Logano Walks Away From Wild Flip With 5 Laps Remaining at Talladega

Joey Logano was able to walk away from a terrifying flip with five laps remaining in Sunday's YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

On lap 183, a major wreck occurs approaching the finish line during the third stage of the YellaWood 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Racing is a humbling sport. One moment, you can be at the front of a pack, fighting for a race win. The next, you could be waiting for a safety team to flip your car back onto its wheels so you can hug your family.

Joey Logano, one of the 16 contenders for the NASCAR Cup Series championship this season, experienced that rollercoaster of fortunes in the closing laps of Sunday's YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

While shoving Ross Chastain, a lapped car leading the outside lane of cars, attempting to work his way to the lead of the race, Logano took a bump draft from behind from Carson Hocevar. The shove from Hocevar with five laps remaining unsettled Logano's car.

In an instant, Logano went from pointed straight to spinning around and veering into the outside SAFER barrier. As Logano impacted the outside wall, his No. 22 Team Penske Ford Mustang went onto its roof.

A look at the incident involving multiple cars on Lap 183.

All drivers involved have exited their vehicles. pic.twitter.com/hsTbAKhfeS

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 25, 2026

As his car emitted a shower of sparks, Logano's car would come to a rest on the frontstretch, where it would remain on its roof.

The EMR Safety Team reached the scene of Logano's crash almost instantly, but it took several minutes to get the car flipped back over to allow Logano to climb from his car. As the car was gently placed back onto its wheels, Logano poked out of the driver's side window, and placed his white Shell Pennzoil hat onto his head, much to the delight of the crowd at Talladega Superspeedway.

As for what happened to cause his race to end five laps earlier than he expected, Logano said, "Yeah, looks like I just got a push in the wrong spot, there. And then this moment, it was very much a Talladega Nights, like, 'Oh, no. I'm upside down. This is not good,' moment."

While it was a subpar moment for Logano, who likely is out of the hunt for the championship with his late-race crash, Logano had nothing but praise for NASCAR's safety advances and the safety crew, who helped free him from his car.

"But I can't thank the safety crew enough. They did an amazing job flipping that thing over. The car did a great job. You know, the last time I flipped, it was crushed on my head. This time, I don't think any of the roll cage was crushed at all. So, I appreciate what NASCAR has done," Logano said.

Logano admitted, "Some vicious hits in this one, so, yeah, just happy to be alive."

Riley Herbst, the driver of the No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota, was also heavily involved in the crash, and he suffered two brutal impacts. Herbst first was sent hard into the outside wall, which sheered the brakes off his car. Herbst's car then took a hard left and slammed incredibly hard into the inside wall.

Fortunately, Herbst, Logano, and all of the drivers involved in the scary crash with five laps remaining, were evaluated and released from Talladega Superspeedway's infield care center.

Kyle Larson, the championship leader heading into Sunday's YellaWood 500, would go on to score the race win, further strengthening his grip on the championship lead in the process.