2021 GEICO 500

2021 GEICO 500

Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6]
Race 10 of 36 in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series
Date	April 25, 2021 (2021-04-25)
Location	Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama
Course	Permanent racing facility
Course length	2.66 miles (4.28 km)
Distance	191 laps, 508.06 mi (817.48 km)
Scheduled distance	188 laps, 500.08 mi (804.64 km)
Average speed	147.62 miles per hour (237.57 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Denny Hamlin	Joe Gibbs Racing
Grid positions set by competition-based formula
Most laps led
Driver	Denny Hamlin	Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps	44
Winner
No. 2	Brad Keselowski	Team Penske
Television in the United States
Network	Fox
Announcers	Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer
Nielsen ratings	2.8/4.7 million
Radio in the United States
Radio	MRN
Booth announcers	Alex Hayden and Jeff Striegle
Turn announcers	Dave Moody (1 & 2), Mike Bagley (Backstretch) and Kurt Becker (3 & 4)

The 2021 GEICO 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race was held on April 25, 2021, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 191 laps – extended from 188 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 2.66 mile (4.28 km) superspeedway, it was the 10th race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, as well as the second of the four crown jewel races. Brad Keselowski won the race, his 35th career victory, sixth win at Talladega (which tied Jeff Gordon for the second-most victories at the track), and his last win with Team Penske in the No. 2 as he moved to co-own RFK Racing, as well as drive the No. 6 in 2022.

Talladega Superspeedway, formerly known as Alabama International Motor Speedway, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. A tri-oval, the track was constructed in 1969 by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking. The track currently hosts NASCAR's Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which is 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km).

• (R) denotes rookie driver.
• (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.

Denny Hamlin was awarded the pole for the race as determined by competition-based formula.^[4]

Stage One Laps: 60

Stage Two Laps: 60

Stage Three Laps: 68

• Lead changes: 35 among 17 different drivers
• Cautions/Laps: 7 for 34
• Red flags: 0
• Time of race: 3 hours, 26 minutes and 30 seconds
• Average speed: 147.62 miles per hour (237.57 km/h)

Fox Sports covered their 21st race at the Talladega Superspeedway. Mike Joy, six-time Talladega winner – and all-time restrictor plate race wins record holder – Jeff Gordon and two-time Talladega winner Clint Bowyer called the race from the broadcast booth. Jamie Little and Regan Smith handled pit road for the television side. Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.

MRN had the radio call for the race which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden and Jeff Striegle called the race in the booth when the field raced through the tri-oval. Dave Moody called the race from the Sunoco spotters stand outside turn 2 when the field raced through turns 1 and 2. Mike Bagley called the race from a platform inside the backstretch when the field raced down the backstretch. Kurt Becker called the race from the Sunoco spotters stand outside turn 4 when the field races through turns 3 and 4. Steve Post, Dillon Welch and Kim Coon worked pit road for the radio side.

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Denny Hamlin 446 2 Martin Truex Jr. 359 (−87) 3 Joey Logano 353 (−93) 4 William Byron 351 (−95) 5 Ryan Blaney 346 (−100) 3 6 Brad Keselowski 318 (−128) 1 7 Kevin Harvick 308 (−138) 1 8 Chase Elliott 306 (−140) 3 9 Kyle Larson 300 (−146) 10 Christopher Bell 280 (−166) 11 Kyle Busch 271 (−175) 12 Austin Dillon 268 (−178) 4 13 Michael McDowell 244 (−202) 1 14 Alex Bowman 241 (−205) 1 15 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 229 (−217) 16 Chris Buescher 229 (−217) Official driver's standings

Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 1 Ford 362 1 2 Chevrolet 360 (−2) 3 Toyota 342 (−20) Note: Only the first 16 positions are included for the driver standings. . – Driver has clinched a position in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.