Hendrick Motorsports has disastrous showing in critical playoff race

NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson. Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Hendrick Motorsports has disastrous showing in critical Talladega playoff race

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Oct 19, 2025 6:32 PM ET

No NASCAR Cup Series organization had a worse day at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday than Hendrick Motorsports.

With three of its four cars still in contention for the 2025 Cup Series title, a series of unfortunate events turned a promising day for HMS into a nightmare.

Hendrick's title hopes take a big hit at Talladega

Chase Elliott was the first problem of the afternoon. A Lap 52 crash resulted in terminal damage for the No. 9 Chevrolet. Elliott, who entered Talladega already in a precarious points position, will have to win at Martinsville next week in order to get back to the Championship 4 for the first time since 2022.

With half a lap to go in the YellaWood 500, things were looking promising for William Byron and Kyle Larson, who were running second and fourth on the backstretch on the final lap.

CHASE BRISCOE IS A @TALLADEGA WINNER! pic.twitter.com/pwfiMdP9w1
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 19, 2025

But Larson suddenly slowed after running out of gas, leaving Byron without a loyal dancing partner in the race's waning moments.

In the tri-oval, Byron was spun out after contact from Carson Hocevar, relegating the regular-season champion to a 25th-place finish. Larson limped around to finish 26th.

Not even Alex Bowman, who was eliminated in the Round of 16, could muster a solid day. Mechanical issues doomed Bowman late in the race, as he finished 29th, six laps down.

HMS will have to have an incredible day at Martinsville in order to get multiple entries into the Championship 4. Larson (+36) is still in a great points position, but a new winner from below the cut line could change his outlook. Both Byron (-36) and Elliott (-62) will need to win in order to advance.

If either Joey Logano or Ryan Blaney win at Martinsville, there's a scenario where zero HMS cars make the Championship 4 — something that hasn't happened since 2019.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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