Sam Hornish, Jr. Scores Record-Breaking Xfinity Pole

Sam Hornish, Jr.
Jonathan Moore/Getty Images

Ohio-native Sam Hornish, Jr. scored his eighth-career NASCAR Xfinity Series Coors Light Pole Award in record fashion on Friday, capturing the top spot in the afternoon qualifying session for Saturday’s Mid-Ohio Challenge at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.

Hornish, from nearby Defiance, Ohio, covered the 2.258-mile,13-turn road course at a speed of 96.755 mph (84.014 seconds) in the opening session, eclipsing the previous track record of 96.256mph set by Michael McDowell in 2013.

After pacing the field in the first segment, Hornish came right back out and topped the second segment with a speed of 96.374mph (84.346 seconds) to top Australian driver Owen Kelly and collect his first pole of 2016 and his second ever at Mid-Ohio. Hornish had previously won the pole for this event back in 2014.

Hornish is making just his third series start of the season and his second behind the wheel of the Richard Childress-owned no. 2 Chevrolet. He already has one victory this year, coming in his first start at Iowa Speedway back in June while subbing for Matt Tifft.

"The fact that we're here and we're as good as we have been really is hats off to RCR and all the people that work on the Rheem No. 2 car," said Hornish. "Right off the bat, this morning I was kind of worried about it being a little bit rusty. It's been a little while since I've been on a road course."

Kelly, making just his fourth Xfinity Series start in six years, qualified second in the no. 18 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing with a speed of 95.877mph (84.784 seconds).

Ryan Blaney, the only Sprint Cup regular to make the trip to Mid-Ohio this weekend, will start third after clocking in with a speed of 95.739mph (84.906 second) in the no. 22 Team Penske Ford. Series points leader Elliott Sadler (95.675mph, 84.963 seconds) and second-place points driver Daniel Suarez (95.613mph, 85.018 seconds) made up the rest of the top five qualifiers.

Qualifying Results

Pos. # Driver Make Sponsor Speed Lap Behind
1 2 Sam Hornish Jr Chevy Rheem 96.374 84.346 Leader
2 18 Owen Kelly Toyota Tunity 95.877 84.784 –0.438
3 22 Ryan Blaney Ford Discount Tire 95.739 84.906 –0.560
4 1 Elliott Sadler Chevy OneMain 95.675 84.963 –0.617
5 19 Daniel Suarez Toyota Arris 95.613 85.018 –0.672
6 20 Erik Jones Toyota DEWALT FLEXVOLT 95.351 85.251 –0.905
7 3 Ty Dillon Chevy WESCO 95.249 85.343 –0.997
8 16 Ryan Reed Ford Lilly Diabetes 95.232 85.358 –1.012
9 98 Nelson Piquet Jr Ford Carroll Shelby Engine Co. 95.181 85.404 –1.058
10 6 Darrell Wallace Jr Ford Roush Performance 95.164 85.419 –1.073
11 7 Justin Allgaier Chevy Brandt 95.162 85.421 –1.075
12 62 Brendan Gaughan Chevy South Point 94.966 85.597 –1.251
13 11 Blake Koch Chevy LeafFilter 95.078 85.496 –1.150
14 51 Jeremy Clements Chevy RepairableVehicles.com 95.008 85.559 –1.213
15 90 Andy Lally Chevy 3Dimensional.com 94.823 85.726 –1.380
16 42 Justin Marks Chevy Katerra 94.727 85.813 –1.467
17 48 Brennan Poole Chevy DC Solar 94.725 85.815 –1.469
18 88 Kenny Habul Chevy SunEnergy1 94.681 85.855 –1.509
19 33 Brandon Jones Chevy Jeld-Wen / Menards 94.139 86.349 –2.003
20 44 J.J. Yeley Toyota Zachry 93.850 86.615 –2.269
21 4 Ross Chastain Chevy teamjdmotorsports.com 93.832 86.631 –2.285
22 40 Alon Day Dodge FLWaterfront.com 93.816 86.646 –2.300
23 39 Ryan Sieg Chevy RSS Racing 93.782 86.678 –2.332
24 01 Ryan Preece Chevy teamjdmotorsports.com 93.709 86.745 –2.399
25 10 Jeff Green Toyota TBD 93.423 87.011 –2.665
26 28 Dakoda Armstrong Toyota Winfield Be Greater 93.233 87.188 –2.842
27 15 Stanton Barrett Ford Lilly Trucking 93.117 87.297 –2.951
28 97 T.J. Bell Chevy Vroom Brands 92.417 87.958 –3.612
29 25 Ryan Ellis Chevy Bachtel Excavating 91.810 88.539 –4.193
30 14 Mike Bliss Toyota Arthritis Foundation 91.740 88.607 –4.261
31 70 Timmy Hill Chevy E-hydrate 91.615 88.728 –4.382
32 93 David Starr Chevy Massimo Motors 91.423 88.914 –4.568
33 07 Ray Black Jr Chevy ScubaLife 91.408 88.929 –4.583
34 13 Tim Cowen Ford Cowen Logistics 90.682 89.641 –5.295
35 77 Jordan Anderson Chevy Vroom Brands 89.931 90.389 –6.043
36 0 Garrett Smithley Chevy teamjdmotorsports.com 89.637 90.686 –6.340
37 52 Joey Gase Chevy Donate Life Ohio 89.459 90.866 –6.520
38 78 B J McLeod Ford TBD 89.441 90.884 –6.538
39 74 Roger Reuse Dodge Alabama Controls 87.138 93.287 –8.941
40 92 Mario Gosselin Chevy BuckedUp Apparel 78.972 102.933 –18.58