Anthony Alfredo Looks at Talladega Superspeedway and Sees Opportunity

TALLADEGA, Ala.— After a career-changing weekend at Talladega Superspeedway one year ago, Anthony Alfredo couldn’t wait to return to NASCAR’s largest oval.

The 26-year-old racer from Ridgefield, Connecticut, tied his top personal result of third in the 2024 April Xfinity Series race. He then backed up the performance with a career-best sixth-place finish in the NASCAR Cup Series event the following day.

Not surprisingly, Alfredo is embracing the opportunity to improve on his run at the 2.66-mile track.

“It’s Talladega—the biggest, baddest track on the NASCAR circuit—and it has been pretty good to me,” Alfredo said. “I’ve got a bunch of top 10s here between Xfinity and Cup, and I just want to be a few spots better.

“Last year, it was an incredible double-duty weekend. It would be hard to ask for more than that out of a place like this, because you never know what can happen.

“But I’ve studied really hard to become a more competitive superspeedway racer and learn how to plate race from some of the more experienced guys, by watching what they do. And it’s my best shot with a smaller team to go out there and run up front.”

Alfredo understands the playing field is more even on drafting tracks. His two Cup top 10s were scored behind the wheel of a Front Row Motorsports Ford in 2021 and more recently with Beard Motorsports, who will field the No. 62 Chevy for Alfredo on Sunday.

In Xfinity competition, Alfredo finished sixth in cars fielded by Richard Childress Racing and Our Motorsports. When he returned to Chris Our’s team last year, Alfredo scored his first Talladega podium finish. Now, with Young Motorsports, Alfredo hopes to achieve similar results in the No. 42 Chevrolet.

Still, he’s not naive enough to think that each of his fellow competitors doesn’t share his expectations.

“Anybody can win this race, but if you watch them closely, it seems like the same guys are always at the front of the field,” Alfredo said. “Some of that has to do with equipment still. Having a fast car makes your job a lot easier at these places. I do think there are certain guys that are just good at these tracks—and I consider myself one of these drivers now.

Still, you can go out and do everything right and still end up on the wrecker in the garage. But I think if you play your cards right enough times and keep putting yourself in position, things will turn around.

“I’m certainly hoping this is the weekend for me to be in Victory Lane.”

Alfredo was 20 when he made his Talladega debut in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. He finished a respectable 15th in the 2019 event. Although he’s raced a Cup car only four times at the track, Alfredo has definitely noticed a difference in the cadence between NASCAR’s top tour and the Xfinity Series at the track.

“It’s so different now,” Alfredo said. “It used to be very similar. Obviously, the Xfinity cars are like what the Cup cars used to be but with the NextGen car, there’s so much fuel saving, there’s a lot of riding around.

“It still looks exciting, thankfully, three-, four-wide but behind the wheel, it feels like we’re going really slow, sometimes four seconds off of our fastest lap. The reason we do that is because it’s so hard for us to pass.”

Cup competition is tailored more toward putting the cars in position for stage points and the win. On the Xfinity side, Alfredo believes the drivers can afford to be more aggressive with runs and passes but have a tougher time defending the point.

“It’s become a track-position race, and everyone is saving fuel to see not only who can run longer, but when you have a green-flag stop, who can gain track position by taking less fuel than your competitor,” Alfredo said of Cup.

“So, you really have to be smart. It’s easy to want to run full throttle, run to the front and lead laps, but then you really hurt yourself for the end of the stages and ultimately at the end of the race.”

What will be the game – changer for Alfredo?

“I haven’t got that win yet,” he said. “I think that’s what it’s going to take to solidify myself as a successful superspeedway racer but I’ve been very close. I think this could be the weekend—and I need it to be.

“With smaller teams, this could be potentially a career-defining win not just for my future and where things are headed but it can have a tremendous impact on a small team. Not only does that one race win help a team to continue growing but then you’re in the Playoffs, you’re automatically going to be top 12 in the Xfinity Series.

“It snowballs. It builds momentum for the rest of the season. It allows the team to increase their budget, be more competitive, and make up for any bad races you may have. We haven’t had the best start to the season. This could turn things around.”

Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].