This weekend will mark the first time Talladega Superspeedway will hold a NASCAR Cup race without restrictor plates in more than 30 years.
Instead of restrictor plates, NASCAR requires Cup teams to use tapered spacers to limit the engine’s horsepower.
Both the Cup and Xfinity Series will be in action this weekend at the 2.66-mile track. The Truck Series does not race again until May 3 at Dover International Speedway.
Here are the preliminary entry lists for each race:
Cup – GEICO 500 (2 p.m. ET Sunday on Fox)
There will be a full 40-car field in Sunday’s main event.
Cody Ware will once again be back in the No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet.
Stanton Barrett will make only his second Cup start since 2008 in the No. 52 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet. He finished last in the 2018 Cup playoff race on the road course at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Justin Haley will make his NASCAR Cup debut in the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet.
Jeffrey Earnhardt will be in the No. 81 Xtreme Concepts Inc. (XCI) Racing Toyota. It will be the first Cup race for XCI.
NASCAR on NBC analyst Parker Kligerman will be in the No. 96 Gaunt Brothers Racing Toyota.
Joey Logano won this race last year, leading 70 of 188 laps and beating Kurt Busch and Chase Elliott. Aric Almirola won last fall’s playoff race at Talladega, beating Clint Bowyer and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Click here for the preliminary entry list.
Xfinity – Money Lion 300 (1 p.m. ET Saturday on Fox Sports 1)
There are 37 cars entered.
B.J. McLeod will be in the No. 15 Chevrolet for JD Motorsports.
Brett Moffitt will make his third career Xfinity start – and first since 2017. He’ll be in the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet.
Chris Cockrum will make his second Xfinity start of the season in the No. 17 Chevrolet for Rick Ware Racing.
Jeffrey Earnhardt will make his fourth Xfinity start of the season – and his third for Joe Gibbs Racing – in the No. 18 Toyota.
Max Tullman will make his fifth career Xfinity start – and second of the season – in the No. 42 Motorsports Business Management Toyota.
Brandon Brown returns to the No. 86 Brandonbilt Motorsports after competing for RSS Racing at Richmond.
Canadian driver Alex Labbe will make his third start of the Xfinity season in the No. 90 DGM Racing Chevrolet.
There is no driver listed yet in the No. 99 B.J. McLeod Racing Toyota.
Spencer Gallagher won this race last year, leading just one lap. Brandon Jones was second and Justin Allgaier was third.