So far this season, 18 drivers have won NASCAR Cup races, including Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who triumphed at the YellaWood 500 at Talladega last weekend. Starting from P32, he made a memorable comeback to finish Stage 1 in second place and Stage 2 in twentieth.
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Stenhouse Jr. is the only driver in the last 50 races to have started beyond the 30th position and still managed to win. In contrast, the season has seen just one pole-sitter win a race outright — William Byron at the Circuit of the Americas.
Given the rise of late-race cautions that bunch up the field and the heightened importance of pit stops with the Next Gen car, starting from the pole position doesn’t always provide the edge it once did.
Since the performance gap among cars has narrowed significantly, even a minor delay of just a second in a pit stop can see a pole sitter’s lead slip away, with another driver swiftly taking over their spot.
According to statistics shared by NASCAR aficionado Trey Ryan on his X handle, the second starting position has proven to be the most advantageous for winning in NASCAR cup races.
In the last fifty races, drivers starting from P2 have overtaken the pole position drivers to win the races ten times. Among these instances, Kyle Larson surged from second place to win the races three times. The most successful starting position after the second has been the 18th, from which drivers have secured six wins.
Winningest starting positions:
2nd – 10 wins
18th – 6 wins
3rd – 4 wins
4th – 4 wins
8th – 4 wins
5th – 3 wins
11th – 3 wins— Trey Ryan (@TreyRyan99) October 8, 2024
Additionally, the pole positions of third and fourth, as well as eighth, each accounted for four wins. Meanwhile, those beginning the race from P5 and P11 have each tallied three victories.
Larson, racing for Hendrick Motorsports, has particularly excelled when starting within the top 10, translating this advantage into six wins. Conversely, Byron has demonstrated his abilities by converting starts beyond P10 into race victories.
Larson’s P4 finish at Talladega Superspeedway marks a milestone
For Larson’s devoted fanbase, a fourth-place finish might not hit the sweet spot of expectations for the #5 driver at Talladega. Yet, considering his history and his track record at superspeedways, the performance stands out as an achievement.
Starting from P12, Larson advanced to finish Stage 1 in fourth place and Stage 2 in ninth, marking only the second time he’s landed in the top five at a superspeedway in his entire career.
His previous top-five came at Talladega in the spring of 2022. Before that, in 2019, he took ninth place at Daytona, and in 2016, he secured sixth place at both Talladega and Daytona.
Looking ahead, the Hendrick Motorsports driver will compete at the Charlotte Roval, where he has an average finish of 17.4 over five races. His track record on the track includes one win, one top-five finish, and one top-ten finish.
