Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has won for the second time at Talladega Superspeedway after a wild final stage.
The JTG Daugherty Racing driver sustained damage in a massive crash on Lap 184, but he was able to beat six-time Talladega winner Brad Keselowski and Daytona 500 winner William Byron to the line in a photo finish in the first overtime attempt.
His advantage was .006 seconds.
Kyle Larson and Erik Jones rounded out the top five. Christopher Bell, Justin Haley, Austin Dillon, Bubba Wallace, and Denny Hamlin all finished inside the top 10.
MORE: Stenhouse wins, full results
WHAT A FINISH. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. WINS at Talladega! pic.twitter.com/YQNQpb35Aj
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) October 6, 2024
Much like Stenhouse's Daytona 500 win last season, he capitalized on the opportunity presented to him when it mattered. He was at the front of the pack when The Big One struck, and he was able to keep his No. 47 Chevrolet moving forward after contact from another car.
The huge crash with five laps to go collected the majority of the field. Keselowski pushed Austin Cindric at the front of the pack, which spun the Team Penske driver into the field.
This created chaos as cars collided with each other and the outside wall. Some slid through the grass and got stuck while others remained stuck on the banking.
IT'S NOT JUST A BIG ONE. IT'S THE HUGE ONE!
Nearly the entire field involved in this crash at Talladega! #NASCAR
📺 : NBC pic.twitter.com/poJkMCPuIn
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 6, 2024
Erik Jones, Alex Bowman, Michael McDowell, Chris Buescher, Chase Elliott, AJ Allmendinger, Cindric, Harrison Burton, Joey Logano, John Hunter Nemechek, Chase Briscoe, Bubba Wallace, Noah Gragson, Daniel Suarez, Corey LaJoie, Josh Berry, Todd Gilliland, Anthony Alfredo, Zane Smith, Martin Truex Jr., Shane van Gisbergen, Christopher Bell, and Erik Jones were all involved.
The Huge One brought out the red flag as crews tried to clear the track, and it set up an overtime finish. When the field lined up for the restart, it was Stenhouse and Keselowski who were at the front of the pack.
"Man, this team has put a lot of hard work in," Stenhouse told NBC Sports after the race. "Obviously, we haven't won since the 500 in '23 and it's been an up-and-down season.
"A lot of hard work this season just trying to find a little bit of speed, but we knew that this track is one of ours to come get."
Stenhouse now has four career Cup Series wins. Two were at Daytona and two were at Talladega.
Notable: Byron's finish was good enough to put him into the Round of 8. He is now the only driver to clinch his spot in the penultimate round of the playoffs.
Stage 1: Chris Buescher won stage 1. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., William Byron, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick, Ross Chastain, Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric, and Ryan Blaney were top 10.
Alex Bowman, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, and Daniel Suarez were the playoff drivers who missed out on stage points.
Stage 2: Cindric won stage 2 as a crash occurred at the start-finish line. Elliott, Kyle Busch, AJ Allmendinger, Byron, Bowman, Bubba Wallace, Blaney, Larson, and Chastain were all top 10.
Blaney and Chastain were both involved in a crash crossing the finish line. They were unable to continue after the end of the stage.
Next: The Round of 12 ends next Sunday at NASCAR's home track -- Charlotte Motor Speedway. The teams will compete on the reconfigured Roval on Oct. 13 while trying to reach the Round of 8.