the helm of TRICON Garage’s #17 Toyota. The truck race at Talladega however, truly showed how far Ruggiero has come. Starting his Toyota on the pole, the truck newcomer led 37 of 52 laps before capturing his first career truck series win. He also beat out teammate Corey Heim who came in second.

Interesting note, Ruggiero became the first driver since Todd Bodine (2007) to start on the pole, lead the most laps, and win on a superspeedway.

#26 Dawson Sutton: Not to be outdone by his fellow rookie competitor Ruggiero, Rackley W.A.R. Racing’s Sutton also had a phenomenal run in Talladega. Starting his Chevrolet in the 12th spot, Sutton claimed his first top five finish this season, finishing 4th.

As the season winds down, Sutton has begun to pick up momentum. Struggling a bit at the start of the season, has not finished outside of the top twenty since Richmond. 

#7 J.J. Yeley: Veteran driver Yeley has spent the last few years in various series helping lower budget teams make a go of such competitive fields. Yeley’s best opportunity in many seasons came via Spire Motorsports in ‘Dega. Getting the call to wheel Spire’s #7 Chevrolet, Yeley made his presence felt before being shuffled to 13th in the final rundown.

Yeley, a veteran of 395 Cup Series starts alone, made his first truck start since 2020. On that day, Yeley finished 26th at Dover for Reaume Bros. Racing.

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United Rentals 250

Race Winner: Austin Hill

#1 Carson Kvapil: A CARS Tour standout, Kvapil graduated to the Xfinity Series in 2025 to drive JR Motorsports’ #1 Chevrolet. Kvapil’s rookie season (while far from smooth) has shown he has what it takes, with the best performance yet coming in Talladega. Starting his Bass Pro Shops-backed Chevrolet 4th, Kvapil had a sniff at his first career win before having to settle for second.

Currently scheduled to run a part-time schedule only in 2026, Kvapil’s rookie season has seen it’s share of success, collecting 14 top ten finishes in 31 heading into Martinsville.

#70 Leland Honeyman, Jr.: Honeyman, a second year driver, has driven a partial schedule this season with the new Cope Family Racing team. While Honeyman’s second year experience is invaluable to a new team…2025 has seen it’s share of struggles: Talladega however was a banner day, with Honeyman finishing 8th after starting 29th.

Making 16 of his 17 starts this season with CFR’s #70 Chevrolet, Honeyman has shined on superspeedways, finishing 8th in Atlanta early in the season, as well as 13th in the previous Talladega event.

Joey Gase Motorsports w/Scott Osteen (#35 and #53): A team does not often make the cut for this series, but Joey Gase’s team had a phenomenal performance with both teams in Talladega. Owner-driver Gase (typically a strong underdog on superspeedways), started his #53 Chevrolet 36th and finished 16th.

Taking the wheel of Gase’s second #35 Chevrolet, veteran driver David Starr piloted his entry to an 18th-place finish after starting 35th. For the longtime journeyman, this was his best run since finishing 8th at Talladega in 2024 for SS-Green Light Racing. Starr has 270 career Xfinity Series starts dating back to 2000.

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Yellawood 500

Race Winner: Chase Briscoe

#38 Zane Smith: Smith returned to Front Row Motorsports this season to pilot their #38 Ford in a full season effort. While the team struggled to come together early on, the FRM crew has shown their #38 has shown they can compete recently. Talladega continued the teams late season surge with a 9th-place effort. Smith rolled off on the grid 23rd.

While bad luck has still bitten the team, the performance is there during the race. Smith’s best finish prior to Talladega was a 3rd-place finish in Bristol. After 34 of 36 events, the FRM driver has an average finish of 20.7.

#41 Cole Custer: Former Xfinity Series champion Custer re-joined the Cup Series this season, as the solo driver for the new Haas Factory Team and their #41 entry. Growing pains have been very much the story of Custer’s season, however Talladega allowed the team to continue improving. Qualifying 12th, Custer survived the typical chaos and collected his second top five of the season (5th).

After 34 events, Custer’s finishes tell the story of a team trying to find their groove. Superspeedway’s have been the teams niche, with Custer finishing 4th in Daytona during the summer. Custer also finished 8th on the road course in Mexico City.

#66 Casey Mears: The best story of the event really comes in the form of former full-time Cup driver Casey Mears. Making his third start of the Cup season for owner Carl Long and his Garage 66 team, Mears started his Ford 40th in the field, and brought the Garage 66 entry home in 18th. This was the best finish for the #66 entry since Timmy Hill finished 15th at Talladega in 2020.

For Mears, his return to Cup competition has been rough (finishes of 35th and 29th prior to Talladega), the ‘Dega finish is a huge shot in the arm for both Mears and owner Carl Long. Mears’ last top ten finish came at Daytona in 2015 with the now defunct Germain Racing. 

**Mears is also chasing his 600th overall start in NASCAR, with the next planned event being with the Craftsman Truck Series in Martinsville**

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