The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series descends on Talladega Superspeedway for the 33rd race of the 2009 season, the Amp Energy 500. This fall race at 'Dega promises to be one of the wildest races of this season. NASCAR expert Brian Brown took a look at past performances, practice sessions and season trends and spoke with NASCAR contacts to predict how the field should finish on Sunday.

When
Sunday, Nov. 1, 2009
1:19 p.m. ET

Weather
Sunny with a high around 69; wind out of the North at 6 mph. There is a zero percent chance of precipitation.

The Track
Talladega Superspeedway is a 2.66 tri-oval. It has steep 33 degree banking in the turns and 18 degree banking on the straight-aways. The banking allows the cars to run at intense speeds. As a result of these speeds, NASCAR has made 'Dega a restrictor plate track. This means all cars entered in the race must use the restrictor plates on their engines to limit air-intake and thus reduce horsepower.

Key to Race: Avoid the big wreck
As is the case with all restrictor plate races, the field will become bunched up in two-wide groups of 20 or 30 cars. These freight train like packs cruise around the track just inches away from each other. It takes just one car to have a flat tire or lose control to cause a massive accident. If a driver can get lucky and stay away from the inevitable big crash, they have a great chance to finish inside the top 20.

Qualifying Procedures
Forty-four cars will attempt to qualify for 43 spots. Cars not in the top 35 in the 2009 point standings will have to qualify based on speed. Starting positions 1-43 will be determined by qualifying on Saturday, Oct. 31 at 12:10 p.m. ET.

Fantasy Cheat Sheet

Slideshow   NASCAR crashes Sparks fly and cars spin out wildly when NASCAR drivers get into accidents. NBCSports.com

Top 5
No. 14 Tony Stewart: Stewart won last year's fall race at Talladega and will push the limits for another top finish this weekend.
No. 11 Denny Hamlin: Hamlin has brought fast sleds to Talladega the past four trips to the track. He will be strong again this weekend.
No. 2 Kurt Busch: Busch has cracked the top 10 in eight of his last nine starts at Talladega. He is a great option on Sunday.
No. 48 Jimmie Johnson: Johnson won the 2006 April race at Talladega, finished second in both the 2007 races, and brought top 15 cars to the track for both 2008 races. He was taken out in "the big one" during the spring race this year, but he should bounce back with a strong finish on Sunday.
No. 24 Jeff Gordon: Gordon has six career wins at Talladega, including both the 2007 races. He could be showered by beer cans again this weekend.

6 to 10
No. 42 Juan Pablo Montoya: Montoya has had quality finishes at 'Dega in the past and could surprise with a win this trip to the track.
No. 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.: After finishing no worse than second in seven straight 'Dega races Junior has cracked the top 10 just three times in the past nine races at the track. He will need lots of luck on Sunday to regain his King of Talladega nickname.
No. 83 Brian Vickers: Vickers is a great sleeper pick this weekend. He won at Talladega in 2006 and has five top-eight finishes in the past seven races at the track
No. 39 Ryan Newman: Newman has run well the past five Talladega races. He has the ability to run in the front and is a decent pick this weekend.
No. 18 Kyle Busch: Rowdy has averaged just a 26th-place finish at Talladega during his career. He has won at the speedway, but we expect he won't have enough patience to take the checkers this weekend.