Cup - 2020 - YellaWood 500
Date: 2020-10-04 | Track: Talladega Superspeedway
Three ways to measure this race
| Official winner | TLS leader | Best ARP | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Driver | Denny Hamlin (#11) | Chase Elliott (P) (#9) | Aric Almirola (P) (#10) |
| Finish | P1 | P5 | P37 |
| TLS points | 4026 | 6414 | 1900 |
| ARP | 19.97 | 8.09 | 7.24 |
| Laps led | 26 | 41 | 9 |
Three different ways to measure a race — and they often point to different drivers.
Official winner — Denny Hamlin (#11): where the car was at the checkered flag (P1). Led 26 laps with 19.97 average running position and 4,026 TLS points.
TLS leader — Chase Elliott (P) (#9): most position-weighted points across every scored lap (6,414 points). Finished P5 with 41 laps led and 8.09 ARP. TLS rewards running up front all afternoon, not only the final lap.
Best ARP — Aric Almirola (P) (#10): lowest average running position (7.24). Finished P37 with 1,900 TLS points and 9 laps led. ARP is an average across all laps — a driver can run near the front all day yet score fewer TLS points if they led fewer laps, completed fewer laps, or lost ground late while keeping a strong average.
The checkered flag reflects who survived the final seconds. TLS reflects where drivers ran across the whole race. ARP tells you the typical running spot — but not who banked the most valuable laps.
| Finish Position | Points Position | Driver | Car Number | Manufacturer | Team | Start Position | Laps Led | ARP | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Denny Hamlin (P) | 11 | Toyota | Joe Gibbs Racing | 1 | 26 | 19.97 | 4026 |
| 2 | 5 | Erik Jones | 20 | Toyota | Joe Gibbs Racing | 16 | 13 | 10.35 | 5959 |
| 3 | 11 | Ty Dillon | 13 | Chevrolet | Germain Racing | 28 | 0 | 14.53 | 5119 |
| 4 | 7 | William Byron | 24 | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 21 | 1 | 11.52 | 5724 |
| 5 | 1 | Chase Elliott (P) | 9 | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 10 | 41 | 8.09 | 6414 |
| 6 | 21 | Ryan Newman | 6 | Ford | Roush Fenway Racing | 19 | 0 | 20.40 | 3940 |
| 7 | 13 | Tyler Reddick # | 8 | Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | 30 | 2 | 14.92 | 5042 |
| 8 | 15 | John Hunter Nemechek # | 38 | Ford | Front Row Motorsports | 23 | 0 | 15.85 | 4855 |
| 9 | 22 | Brennan Poole # | 15 | Chevrolet | Premium Motorsports | 32 | 0 | 20.99 | 3822 |
| 10 | 8 | Ryan Preece | 37 | Chevrolet | JTG Daugherty Racing | 25 | 0 | 11.54 | 5721 |
| 11 | 37 | Justin Haley(i) | 77 | Chevrolet | Spire Motorsports | 35 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 |
| 12 | 20 | Austin Dillon (P) | 3 | Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | 12 | 0 | 19.99 | 4023 |
| 13 | 24 | Quin Houff # | 00 | Chevrolet | StarCom Racing | 33 | 0 | 23.87 | 3243 |
| 14 | 17 | Alex Bowman (P) | 88 | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 4 | 0 | 17.96 | 4430 |
| 15 | 37 | * Timmy Hill(i) | 66 | Toyota | Motorsports Business Management | 37 | 1 | 0.00 | 0 |
| 16 | 12 | Matt Kenseth | 42 | Chevrolet | Chip Ganassi Racing | 20 | 0 | 14.81 | 5063 |
| 17 | 37 | Joey Gase(i) | 51 | Ford | Petty Ware Racing | 36 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 |
| 18 | 2 | Brad Keselowski (P) | 2 | Ford | Team Penske | 7 | 6 | 8.19 | 6394 |
| 19 | 23 | Cody Ware | 27 | Ford | Rick Ware Racing | 34 | 1 | 23.08 | 3401 |
| 20 | 16 | Kevin Harvick (P) | 4 | Ford | Stewart-Haas Racing | 5 | 2 | 16.97 | 4630 |
| 21 | 6 | Matt DiBenedetto | 21 | Ford | Wood Brothers Racing | 13 | 10 | 10.42 | 5945 |
| 22 | 3 | Chris Buescher | 17 | Ford | Roush Fenway Racing | 15 | 15 | 10.05 | 6020 |
| 23 | 9 | Martin Truex Jr. (P) | 19 | Toyota | Joe Gibbs Racing | 3 | 6 | 12.32 | 5509 |
| 24 | 10 | Bubba Wallace | 43 | Chevrolet | Richard Petty Motorsports | 27 | 10 | 13.14 | 5184 |
| 25 | 14 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | Ford | Team Penske | 14 | 10 | 14.55 | 4911 |
| 26 | 4 | Joey Logano (P) | 22 | Ford | Team Penske | 8 | 45 | 8.32 | 5988 |
| 27 | 18 | Kyle Busch (P) | 18 | Toyota | Joe Gibbs Racing | 6 | 0 | 18.26 | 4109 |
| 28 | 31 | Corey LaJoie | 32 | Ford | GO FAS Racing | 29 | 0 | 32.03 | 1506 |
| 29 | 25 | Jimmie Johnson | 48 | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 17 | 1 | 15.95 | 3223 |
| 30 | 34 | James Davison | 53 | Chevrolet | Rick Ware Racing | 38 | 0 | 33.29 | 799 |
| 31 | 27 | Cole Custer # | 41 | Ford | Stewart-Haas Racing | 18 | 0 | 12.69 | 2977 |
| 32 | 26 | Kurt Busch (P) | 1 | Chevrolet | Chip Ganassi Racing | 2 | 0 | 11.78 | 3076 |
| 33 | 28 | Clint Bowyer (P) | 14 | Ford | Stewart-Haas Racing | 9 | 0 | 13.72 | 2865 |
| 34 | 29 | * Daniel Suarez | 96 | Toyota | Gaunt Brothers Racing | 31 | 0 | 16.28 | 2585 |
| 35 | 33 | * Brendan Gaughan | 62 | Chevrolet | Beard Motorsports | 39 | 0 | 29.37 | 1159 |
| 36 | 32 | Michael McDowell | 34 | Ford | Front Row Motorsports | 24 | 1 | 21.42 | 1486 |
| 37 | 30 | Aric Almirola (P) | 10 | Ford | Stewart-Haas Racing | 11 | 9 | 7.24 | 1900 |
| 38 | 35 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 47 | Chevrolet | JTG Daugherty Racing | 26 | 0 | 29.33 | 96 |
| 39 | 36 | Christopher Bell # | 95 | Toyota | Leavine Family Racing | 22 | 0 | 30.50 | 19 |
Season Points Standings (Up to This Race)
| Rank | Driver | Car Number | Season Points | Average Running Position | Total Laps Led | Points this race |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kevin Harvick (P) | 4 | 270482 | 8.85 | 1418 | 4630 |
| 2 | Joey Logano (P) | 22 | 264491 | 9.14 | 748 | 5988 |
| 3 | Chase Elliott (P) | 9 | 260916 | 8.76 | 783 | 6414 |
| 4 | Brad Keselowski (P) | 2 | 252882 | 9.84 | 920 | 6394 |
| 5 | Martin Truex Jr. (P) | 19 | 248144 | 10.76 | 768 | 5509 |
| 6 | Denny Hamlin (P) | 11 | 241947 | 10.37 | 983 | 4026 |
| 7 | Kyle Busch (P) | 18 | 236254 | 10.97 | 414 | 4109 |
| 8 | Alex Bowman (P) | 88 | 234091 | 12.13 | 394 | 4430 |
| 9 | Ryan Blaney (P) | 12 | 231862 | 10.11 | 597 | 4911 |
| 10 | Aric Almirola (P) | 10 | 225647 | 12.93 | 297 | 1900 |
| 11 | Kurt Busch (P) | 1 | 224150 | 12.18 | 140 | 3076 |
| 12 | Clint Bowyer (P) | 14 | 223480 | 12.93 | 182 | 2865 |
| 13 | Matt DiBenedetto (P) | 21 | 218673 | 13.34 | 76 | 5945 |
| 14 | Jimmie Johnson | 48 | 214220 | 13.06 | 103 | 3223 |
| 15 | Erik Jones | 20 | 211062 | 14.45 | 62 | 5959 |
| 16 | William Byron (P) | 24 | 207700 | 13.90 | 110 | 5724 |
| 17 | Austin Dillon (P) | 3 | 198829 | 15.95 | 135 | 4023 |
| 18 | Tyler Reddick # | 8 | 198245 | 16.64 | 30 | 5042 |
| 19 | Chris Buescher | 17 | 173741 | 19.43 | 33 | 6020 |
| 20 | Cole Custer # (P) | 41 | 171953 | 18.18 | 5 | 2977 |
| 21 | Christopher Bell # | 95 | 170265 | 18.57 | 7 | 19 |
| 22 | Bubba Wallace | 43 | 159510 | 20.01 | 14 | 5184 |
| 23 | Matt Kenseth | 42 | 156498 | 18.89 | 13 | 5063 |
| 24 | Ryan Newman | 6 | 155779 | 19.65 | 34 | 3940 |
| 25 | John Hunter Nemechek # | 38 | 151436 | 21.89 | 1 | 4855 |
| 26 | Michael McDowell | 34 | 147064 | 21.86 | 6 | 1486 |
| 27 | Ryan Preece | 37 | 144809 | 21.49 | 4 | 5721 |
| 28 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 47 | 141044 | 19.26 | 67 | 96 |
| 29 | Ty Dillon | 13 | 138032 | 22.47 | 8 | 5119 |
| 30 | Corey LaJoie | 32 | 115028 | 25.84 | 6 | 1506 |
| 31 | * Daniel Suarez | 96 | 101839 | 27.09 | 20 | 2585 |
| 32 | Brennan Poole # | 15 | 73220 | 30.18 | 3 | 3822 |
| 33 | Quin Houff # | 00 | 53764 | 32.94 | 0 | 3243 |
| 34 | Kyle Larson | 42 | 25091 | 15.08 | 2 | 0 |
| 35 | Reed Sorenson | 77 | 24852 | 33.53 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Gray Gaulding(i) | 27 | 14437 | 29.97 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | James Davison | 77 | 11945 | 34.23 | 0 | 799 |
| 38 | * Brendan Gaughan(i) | 62 | 5854 | 29.52 | 0 | 1159 |
| 39 | David Ragan | 36 | 5177 | 16.35 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Garrett Smithley(i) | 78 | 3619 | 35.70 | 1 | 0 |
| 41 | Cody Ware | 27 | 3401 | 23.08 | 1 | 3401 |
| 42 | BJ McLeod(i) | 78 | 1886 | 31.13 | 0 | 0 |
| 43 | JJ Yeley(i) | 77 | 1128 | 32.05 | 0 | 0 |
| 44 | Stanton Barrett | 77 | 62 | 38.76 | 0 | 0 |