Talladega starting lineup: Martin Truex Jr. claims pole on unusual day

Ray Slover

Talladega starting lineup: Martin Truex Jr. claims pole on unusual day image

Martin Truex Jr.'s day did a 180 on Saturday, in what could be the most unusual event seen in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Just before taking the track for qualifying at Talladega, Truex's car was stopped by NASCAR inspectors, forcing the No. 78 team to beat a hasty retreat to the shop for correction. Components were removed from the car, one was confiscated.

When Truex got rolling, however, nobody was faster.

MORE: Truex parts problem | Play it safe? No way | 10 drivers to watch

Truex secured pole position for Sunday's critical third race in the Cup Chase, the Hellmann's 500. That race goes green about 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday from the fast and dangerous Talladega SuperSpeedway.

Truex is among drivers seeking to advance to the Chase's Round of 8 but has yet to win in the Round of 12. Jimmie Johnson at Charlotte and Kevin Harvick at Kansas secured advancement. Truex enters Sunday in sixth place with a 13-point lead over Joey Logano and Austin Dillon.

Victory would help, but Truex can get enough points to secure his transfer to the three-race segment that begins at Martinsville on Oct. 30.

MORE: Stress to the max at Talladega | Winning is a matter of timing

Qualifying was a boost for Truex, and for spring race winner Brad Keselowski. Locked into 11th in the Chase grid and needing a victory to advance, Keselowski qualified second.

Third goes to Matt Kenseth. Fourth will be Chase Elliott, who is 12th on the Chase grid and like Keselowski will advance only with a victory.

Other Chase drivers qualified as follows: Kurt Busch, seventh; Denny Hamlin, eighth; Dillon, ninth; Carl Edwards, 13th; Kyle Busch, 14th; Joey Logano, 16th; Johnson, 17th; Kevin Harvick, 22nd.

MORE: Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Talladega TV duty | Only two drivers assure of Round of 8

Here is the starting lineup for Sunday's Chase race, the Hellmann's 500, at Talladega Superspeedway. Chase drivers in bold.

Pos. No. Driver Brand Speed
1 78 Martin Truex Jr. Toyota 193.423
2 2 Brad Keselowski Ford 193.365
3 20 Matt Kenseth Toyota 193.189
4 24 Chase Elliott Chevy 193.166
5 16 Greg Biffle Ford 193.123
6 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr Ford 192.975
7 41 Kurt Busch Chevy 192.746
8 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota 192.61
9 3 Austin Dillon Chevy 192.177
10 27 Paul Menard Chevy 192.123
11 6 Trevor Bayne Ford 192.039
12 55 Reed Sorenson Chevy 188.3
13 19 Carl Edwards Toyota 192.131
14 18 Kyle Busch Toyota 192.039
15 21 Ryan Blaney Chevy 192.039
16 22 Joey Logano Chevy 192.012
17 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevy 191.704
18 99 Ryan Reed Ford 191.7
19 88 Alex Bowman Chevy 191.627
20 31 Ryan Newman Chevy 191.466
21 14 Tony Stewart Chevy 190.962
22 4 Kevin Harvick Chevy 190.768
23 1 Jamie McMurray Chevy 190.393
24 42 Kyle Larson Chevy 190.162
25 44 Brian Scott Ford 190.026
26 43 Aric Almirola Ford 190.004
27 5 Kasey Kahne Chevy 189.891
28 13 Casey Mears Chevy 189.755
29 7 Regan Smith Chevy 189.688
30 10 Danica Patrick Chevy 189.643
31 38 Landon Cassill Ford 189.612
32 47 AJ Allmendinger Chevy 189.515
33 34 Chris Buescher Ford 189.242
34 95 Michael McDowell Chevy 188.775
35 93 Matt DiBenedetto Toyota 188.419
36 15 Clint Bowyer Chevy 188.086
37 46 Michael Annett Chevy 187.993
38 32 Bobby Labonte Ford 187.368
39 83 Jeffrey Earnhardt Toyota 186.765
40 23 David Ragan Toyota 186.358

 

Ray Slover