Jones tops fog-shortened NASCAR practice
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| Erik Jones |
Erik Jones topped Saturday’s fog-shortened, early morning Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice session at Michigan International Speedway. The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota led the way with a fast lap of 200.150 mph around the 2-mile track ahead of Sunday’s Consumers Energy 400.
William Byron (No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet) came in second with a speed of 199.678 mph followed by Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Team Penske Ford) in third with a speed of 199.358 mph. June Michigan winner Clint Bowyer (No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, 199.242 mph) and Joey Logano (No. 22 Team Penske Ford, 198.999 mph) rounded out the top five.
The morning fog delayed the start of practice by 40 minutes. The session was initially scheduled to start at 8:35 a.m. ET.
Pole sitter Denny Hamlin came in ninth in the session, while defending race winner Kyle Larson placed 12th.
Several teams were assessed 15-minute practice holds for this practice, but the fog delay gave the teams the option to serve the penalty in either of Saturday’s sessions. The No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota team of Martin Truex Jr. (late to pre-race inspection at Watkins Glen), the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team of Kyle Busch (didn’t come to complete stop at the inner loop in practice at Watkins Glen), the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team of Daniel Suarez (didn’t come to complete stop at the inner loop in practice at Watkins Glen) and the No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet team of Ryan Newman (didn’t come to complete stop at the inner loop in practice at Watkins Glen) were all assessed holds.
Both the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet team of Bubba Wallace and the No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford team of B.J. McLeod were also assessed 15-minute practice penalties for being late to pre-qualifying inspection at Michigan. All teams elected to serve their penalties in this session.
Suarez hit the wall in qualifying — not recording a lap and he will start 40th in Sunday’s field — and the team has worked to repair the primary car.
Practice 2 Results
| Pos | Car | Driver | Team | Time | Speed | Laps | Behind | Gap |
| 1 | 20 | Erik Jones | Doosan Toyota | 35.973 | 200.150 | 10 | —.— | —.— |
| 2 | 24 | William Byron | Liberty University Chevrolet | 36.058 | 199.678 | 10 | -0.085 | -0.085 |
| 3 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Discount Tire Ford | 36.116 | 199.358 | 11 | -0.143 | -0.058 |
| 4 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Haas 30 Years of the VF1 Ford | 36.137 | 199.242 | 10 | -0.164 | -0.021 |
| 5 | 22 | Joey Logano | Shell Pennzoil Ford | 36.181 | 198.999 | 10 | -0.208 | -0.044 |
| 6 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Menards/Knauf Insulation Ford | 36.186 | 198.972 | 11 | -0.213 | -0.005 |
| 7 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Axalta Chevrolet | 36.197 | 198.912 | 10 | -0.224 | -0.011 |
| 8 | 21 | Paul Menard | Earn While You Learn/NewFordTech.com Ford | 36.197 | 198.912 | 11 | -0.224 | -0.000 |
| 9 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Office Toyota | 36.210 | 198.840 | 11 | -0.237 | -0.013 |
| 10 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Busch Light/Mobil 1 Ford | 36.221 | 198.780 | 10 | -0.248 | -0.011 |
| 11 | 9 | Chase Elliott | NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet | 36.278 | 198.467 | 10 | -0.305 | -0.057 |
| 12 | 42 | Kyle Larson | DC Solar Chevrolet | 36.296 | 198.369 | 14 | -0.323 | -0.018 |
| 13 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Haas Automation Ford | 36.303 | 198.331 | 6 | -0.330 | -0.007 |
| 14 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Smithfield Ford | 36.375 | 197.938 | 17 | -0.402 | -0.072 |
| 15 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Lowe's for Pros Chevrolet | 36.406 | 197.770 | 9 | -0.433 | -0.031 |
| 16 | 37 | Chris Buescher | Slim Jim Chevrolet | 36.410 | 197.748 | 11 | -0.437 | -0.004 |
| 17 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | McDonald's/Cessna Chevrolet | 36.420 | 197.694 | 16 | -0.447 | -0.010 |
| 18 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Dow WE Are Innovators Chevrolet | 36.443 | 197.569 | 11 | -0.470 | -0.023 |
| 19 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Fifth Third Bank Ford | 36.591 | 196.770 | 6 | -0.618 | -0.148 |
| 20 | 13 | Ty Dillon | GEICO Chevrolet | 36.682 | 196.282 | 12 | -0.709 | -0.091 |
| 21 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger | Kroger ClickList Chevrolet | 36.721 | 196.073 | 6 | -0.748 | -0.039 |
| 22 | 38 | David Ragan | Louis Kemp Crab Delights Ford | 36.815 | 195.572 | 6 | -0.842 | -0.094 |
| 23 | 00 | Landon Cassill | Mane n Tail Chevrolet | 36.901 | 195.117 | 6 | -0.928 | -0.086 |
| 24 | 95 | Kasey Kahne | WRL General Contractors Chevrolet | 36.997 | 194.610 | 7 | -1.024 | -0.096 |
| 25 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | AdvoCare Rehydrate Ford | 37.021 | 194.484 | 6 | -1.048 | -0.024 |
| 26 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Harvest Investments & Properties Ford | 37.228 | 193.403 | 10 | -1.255 | -0.207 |
| 27 | 72 | Corey LaJoie | Schluter Systems Chevrolet | 37.317 | 192.942 | 7 | -1.344 | -0.089 |
| 28 | *96 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Xtreme Concepts/Project K9 Hero Toyota | 37.493 | 192.036 | 11 | -1.520 | -0.176 |
| 29 | *99 | Gray Gaulding | StarCom Fiber Chevrolet | 38.060 | 189.175 | 5 | -2.087 | -0.567 |
| 30 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Solomon Plumbing Chevrolet | 38.229 | 188.339 | 6 | -2.256 | -0.169 |
| 31 | *66 | Timmy Hill | Rewards.com Chevrolet | 38.846 | 185.347 | 4 | -2.873 | -0.617 |
| 32 | 23 | Blake Jones | Tennessee XXX Moonshine Toyota | 38.854 | 185.309 | 15 | -2.881 | -0.008 |
| 33 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Interstate Batteries Toyota | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | -0.000 | -0.000 |
| 34 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | 5-hour ENERGY/Bass Pro Shops Toyota | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | -0.000 | -0.000 |
| 35 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Grainger Chevrolet | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | -0.000 | -0.000 |
| 36 | 19 | Daniel Suarez | Stanley Toyota | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | -0.000 | -0.000 |
| 37 | 43 | Bubba Wallace | Medallion Bank/Petty's Garage Chevrolet | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | -0.000 | -0.000 |
| 38 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Dockside Logistics Ford | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 | -0.000 | -0.000 |