After a full-time career in the NASCAR Cup Series that spanned more than 15 seasons, Martin Truex Jr. closing this chapter of his racing-focused life with back-to-back pole positions.
Making a return to his debut race in the NASCAR Cup Series, Truex posted the fastest lap time in Saturday’s final round of qualifying at Phoenix Raceway.
The pole is the 25th at NASCAR’s highest level for Truex, making him the 33rd driver in series history to reach the quarter-century milestone in qualifying wins.
Truex recorded a lap time of 26.718 seconds (134.741 mph) to secure the Busch Light Pole Award on the 1.6 km oval in Avondale, Arizona, slightly edging Championship 4 driver Joey Logano to take first place .
Logano, seeking his third NASCAR Cup Series championship for Team Penske, was just one-hundredth of a second slower than Truex and as a result will have to settle for an outside front-row start.
However, the driver of the No. 22 Ford Mustang Dark Horse will suffer a major loss when Sunday’s event begins. He loses his pit selection privileges after his Team Penske machine failed pre-qualifying inspection twice.
Ross Chastain, the winner of last year’s season finale at Phoenix Raceway, will start from third for Sunday’s 312-lap event. Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott will round out the top five starters.
Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Ty Gibbs and Christopher Bell posted the sixth and seventh fastest times in the second qualifying round, while William Byron, the second-best of the championship-eligible drivers, will start from eighth.
Harrison Burton recorded another strong starting position for Wood Brothers Racing, while Tyler Reddick completed the top 10.
Defending NASCAR Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney, who is still in the hunt for this season’s championship, will start Sunday 17th, the lowest of the four drivers still eligible for Sunday’s winner-takes-all contest.
Josh Berry and Jeb Burton both failed to set a lap time at the one-mile Phoenix Raceway during qualifying. Burton suffered a mechanical problem with his No. 50 Team AmeriVet Chevrolet Camaro.
Berry, one of four drivers competing for Stewart-Haas Racing in the final NASCAR Cup Series event, crashed his No. 4 Ford Mustang Dark Horse at the entrance to Turn 1 during qualifying, scraping the outside wall. Berry starts 39th.
The NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race takes place on Sunday, November 10 at 3:00 PM ET on NBC, Peacock, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).
Leave a Reply