Despite a grill full of debris and pegged out engine temperatures, Dale Earnhardt, Jr, was determined to end his drought.

NASCAR's most popular driver won for the sixth time at Talladega Superspeedway when he took the checkered flag in Sunday's Geico 500. The victory comes over a decade since he last won at the 2.66 mile Alabama race track.

The win Sunday afternoon ended a winless streak which spanned 20 races and saw Earnhardt, Jr, finish in the top ten six times. In those 20 races, Earnhardt, Jr, led laps in all but two of them.

The 40-year-old Sprint Cup veteran admitted winning at Talladega may have been an easier task when he was younger.

"I love racing here and winning here; it's some of the hardest racing we do on a mental scale," Earnhardt, Jr, said. "It's difficult. You run about 80 to 94 laps in and you're just getting to halfway. You feel like you've been racing for ten hours, and you're only halfway. You think to yourself, 'How much is left in the tank, mentally?'. You've got to get through the rest of the race, and the hard stuff hasn't even started yet.

"It just seemed like when I was a lot younger it was easier to win these races."

Earnhardt, Jr, led six times for a race-high 67 laps. In typical Talladega fashion, there were 27 lead changes among 15 drivers and six caution flags, including a red flag period which lasted over 11 minutes.

The grandstands at Talladega erupted into a full-blown roar as Earnhardt, Jr, drove his #88 Nationwide Chevrolet across the finish line. The fan favorite admitted his Father's tremendous amount of success at Talladega makes the win more significant.

"I felt like we had a lot of supporters here because of Dad's success; he won so many races here," Earnhardt, Jr, said. "I love to be able to think of all the races that he won here and at Daytona. I love to be able to go to Victory Lane there because I feel like I add to his legacy there.

“All I ever wanted to do was make him proud and when we win at those tracks where he was successful I feel like that's exactly what we're doing.”

Earnhardt, Jr, also gave rookie crew chief Greg Ives the first Sprint Cup victory of his career. Ives, who won the 2014 Xfinity championship with JR Motorsports driver Chase Elliott, admits he wasn't concerned one bit about the rising temperature levels the team was experiencing.

"I think Dale had more heightened concern than I did," Ives said. "I wasn't doing anything about it. We saw races where people tried to get the debris off, and it hurt their chances of getting the win and I was not going to have that happen. I'd rather leave here 35th than give up the opportunity to win."

Earnhardt, Jr, led a single file charge to the finish line with Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson finishing in second place. The six-time Sprint Cup champion, Johnson, was impressed with his teammate’s ability to maneuver his fast race car.

"Where I saw him most aggressive was in traffic," Johnson said. "He was relentless with a run; he didn’t ever choose to push the car in front of him and help him. Every time he had an opportunity to advance he took it, even creating lanes up through the middle. Swapping back and forth trying to find a way around the leader, I just remember seeing his rooftop down, up, down, up like two or three times just in three and four just as he had a run on someone.

“I’m like ‘Wow, go get it.' I just thought he was more aggressive coming through the field than defending.”

Paul Menard, who attempted to create a second line on the race's final lap, managed to cross the finish line in third place.

Part time Sprint Cup competitor Ryan Blaney remained in Earnhardt, Jr's, single line and salvaged a career-best fourth place finish. Blaney, running a partial schedule in the Wood Brothers #21 Ford, admitted he was more concerned with the cars behind than the cars which were running in front of him late in the race.

"I was really more focused on Denny (Hamlin)," Blaney admitted. "I knew he was going to make a move eventually, I was just trying to see if he was laying back to try to get a run. I just didn’t know when that was going to happen; I figured it was going to be with one or two to go.

“That was really all I was concerned about is trying to look in the mirror and make sure I didn’t get left out."

Martin Truex, Jr, finished right behind Blaney in fifth place. Truex, Jr, broke into NASCAR as a member of Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and a teammate of Earnhardt, Jr, felt the race's outcome was fitting.

"Everyone in Talladega is happy, so it's all good," Truex, Jr, told TV reporters following the race.

The race also included Talladega's famed "Big One," a wreck which collects multiple cars from a single incident. The "Big One" came 46 laps into the race and forced 2011 Daytona 500 champion Trevor Bayne and Kyle Larson to retire from the race.

Despite experiencing a fire on pit road, Ryan Newman was able to salvage a sixth place finish. Defending Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick was also involved in the "Big One" but rebounded to finish in seventh place.

Last season's Talladega winner Denny Hamlin finished ninth, and Josh Wise recorded his career best finish to round out the top ten.

Pole sitter Jeff Gordon dominated early by leading 47 laps managed to finish in 31st place following a pit road speeding penalty and a last lap caution.

Kevin Harvick continues to lead the Chase for the Championship point standings by 40 points over Martin Truex, Jr, as the Sprint Cup Series heads to Kansas Speedway on Saturday, May 9th.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race Number 10
Unofficial Race Results for the 46Th Annual Geico 500 - Sunday, May 3, 2015
Talladega Superspeedway - Talladega, AL - 2.66 Mile Paved
Total Race Length - 188 Laps - 500.08 Miles - Purse: $6,183,287

Leader
Fin    Str    Car    Driver    Team    Laps    Pts    Bns    Driver Rating    Winnings    Status    Tms    Laps
1    4    88    Dale Earnhardt Jr.    Nationwide Chevrolet    188    48    5    134.7    $306,065    Running    6    67
2    5    48    Jimmie Johnson    Lowe's Chevrolet    188    43    1    118.5    $256,121    Running    2    50
3    7    27    Paul Menard    Quaker State/Menards Chevrolet    188    41        97.9    $190,060    Running        
4    3    21    Ryan Blaney(i)    Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford    188    0        103.0    $148,385    Running        
5    36    78    Martin Truex Jr.    Furniture Row/Visser Protection Chevrolet    188    39        99.1    $159,600    Running        
6    12    9    Sam Hornish Jr.    Medallion Bank Ford    188    38        83.1    $156,715    Running        
7    18    31    Ryan Newman    Caterpillar Chevrolet    188    37        58.7    $151,670    Running        
8    24    4    Kevin Harvick    Outback Steakhouse Chevrolet    188    37    1    102.6    $168,570    Running    1    1
9    17    11    Denny Hamlin    FedEx Express Toyota    188    36    1    110.9    $127,645    Running    2    5
10    34    98    Josh Wise    Phoenix Construction Ford    188    35    1    62.0    $111,070    Running    1    1
11    27    1    Jamie McMurray    McDonald's Chevrolet    188    33        86.1    $138,701    Running        
12    19    41    Kurt Busch    Haas Automation Chevrolet    188    33    1    87.8    $127,435    Running    1    1
13    41    35    Cole Whitt    Speed Stick Ford    188    32    1    68.4    $125,618    Running    1    2
14    42    23    JJ Yeley(i)    Dr Pepper Toyota    188    0        57.8    $121,993    Running        
15    28    43    Aric Almirola    Fresh from Florida Ford    188    29        81.6    $142,146    Running        
16    37    7    Alex Bowman    Golden Corral Chevrolet    188    28        63.6    $117,918    Running        
17    31    47    AJ Allmendinger    Kroger/Hungry Jack Chevrolet    188    27        55.8    $128,518    Running        
18    43    83    Matt DiBenedetto #    Dustless Blasting Toyota    188    26        55.5    $109,157    Running        
19    6    14    Tony Stewart    Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet    188    26    1    92.6    $128,724    Running    2    6
20    39    38    David Gilliland    Farm Rich Ford    188    25    1    72.9    $108,710    Running    1    1
21    25    10    Danica Patrick    GoDaddy Chevrolet    188    23        67.1    $107,435    Running        
22    15    2    Brad Keselowski    Miller Lite Ford    188    22        86.4    $143,851    Running        
23    35    51    Justin Allgaier    Brandt Chevrolet    188    22    1    57.5    $106,110    Running    1    1
24    38    34    Chris Buescher(i)    CSX/Play It Safe Ford    188    0        56.0    $94,185    Running        
25    8    20    Matt Kenseth    Dollar General Toyota    188    19        74.0    $133,721    Running        
26    29    17    Ricky Stenhouse Jr.    Fifth Third Bank Ford    188    19    1    46.9    $104,085    Running    1    1
27    32    32    Bobby Labonte    C&J Energy Services Ford    188    18    1    48.0    $95,435    Running    1    1
28    11    13    Casey Mears    GEICO Chevrolet    188    17    1    63.4    $102,885    Running    1    1
29    40    46    Michael Annett    Bene-fit Chevrolet    188    15        50.8    $91,685    Running        
30    10    15    Clint Bowyer    PEAK Commercial & Industrial Toyota    188    14        61.7    $128,643    Running        
31    1    24    Jeff Gordon    Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet    188    14    1    82.5    $145,871    Running    6    47
32    22    19    Carl Edwards    ARRIS Toyota    188    12        68.5    $97,685    Running        
33    21    22    Joey Logano    Shell Pennzoil Ford    186    11        44.3    $138,268    Running        
34    2    5    Kasey Kahne    Farmers Insurance Chevrolet    158    11    1    78.1    $109,435    Running    1    3
35    14    3    Austin Dillon    Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet    157    9        77.5    $127,721    Engine        
36    23    55    Michael Waltrip    Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota    151    8        33.6    $117,874    Running        
37    20    16    Greg Biffle    Ortho Ford    147    7        35.7    $121,469    Running        
38    9    18    David Ragan    Pedigree Toyota    123    6        51.7    $129,515    Running        
39    30    40    Landon Cassill(i)     Chevrolet    91    0        51.9    $80,465    Accident        
40    33    62    Brendan Gaughan(i)    Dia Thrive Chevrolet    90    0        39.8    $76,465    Accident        
41    26    6    Trevor Bayne    AdvoCare Ford    46    3        64.9    $117,040    Accident        
42    13    42    Kyle Larson    Target Chevrolet    46    2        50.3    $96,373    Accident        
43    16    33    Brian Scott(i)    Shore Lodge Chevrolet    18    0        27.3    $64,965    Engine        
 Race Comments:    Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, his 24th victory in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Prior to the start of the race, no cars dropped to the rear of the field.
 Failed to Qualify:    (2) 95 Michael McDowell, 26 Jeb Burton #.
 Time of Race:    03 Hrs, 08 Mins, 08 Secs.    Average Speed:    159.487 MPH    Margin of Victory:    0.158 Seconds
 Caution Flags:    6 for 23 laps: Laps: 20-24 (#55, 33 Accident Turn 1 [None]); 48-51 (#83,42,17,51,16,18,40,22,6,5,10,7,62,43,4 Accident Backstretch [Red 11:32] [None]); 56-58 (Debris Backstretch [17]); 92-95 (#62 Accident Turn 2 [22]); 116-118 (Debris Turn 3 [23]); 159-162 (Fluid On Track From #3 [22]).
 Lead Changes:    27 among 15 drivers: J. Gordon 1-3; K. Kahne 4-6; T. Stewart 7-11; D. Earnhardt Jr. 12-15; J. Gordon 16-19; K. Harvick 20; J. Allgaier 21; B. Labonte 22; J. Gordon 23-48; K. Busch 49; J. Johnson 50-91; D. Gilliland 92; J. Wise 93; J. Gordon 94-95; J. Johnson 96-103; D. Earnhardt Jr. 104; D. Hamlin 105-106; D. Earnhardt Jr. 107-110; J. Gordon 111-115; C. Mears 116; J. Gordon 117-123; D. Earnhardt Jr. 124-147; T. Stewart 148; D. Earnhardt Jr. 149-155; D. Hamlin 156-158; R. Stenhouse Jr. 159; C. Whitt 160-161; D. Earnhardt Jr. 162-188.
Chase Grid Outlook:     1.K. Harvick 394 (2 wins);2.J. Johnson 342 (2);3.J. Logano 335 (1);4.D. Earnhardt Jr. 319 (1);5.B. Keselowski 305 (1);6.M. Kenseth 292 (1);7.D. Hamlin 281 (1);8.M. Truex Jr. 354 (0);9.J. Mcmurray 297 (0);10.K. Kahne 286 (0);11.P. Menard 280 (0);12.A. Almirola 279 (0);13.J. Gordon 277 (0);14.R. Newman 271 (0);15.D. Patrick 253 (0);16.C. Bowyer 249 (0).
3M Lap Leader    : Dale Earnhardt Jr, #88 67 Laps    Coors Light Pole Award    : Jeff Gordon, #24 194.793 mph
Ingersoll Rand Power Move    : Kurt Busch, #41 18 positions    Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Race    : Hendrick Engines, #88
Mobil 1 Driver of the Race    : Sam Hornish Jr, #9     Moog Chassis Parts Problem Solver of the Race    : Paul Menard, #27 , -0.200 secs
Sherwin-Williams Fastest Lap    : Carl Edwards, #19     Sunoco Rookie of the Race    : Matt DiBenedetto, #83
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series
Next Race:    May. 9, 2015 - Kansas Speedway