# 2020 GEICO 500

The 2020 GEICO 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on June 22, 2020, at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Contested over 191 laps—extended from 188 laps due to an overtime finish, on the 2.66 mile (4.28 km) superspeedway, it was the 13th race of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.
The race was originally scheduled to be held on April 26, but was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In turn, the race was postponed from June 21 due to inclement weather.

## Report
### Background

Talladega Superspeedway, formerly known as Alabama International Motor Speedway, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. A tri-oval, the track was constructed in 1969 by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking. The track currently hosts NASCAR's Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which is 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km).
The GEICO 500 was the first NASCAR event since The Real Heroes 400 in May to admit a limited number of public spectators. Races had been held behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the previous week's Dixie Vodka 400 was the first to admit spectators in grandstands — limited to an invited audience of local members of the U.S. military. Attendance was capped at 5,000 in grandstands and towers, with social distancing and mandatory masking enforced. A limited number of campsites above the Alabama Gang Superstretch were also opened. Tickets were being re-issued on a first come first served basis to local residents who had originally purchased tickets to the race before these changes. Only the Cup race allowed spectators; support races did not open grandstands, but Alabama Gang Superstretch campsites were open for those races.

#### Impact of the FIA's End Racism campaign and noose incident

This was the first race open to spectators after NASCAR's decision to ban the Confederate battle flag following a pair of incidents—a complaint by Bubba Wallace and the FIA's "End Racism" campaign by Sir Lewis Hamilton, since NASCAR is a founding member of the Automobile Competition Committee for the United States, the national governing body of motorsport designated by the FIA. On the day of the race, vendors outside of the track sold memorabilia carrying the flag, and a plane towing a banner with the flag and "Defund NASCAR" circled the track; NASCAR officials and Governor of Alabama Kay Ivey condemned the flyover, for which Sons of Confederate Veterans later claimed responsibility.
NASCAR reported that a noose had been found inside Wallace's stall, and stated that it would investigate it as a hate crime with the FBI. NASCAR president Steve Phelps threatened that anyone found responsible "will be banned from this sport for life. I don't care who they are, they will not be here." The United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division also joined the investigation. As a sign of solidarity, other drivers and crew members pushed Wallace's car down pit road prior to the start of the race (which had been rescheduled to June 22 due to rain), while "#IStandWithBubba" was painted on the infield grass.
On June 23, the FBI concluded that no hate crime targeting Wallace had occurred at the track, stating that the "noose" was a pulldown rope for a door, and had been present at the track since 2019. On June 25, NASCAR released a photo of the rope, and announced that it had investigated the stalls of all other NASCAR facilities — concluding that the pulldown rope in that stall was the only one that had been tied in such a manner.

#### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
* (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.
| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet |
| 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 27 | Gray Gaulding (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford |
| 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 42 | Matt Kenseth | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 51 | Joey Gase (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Ford |
| 53 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Beard Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota |
| 77 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 78 | Garrett Smithley (i) | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota |
| 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota |
| Official entry list Archived 2020-06-19 at the Wayback Machine ||||
NOTE: Garrett Smithley was added as a late addition after owner B. J. McLeod was inserted into the Spire Motorsports car following NASCAR rejecting the team's original plan of having James Davison in the car because he lacked NASCAR superspeedway experience in a situation where practice and qualifying were omitted. Although the Australian has high-speed oval experience in other ACCUS-sanctioned events, NASCAR rejected Davison because he lacked drafting experience in similar cars in regards to the adverse conditions rules in effect after the pandemic.

## Qualifying

Martin Truex Jr. was awarded the pole for the race as determined by a random draw.

### Starting Lineup

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 1 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 4 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 6 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 7 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 10 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 11 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 12 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 13 | 42 | Matt Kenseth | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 14 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 15 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 16 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 17 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 18 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 20 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 21 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 22 | 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 23 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 24 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 25 | 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford |
| 26 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 27 | 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 28 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 29 | 27 | Gray Gaulding (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 30 | 77 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 31 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 32 | 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 33 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet |
| 34 | 53 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 35 | 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota |
| 36 | 51 | Joey Gase (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Ford |
| 37 | 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota |
| 38 | 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota |
| 39 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Beard Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 40 | 78 | Garrett Smithley (i) | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| Official starting lineup |||||

## Race
### Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 60
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||
Stage Two Laps: 60
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 7 |
| 5 | 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||

### Final Stage Results

Stage Three Laps: 68
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| 1 | 12 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 191 | 54 |
| 2 | 20 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 191 | 45 |
| 3 | 15 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 191 | 34 |
| 4 | 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 191 | 33 |
| 5 | 18 | 20 | Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 191 | 32 |
| 6 | 21 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 191 | 33 |
| 7 | 8 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 191 | 39 |
| 8 | 22 | 38 | John Hunter Nemechek (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 191 | 29 |
| 9 | 7 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 191 | 31 |
| 10 | 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 191 | 27 |
| 11 | 19 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 191 | 28 |
| 12 | 33 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 191 | 25 |
| 13 | 4 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 191 | 31 |
| 14 | 24 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 191 | 27 |
| 15 | 31 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 191 | 22 |
| 16 | 25 | 32 | Corey LaJoie | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 191 | 21 |
| 17 | 9 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 191 | 33 |
| 18 | 26 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 191 | 19 |
| 19 | 6 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 191 | 29 |
| 20 | 16 | 8 | Tyler Reddick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 191 | 27 |
| 21 | 39 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Beard Motorsports | Chevrolet | 191 | 16 |
| 22 | 28 | 41 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 191 | 18 |
| 23 | 14 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 191 | 14 |
| 24 | 1 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 191 | 13 |
| 25 | 10 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 191 | 12 |
| 26 | 23 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 191 | 11 |
| 27 | 32 | 00 | Quin Houff (R) | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 190 | 10 |
| 28 | 27 | 96 | Daniel Suárez | Gaunt Brothers Racing | Toyota | 190 | 9 |
| 29 | 35 | 95 | Christopher Bell (R) | Leavine Family Racing | Toyota | 190 | 14 |
| 30 | 29 | 27 | Gray Gaulding (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 190 | 0 |
| 31 | 30 | 77 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 190 | 0 |
| 32 | 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 189 | 19 |
| 33 | 38 | 66 | Timmy Hill (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 185 | 0 |
| 34 | 40 | 78 | Garrett Smithley (i) | B. J. McLeod Motorsports | Chevrolet | 185 | 0 |
| 35 | 27 | 15 | Brennan Poole (R) | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 178 | 2 |
| 36 | 34 | 53 | J. J. Yeley (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 178 | 0 |
| 37 | 36 | 51 | Joey Gase (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Ford | 141 | 0 |
| 38 | 11 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 135 | 3 |
| 39 | 17 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 133 | 1 |
| 40 | 13 | 42 | Matt Kenseth | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 127 | 1 |
| Official race results ||||||||

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 56 among 19 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 9 for 31
* Red flags: 1 for 57 minutes and 18 seconds
* Time of race: 3 hours, 27 minutes and 28 seconds
* Average speed: 146.933 miles per hour (236.466 km/h)

## Media
### Television

Fox Sports covered their 20th race at the Talladega Superspeedway. Mike Joy and six-time Talladega winner – and all-time restrictor plate race wins record holder – Jeff Gordon covered the race from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte. Jamie Little and Vince Welch handled the pit road duties. Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.
Fox :
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | In-race analyst |
| Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon | Jamie Little Vince Welch | Larry McReynolds |

### Radio

MRN had the radio call for the race which was also simulcast on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Alex Hayden and Jeff Striegle called the race in the booth when the field raced through the tri-oval. Dave Moody called the race from the Sunoco spotters stand outside turn 2 when the field raced through turns 1 and 2. Mike Bagley called the race from a platform inside the backstretch when the field raced down the backstretch. Kurt Becker called the race from the Sunoco spotters stand outside turn 4 when the field races through turns 3 and 4. Winston Kelley and Steve Post worked pit road for the radio side.
MRN Radio :
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Alex Hayden Announcer: Jeff Striegle | Turns 1 & 2: Dave Moody Backstretch: Mike Bagley Turns 3 & 4: Kurt Becker | Winston Kelley Steve Post |

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Kevin Harvick | 490 |
| 1 | 2 | Joey Logano | 468 (–22) |
| 2 | 3 | Ryan Blaney | 465 (–25) |
| 2 | 4 | Chase Elliott | 458 (–32) |
| 1 | 5 | Brad Keselowski | 441 (–49) |
| 1 | 6 | Denny Hamlin | 428 (–62) |
| 1 | 7 | Martin Truex Jr. | 423 (–67) |
| | 8 | Alex Bowman | 419 (–71) |
| | 9 | Kyle Busch | 378 (–112) |
| | 10 | Kurt Busch | 369 (–121) |
| | 11 | Jimmie Johnson | 353 (–137) |
| 1 | 12 | Aric Almirola | 337 (–153) |
| 1 | 13 | Clint Bowyer | 328 (–162) |
| 1 | 14 | William Byron | 319 (–171) |
| 1 | 15 | Matt DiBenedetto | 312 (–178) |
| 1 | 16 | Tyler Reddick | 306 (–184) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | Ford | 484 |
| 2 | Toyota | 452 (–32) |
| 3 | Chevrolet | 443 (–41) |