bigbadbrother
10-10-2014, 03:23 AM
Kyle Busch may just be peaking at the right time for a serious run at his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.
Busch, who struggled to find speed over much of the summer, was the surprise pole winner for Saturday night's Bank of America 500, as 21 drivers broke the existing Charlotte Motor Speedway track record in qualifying on Thursday night.
Busch's No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the most consistent of the cars over three rounds, as he ran 197.390 miles per hour in the final session to take his third pole of the year and the 16th of his career in 360 starts.
"We'll see how this weekend goes. Hopefully, we can come out of here with a solid finish," said Busch, who enters the second of three races in the Contender Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup second in points.
For much of the season, the JGR Toyotas have lacked speed relative to the dominant Team Penske and Hendrick Motorsports squads, but you'd have never known that Thursday night when Busch gave JGR its 78th pole.
"We're working on it and we're getting better," said Busch.
Busch was not the fastest in the first two rounds -- his older brother, Kurt, set a new track record in Round 2 -- but Kyle was fastest in the last round, which determines the first 12 positions.
"It felt good -- the car, all around -- through the rounds," said Busch. "It was pretty consistent and ran relatively the same lap times each time out, and we just kept backing that up. When you can do those things, that's pretty good."
Starting on the outside of Row 1 on Saturday night will be Jeff Gordon in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, which ran 197.217 mph.
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"Oh, my gosh, it's so fast, so much grip, so much commitment," said Gordon.
Busch's teammate Denny Hamlin will start on the inside of Row 2, flanked by three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart. Ryan Newman and Paul Menard will roll off from Row 3, followed by Kevin Harvick, Brian Vickers, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Carl Edwards.
It was a dramatic evening at the venerable 1.5-mile track, where the drivers had to survive and advance through three timed periods.
During his first attempt at qualifying during the opening round, Jimmie Johnson got loose in Turn 1 and nearly crashed. After sitting for an extended period of time, Johnson went back out with 4 minutes left in the session and ran 11th fastest, enough to make it into the second stanza.
Kasey Kahne was fastest in Round 1, at 197.976 mph, as the top 21 cars all broke the existing track record and all 12 Chase drivers advanced to Round 2.
Iconic images - and a few hidden gems - from Dale Jr.'s first 40 years
The only driver who failed to qualify was Trevor Bayne, who was attempting to start his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race with Roush Fenway Racing.
In Round 2, Kurt Busch ran 198.771 mph, the fastest lap in NASCAR history at a 1.5-mile track. The elder Busch's run was the 21st track record this season.
Five Chase drivers failed to advance out of this session. Sprint Cup points leader Joey Logano was 13th, with Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski 17th; Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kahne and Johnson wound up 19th and 21st, respectively, and Matt Kenseth was 22nd. Danica Patrick qualified 14th.
"Disappointing, no way around it," said Johnson.
"We've been off a little in qualifying trim, but we're good in race trim," added Keselowski, who won this race from the 23rd starting spot last year, leading only 11 of 334 laps.
Bank of America 500
Qualifying
Pos Driver Car # Make Qual. Speed
1 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 197.390
2 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 197.217
3 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 197.087
4 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 196.542
5 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 196.442
6 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 196.100
7 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 195.837
8 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 195.744
9 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 194.953
10 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 194.861
11 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 194.328
12 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 191.598
13 Joey Logano 22 Ford 196.485
14 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 196.464
15 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 196.442
16 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 196.414
17 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 196.278
18 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 196.278
19 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 196.271
20 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 196.207
21 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 196.171
22 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 196.114
23 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 195.730
24 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 195.673
25 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 195.291
26 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 195.277
27 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 194.665
28 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 194.273
29 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 194.112
30 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 193.736
31 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 193.465
32 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 193.368
33 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 193.223
34 David Ragan 34 Ford 193.175
35 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 193.078
36 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 192.974
37 David Gilliland 38 Ford 192.788
38 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 192.082
39 Brett Moffitt 66 Toyota 191.775
40 Timmy Hill 33 Chevrolet 190.975
41 J.J. Yeley 83 Toyota 190.235
42 Corey LaJoie 77 Ford 190.235
43 Blake Koch 32 Ford 187.396
44 Trevor Bayne 6 Ford DNQ
Busch, who struggled to find speed over much of the summer, was the surprise pole winner for Saturday night's Bank of America 500, as 21 drivers broke the existing Charlotte Motor Speedway track record in qualifying on Thursday night.
Busch's No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was the most consistent of the cars over three rounds, as he ran 197.390 miles per hour in the final session to take his third pole of the year and the 16th of his career in 360 starts.
"We'll see how this weekend goes. Hopefully, we can come out of here with a solid finish," said Busch, who enters the second of three races in the Contender Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup second in points.
For much of the season, the JGR Toyotas have lacked speed relative to the dominant Team Penske and Hendrick Motorsports squads, but you'd have never known that Thursday night when Busch gave JGR its 78th pole.
"We're working on it and we're getting better," said Busch.
Busch was not the fastest in the first two rounds -- his older brother, Kurt, set a new track record in Round 2 -- but Kyle was fastest in the last round, which determines the first 12 positions.
"It felt good -- the car, all around -- through the rounds," said Busch. "It was pretty consistent and ran relatively the same lap times each time out, and we just kept backing that up. When you can do those things, that's pretty good."
Starting on the outside of Row 1 on Saturday night will be Jeff Gordon in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, which ran 197.217 mph.
Mr. Pessimism? Johnson admits 'fading chance' to win the title
"Oh, my gosh, it's so fast, so much grip, so much commitment," said Gordon.
Busch's teammate Denny Hamlin will start on the inside of Row 2, flanked by three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart. Ryan Newman and Paul Menard will roll off from Row 3, followed by Kevin Harvick, Brian Vickers, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Carl Edwards.
It was a dramatic evening at the venerable 1.5-mile track, where the drivers had to survive and advance through three timed periods.
During his first attempt at qualifying during the opening round, Jimmie Johnson got loose in Turn 1 and nearly crashed. After sitting for an extended period of time, Johnson went back out with 4 minutes left in the session and ran 11th fastest, enough to make it into the second stanza.
Kasey Kahne was fastest in Round 1, at 197.976 mph, as the top 21 cars all broke the existing track record and all 12 Chase drivers advanced to Round 2.
Iconic images - and a few hidden gems - from Dale Jr.'s first 40 years
The only driver who failed to qualify was Trevor Bayne, who was attempting to start his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race with Roush Fenway Racing.
In Round 2, Kurt Busch ran 198.771 mph, the fastest lap in NASCAR history at a 1.5-mile track. The elder Busch's run was the 21st track record this season.
Five Chase drivers failed to advance out of this session. Sprint Cup points leader Joey Logano was 13th, with Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski 17th; Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kahne and Johnson wound up 19th and 21st, respectively, and Matt Kenseth was 22nd. Danica Patrick qualified 14th.
"Disappointing, no way around it," said Johnson.
"We've been off a little in qualifying trim, but we're good in race trim," added Keselowski, who won this race from the 23rd starting spot last year, leading only 11 of 334 laps.
Bank of America 500
Qualifying
Pos Driver Car # Make Qual. Speed
1 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 197.390
2 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 197.217
3 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 197.087
4 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 196.542
5 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 196.442
6 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 196.100
7 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 195.837
8 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 195.744
9 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 194.953
10 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 194.861
11 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 194.328
12 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 191.598
13 Joey Logano 22 Ford 196.485
14 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 196.464
15 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 196.442
16 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 196.414
17 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 196.278
18 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 196.278
19 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 196.271
20 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 196.207
21 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 196.171
22 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 196.114
23 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 195.730
24 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 195.673
25 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 195.291
26 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 195.277
27 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 194.665
28 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 194.273
29 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 194.112
30 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 193.736
31 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 193.465
32 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 193.368
33 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 193.223
34 David Ragan 34 Ford 193.175
35 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 193.078
36 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 192.974
37 David Gilliland 38 Ford 192.788
38 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 192.082
39 Brett Moffitt 66 Toyota 191.775
40 Timmy Hill 33 Chevrolet 190.975
41 J.J. Yeley 83 Toyota 190.235
42 Corey LaJoie 77 Ford 190.235
43 Blake Koch 32 Ford 187.396
44 Trevor Bayne 6 Ford DNQ