Starting lineup at Michigan: Joey Logano tops 201 mph to take pole position

Rea White

Starting lineup at Michigan: Joey Logano tops 201 mph to take pole position image

Joey Logano topped the NASCAR Sprint Cup field in qualifying at Michigan International Speedway on Friday and will start from the pole position in Sunday’s Pure Michigan 400. His speed? 201.698 mph.

Green flag at Michigan: 2:21 p.m. ET, with TV coverage on NBC Sports Network. There will be a competition caution on Lap 20.

Jimmie Johnson will join him on the front row after posting a speed of 201.523 in the final round of qualifying.

MORE: 10 drivers to watch at Michigan

“I was surprised after the first couple of rounds when we weren’t as fast as the last time we were here," Logano said. "We were eighth going into the final round, but great adjustments to find a little bit more speed out of this thing. I was down there waiting and (crew chief) Todd (Gordon) said, ‘Take it!’ So I said, ‘Yeah, I am going to take it.’ So I got pumped up and I had the attitude that we were going to grab it or we were going to crash. It worked out well.”

All the drivers in the top nine in that round topped 201 mph. Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick and Chase Elliott round out the top five.

Six drivers went over 200 mph and failed to even advance to the final round of the session.

AJ Allmendinger, desperately seeking a win as he tries to break into the Chase for the Sprint Cup, didn’t get that close as he was the first car out of the field after the opening round in the session.

Elliott, who finished second at this race in June, will start fifth while Alex Bowman, filling in for Dale Earnhardt Jr. as he continues to battle concussion-like symptoms, will start sixth. 

Logano won this race in June in the first race with the rules package that will also be used this weekend. He has three pole positions this season, as well as three in his career at Michigan.

Starting lineup

Sunday’s race begins about 2 p.m. ET.

Pos. No. Driver Brand Sponsor Speed
1 22 Joey
Logano
Ford Shell
Pennzoil
201.698
2 48 Jimmie
Johnson
Chevy Lowe’s 201.523
3 11 Denny
Hamlin
Toyota FedEx
Office
201.416
4 4 Kevin
Harvick
Chevy Jimmy John’s
Chevrolet SS
201.382
5 24 Chase
Elliott
Chevy NAPA
Auto Parts
201.303
6 88 Alex
Bowman
Chevy Axalta/Univ.
of Michigan
201.207
7 21 Ryan
Blaney
Ford Motorcraft/
Quik Lane Tires<
+ Auto Center/td>
201.202
8 1 Jamie
McMurray
Chevy Cessna 201.039
9 19 Carl
Edwards
Toyota ARRIS
Surfboard
201.005
10 31 Ryan
Newman
Chevy Freightliner 200.462
11 5 Kasey
Kahne
Chevy Farmers
Insurance
200.028
12 42 Kyle
Larson
Chevy Target 199.341
13 20 Matt
Kenseth
Toyota Dollar
General
200.390
14 78 Martin
Truex Jr.
Toyota Furniture Row/
Denver Mattress
200.356
15 14 Tony
Stewart
Chevy Mobil 1
Chevrolet SS
200.323
16 18 Kyle
Busch
Toyota Interstate
Batteries
200.245
17 3 Austin
Dillon
Chevy Cheerios 200.106
18 2 Brad
Keselowski
Ford Miller
Lite
200.017
19 41 Kurt
Busch
Chevy Monster Energy
Haas Automation
199.253
20 27 Paul
Menard
Chevy Sylvania/
Menards
199.203
21 34 Chris
Buescher
Ford Dockside
Logistics
198.912
22 16 Greg
Biffle
Ford Roush
Performance
Ford Fusion
198.791
23 10 Danica
Patrick
Chevy Aspen Dental
Chevrolet SS
198.747
24 6 Trevor
Bayne
Ford Advocare
Ford Fusion
198.183
25 47 AJ
Allmendinger
Chevy Kroger
Scott Products
198.265
26 43 Aric
Almirola
Ford Smithfield 198.178
27 15 Clint
Bowyer
Chevy 5-Hour
Energy
198.129
28 13 Casey
Mears
Chevy GEICO 197.553
29 17 Ricky
Stenhouse Jr.
Ford Zest
Ford Fusion
197.509
30 44 Brian
Scott
Ford Medallion
Financial/Jacob
196.105
31 7 Regan
Smith
Chevy APC
Chevrolet
196.084
32 23 David
Ragan
Toyota Dr. Pepper 196.057
33 38 Landon
Cassill
Ford MDS
Transport
195.567
34 83 Matt
DiBenedetto
Toyota Vector
Security
195.159
35 95 Sam
Hornish Jr.
Chevy Thrivent
Financial
194.458
36 46 Michael
Annett
Chevy Pilot/
Flying J
192.838
37 98 Cole
Whitt
Chevy TBD 192.072
38 30 Josh
Wise
Chevy Curtis Key
Plumbing
191.939
39 55 Reed
Sorenson
Chevy VYDOX
Plus
188.966
40 32 Jeffrey
Earnhardt
Ford CorvetteParts 0.00

 

Rea White