Austin Dillon narrowly missed a top-10 finish in Sunday's YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, bringing his Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet home in 11th place. Dillon started 12th and remained competitive throughout the afternoon while managing the constantly changing conditions of superspeedway racing.
The No. 3 Chevrolet was among several cars that remained within striking distance as the field worked through the opening stages. Dillon capitalized on the drafting opportunities available while avoiding the significant problems that affected many competitors.
Dillon also remained competitive during the final stage, when the racing intensified and drivers began positioning themselves for a potential overtime finish. The massive accident
on Lap 183 eliminated several contenders, but Dillon avoided major trouble and remained among the drivers capable of challenging for a top-10 result.
Although the overtime restart reshuffled the running order, Dillon completed all 189 laps and finished 11th, one position outside the top 10. The result earned Dillon 26 points and allowed him to maintain his position in the overall NASCAR Cup Series standings.
He remains 25th with 566 points after missing the championship Chase. Dillon will look to improve on his Talladega performance when the series visits Martinsville Speedway before concluding the season at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
This article originally appeared on Motorsports Wire: Austin Dillon's race recap in the 2026 Chase race at Talladega
