LONG POND, P.A. – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin earned the pole position for Sunday’s M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway (3 p.m. ET on USA Network, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) turning in a blazing fast lap of 169.498 mph around the iconic 2.5-mile oval – easily out-qualifying the field by .15-seconds to earn his third pole position of the season.
It will be an all-Joe Gibbs Racing front row with Hamlin starting his No. 11 Toyota alongside teammate Kyle Busch, who was second fastest in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
The last time Hamlin qualified on the pole, at Charlotte in May, he went on to win the race. And he already boasts a stellar resume at Pocono. His six wins at the track are tied with NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon for the NASCAR Cup Series-most at six each.
“As long as it keeps driving like that, it’s all good,” Hamlin said with a smile. “Just made some big strides from practice. The biggest thing is that the team just did a phenomenal job getting this car ready for qualifying. I made some adjustments and it’s good.”
Hendrick Motorsports teammates Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson were third and fourth fastest in qualifying and will make up the second row on the grid, followed by 2016 Pocono race winner Chris Buescher, who will start the No. 17 RFK Racing Ford fifth.
Ryan Blaney, who earned his first career win at Pocono in 2017 will start his No. 12 Team Penske Ford sixth followed by the Toyotas of Bubba Wallace and Martin Truex Jr. Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez, in the lone Chevrolet, and Kurt Busch rounded out the top-10 starting positions. 23XI Racing’s Kurt Busch, will be starting from the rear of the grid, however, after spinning his No. 45 Toyota into the wall just as he was approaching the green flag for his final qualifying attempt.
Kyle Busch, who won Pocono races in four of the last five years, and Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman split the Pocono Raceway doubleheader race victories last year
PLAYOFF BUBBLE DRAMA
This year’s Daytona 500 winner, Austin Cindric became the first race winner of the 2022 season, but 20 races later, the Team Penske rookie acknowledges even that big victory may not provide a sure-bet Playoff appearance.
With six races left to set the 16-driver field there are already 14 different race winners. Cindric goes into Sunday’s race ranked 10th in the Playoff outlook as it is now. Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex Jr. are both inside the Top 16 in points but have not won a race yet. Should there be more than 16 winners heading into the Playoffs, the drivers with just one win will revert back to points to decide who makes the 16-driver postseason field.
“There is certainly a domino effect,” Cindric said. “I think you have to be cognizant of it.”
“That points picture is incredibly tight so it certainly could be a talking point,” he added. “From my standpoint, I just do my job and try to stay above that top 16 and the rest will work itself out.”
Source: Holly Cain / NASCAR Wire Service[table=3949]Failed to Qualify: None
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series
* Must Qualify on Time
# Denotes Rookie
Timing and Scoring provided by NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications
