It’s NASCAR race day at Talladega. After a rainy morning in Alabama, it appears the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway will start without a hitch Sunday.

The green flag is scheduled to wave at 2:20 p.m. CT. The race will be aired on FOX.

Follow along here for live updates as the day continues.

Prerace

— Michael McDowell qualified on the pole position for Saturday’s race. If McDowell or any other Ford driver can pull out a win in the race, it would be the manufacturer’s first win of the 2023 season.

— Behind McDowell, Austin Cindric, Todd Gilliland, Kyle Busch and Austin Dillon make up the remainder of the top five to start the race.

— Ryan Blaney won the last NASCAR Cup race at Talladega, the fall playoff event in 2023. He qualified 21st for Sunday’s race.

— Fan-favorite Chase Elliott earned his first win of the season last week at Texas Motor Speedway. He qualified 9th for the Geico 500, the top-qualifying Hendrick Motorsports Chevy.

— Kyle Larson’s crew chief has been ejected from the race after an infraction found before qualifying on Sunday, an unapproved roof-rail adjustment as the car was pushed to the starting grid. Larson, who was not allowed to qualify and will start from the back of the field, will have to serve a pass-through penalty once the race begins.

— Drivers and crews are reporting on their radios that it’s beginning to spit rain in Talladega.

— Command is given by four-star general Daniel R. Hokanson and drivers start their engines.

Stage 1

Lap 1: Green flag is out. McDowell and Cindric are up front as the race begins. The first stage will be 60 laps.

— Larson completes his pass-through penalty at the back of the field.

Lap 4: McDowell, Cindric and Martin Truex Jr. are fighting for the lead. Three-wide racing throughout the field early on.

Lap 7: Daniel Hemric moves to the lead. Ross Chastain, who started 31st, has moved up to third place. Bubba Wallace is also an early mover, jumping up to sixth.

Lap 10: BJ McLeod leads. Denny Hamlin up to second place. Still lots of three-wide racing.

Lap 15: Chase Briscoe jumps to the lead. He’s just ahead of Hemric and Hamlin, with Chastain and Justin Haley rounding out the top five. Race so far has included six leaders, eight lead changes.