Kenseth wins pole at Richmond
Matt Kenseth |
Matt Kenseth led all drivers at Richmond International Raceway in Friday evening's qualifying at 121.076 mph in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to capture the Coors Light Pole for Sunday's Toyota Owners 400. This marks his first pole win of 2017.
It is Kenseth's second career pole at Richmond, his previous top starting spot coming in 2013. Kenseth has won twice at the Virginia track, in 2002 and 2015.
Ryan Blaney will be joining Kenseth on the front row after turning a lap at 120.854 mph in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford.
Rounding out the top-five fastest cars were Martin Truex Jr. at 120.681 mph in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at 120.471 mph in the No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford and Joey Logano at 120.380 mph in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford.
Series points leader Kyle Larson will start 18th after failing to advance to the third and final round of the session.
Austin Dillon failed pre-race inspection at Bristol Motor Speedway five times, the penalty for which is to start at the rear of the field this week. He took his qualifying lap at Richmond by never going faster than 82.792 mph to keep his tires fresh for the race.
Lineup
Pos. | No. | Driver | Manu | Sponsor | Time | Behind | Speed |
1 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Toyota | Circle K | 22.300 | 0.000 | 121.076 |
2 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Ford | Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center | 22.341 | -0.041 | 120.854 |
3 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr | Toyota | Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats | 22.373 | -0.073 | 120.681 |
4 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr | Ford Ford | Fifth Third | 22.412 | -0.112 | 120.471 |
5 | 22 | Joey Logano | Ford | Shell Pennzoil | 22.429 | -0.129 | 120.380 |
6 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Ford | Busch Light | 22.439 | -0.139 | 120.326 |
7 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | M&M's | 22.468 | -0.168 | 120.171 |
8 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Ford | Haas Automation Demo Days | 22.473 | -0.173 | 120.144 |
9 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Ford | Mobil 1 Annual Protection | 22.495 | -0.195 | 120.027 |
10 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chevy | GEARWRENCH | 22.558 | -0.258 | 119.691 |
11 | 19 | Daniel Suarez | Toyota | ARRIS | 22.672 | -0.372 | 119.090 |
12 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr | Chevy | Nationwide | 22.689 | -0.389 | 119.000 |
13 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Chevy | Okuma | 22.557 | -0.257 | 119.697 |
14 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Chevy | NAPA Brakes | 22.562 | -0.262 | 119.670 |
15 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | Detroit Genuine Parts | 22.562 | -0.262 | 119.670 |
16 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | FedEx Ground | 22.563 | -0.263 | 119.665 |
17 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevy | Lowe's | 22.568 | -0.268 | 119.638 |
18 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chevy | Credit One Bank | 22.617 | -0.317 | 119.379 |
19 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Chevy | AARP Drive To End Hunger | 22.646 | -0.346 | 119.226 |
20 | 77 | Erik Jones | Toyota | GameStop/Prey | 22.699 | -0.399 | 118.948 |
21 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Ford | CODE 3 ASSOCIATES | 22.709 | -0.409 | 118.896 |
22 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger | Chevy | Kroger Click List | 22.758 | -0.458 | 118.640 |
23 | 37 | Chris Buescher | Chevy | Kingsford | 22.797 | -0.497 | 118.437 |
24 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Chevy | GEICO | 23.072 | -0.772 | 117.025 |
25 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Ford | Smithfield | 22.674 | -0.374 | 119.079 |
26 | 27 | Paul Menard | Chevy | Rockstar Energy / Menards | 22.687 | -0.387 | 119.011 |
27 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Chevy | WRL General Contractors | 22.705 | -0.405 | 118.917 |
28 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Ford | The Pete Store | 22.715 | -0.415 | 118.864 |
29 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Ford | AdvoCare | 22.728 | -0.428 | 118.796 |
30 | 38 | David Ragan | Ford | Camping World / Good Sam | 22.810 | -0.510 | 118.369 |
31 | 23 | Gray Gaulding | Toyota | sweetFrog | 22.856 | -0.556 | 118.131 |
32 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Ford | EJ Wade Construction | 22.893 | -0.593 | 117.940 |
33 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Toyota | TBD | 23.001 | -0.701 | 117.386 |
34 | 83 | Corey LaJoie | Toyota | E.J. Wade Construction | 23.058 | -0.758 | 117.096 |
35 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Chevy | Towne Bank | 23.078 | -0.778 | 116.995 |
36 | 72 | Cole Whitt | Ford | TBD | 23.089 | -0.789 | 116.939 |
37 | 51 | Timmy Hill | Chevy | SleepFresh Mattress | 23.238 | -0.938 | 116.189 |
38 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Chevy | AAA | 32.612 | -10.312 | 82.792 |