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Qualifying report

Larson edges Truex for Michigan pole with 202mph lap

Kyle Larson earned his second pole of 2017 with a lap of 202.156mph at Michigan International Speedway.

Polesitter Kyle Larson, Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet

Polesitter Kyle Larson, Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet

NASCAR Media

In March, Larson also won the pole at Fontana for the Auto Club 400 — at a track nearly identical to MIS. Larson went on to win that race.

He’ll have the same car here this weekend for the FireKeepers Casino 400.

“We made some good adjustments there for that final round,” said Larson. “I was pretty good in the first round and a little bit tight in the second round. They went a step further on freeing it up for the final round and the Cars 3 Chevy drove good. I could tell by the rpm and the engine it was going to be a pretty good lap so I was happy about that to get the pole after winning here last year. So, hopefully we can keep it going. So far it’s been a really good weekend leading in practice and then getting the quick time here. So, yeah; it’s an exciting weekend and hopefully we can keep it going.”

Martin Truex Jr. was second followed by Clint Bowyer, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Ryan Blaney.

Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray, Matt Kenseth, Chase Elliott, Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top 12.

Elliott was first on the track and set a speed of 200.378mph. Logano jumped over the No. 24 with a lap of 200.770mph but was topped by Denny Hamlin (201.337mph).

With two minutes remaining, Kyle Busch went to the top of the chart with a lap of 201.523mph but was beat by Clint Bowyer’s lap of 201.664mph.

As the clock wound down to one minute, Truex posted a lap of 202.117mph. Harvick, after winning the first two rounds, dropped to the bottom of the board with a lap of 200.206mph. Keselowski’s lap of 200.050mph saved Harvick from the 12th-spot.

With time running out, Larson, was the last car on the track, shot to the top of the speed chart with a lap of 202.156mph. 

Click on the image to watch Larson talk about his fast lap in qualifying. 

Round 2

Kevin Harvick swept the first two rounds of qualifying. His lap of 201.867mph topped the chart in Round 2 on Friday.

Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Jamie McMurray, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Matt Kenseth advanced to the final round.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the first on the track and posted a lap of 198.522mph. Jimmie Johnson topped that with a lap of 200.809mph. Kenseth (199.961mph) briefly sat second until Logano established a speed of 200.809mph. 

Three minutes in Larson set the top speed of 201.259mph followed by Hamlin (201.011mph). Truex shot to the top with a lap of 201.664 just before halfway but Harvick vaulted over him with a speed of 201.867mph.

“I know where it’s at, we’ll go get it,” Truex replied after being told Harvick outran him.

With three minutes left, Keselowski ran 10th with a lap of 200.529mph and bumped Kurt Busch (199.712mph) out of the top 12. In the final two minutes, Ryan Newman, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Elliott and Erik Jones took times. While Earnhardt, Kasey Kahne, Austin Dillon and Matt Kenseth hit the track again. Kenseth bumped Johnson out of the top 12 with a lap of 200.496mph to advance to the final round.

“We ran the same speed, I should have been about seven-tenths faster to keep up with the top guys,” Johnson said.

Round 1

With rain in the area, there was a mad dash to establish lap times at Michigan Speedway. Three cars remained in the inspection line as the green flag waved.

Harvick posted the top lap in Round 1 with a speed of 201.365mph followed by Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Martin Truex Jr., Brad Keselowski, Jamie McMurray, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Erik Jones (199.126mph).

Johnson started the first round with a lap of 200.345mph and set the quick pace. In the first two minutes, Matt Kenseth was second (199.468mph) followed by Austin Dillon, Ty Dillon, Chris Buescher, AJ Allmendinger and Trevor Bayne.

Three minutes in, Kurt Busch (199.468mph) jumped up to second and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (199.170mph) to fourth. Ryan Blaney (199.756mph) climbed to second but moments later, Harvick vaulted to the top of the speed chart just prior to the five-minute mark.

Rookies Jones and Daniel Suarez moved into the top 10 on their first laps. Six minutes in, Danica Patrick was ninth and ended up 22nd. The Toyotas of Truex Jr. and Hamlin posted laps in the top-five before the seven-minute mark.

Eight minutes into Round 1, Ganassi Racing teammates Larson and McMurray posted the second and fifth-fastest speeds. Kyle Busch moved up to third quick just before halfway. Thirty-four cars made laps before the 10-minute mark. Harvick was P1 followed by Larson, Kyle Busch, Johnson, Truex, McMurray, Hamlin, Blaney, Kurt Busch and Earnhardt.

With five minutes to go, Trevor Bayne and Michael McDowell made a second attempt. One minute later, Allmendinger, Keselowski, Newman and DiBenedetto returned to the track. Keselowski moved up to sixth with a lap of 200.089mph and knocked Ty Dillon out of the top 24 and put Suarez on the bubble. In the final minute, Ty Dillon, Austin Dillon, Allmendinger and Suarez went out again. Suarez climbed to 13th with a lap of 199.088.

“P13, nice work Daniel,” the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing crew told Suarez. Ty and Austin Dillon held onto 23rd and 24th, respectively.

Cla#DriverManufacturerTimeGapMph
1 42 united_states Kyle Larson  Chevrolet 35.616   202.156
2 78 united_states Martin Truex Jr.  Toyota 35.623 0.007 202.117
3 14 united_states Clint Bowyer  Ford 35.703 0.087 201.664
4 18 united_states Kyle Busch  Toyota 35.728 0.112 201.523
5 11 united_states Denny Hamlin  Toyota 35.761 0.145 201.337
6 21 united_states Ryan Blaney  Ford 35.847 0.231 200.854
7 22 united_states Joey Logano  Ford 35.862 0.246 200.770
8 1 united_states Jamie McMurray  Chevrolet 35.867 0.251 200.742
9 20 united_states Matt Kenseth  Toyota 35.869 0.253 200.730
10 24 united_states Chase Elliott  Chevrolet 35.932 0.316 200.378
11 4 united_states Kevin Harvick  Ford 35.963 0.347 200.206
12 2 united_states Brad Keselowski  Ford 35.991 0.375 200.050
13 48 united_states Jimmie Johnson  Chevrolet 35.945 0.329 200.306
14 77 united_states Erik Jones  Toyota 35.968 0.352 200.178
15 41 united_states Kurt Busch  Ford 36.052 0.436 199.712
16 5 united_states Kasey Kahne  Chevrolet 36.114 0.498 199.369
17 88 united_states Dale Earnhardt Jr.  Chevrolet 36.140 0.524 199.225
18 3 united_states Austin Dillon  Chevrolet 36.188 0.572 198.961
19 31 united_states Ryan Newman  Chevrolet 36.234 0.618 198.708
20 19 mexico Daniel Suarez  Toyota 36.266 0.650 198.533
21 17 united_states Ricky Stenhouse Jr.  Ford 36.268 0.652 16.019
22 95 united_states Michael McDowell  Chevrolet 36.325 0.709 198.211
23 10 united_states Danica Patrick  Ford 36.405 0.789 197.775
24 13 united_states Ty Dillon  Chevrolet 36.492 0.876 197.304
25 37 united_states Chris Buescher  Chevrolet 36.451 0.835 197.525
26 47 united_states A.J. Allmendinger  Chevrolet 36.459 0.843 22.871
27 43 united_states Darrell Wallace Jr.  Ford 36.474 0.858 197.401
28 6 united_states Trevor Bayne  Ford 36.519 0.903 197.158
29 32 united_states Matt DiBenedetto  Ford 36.693 1.077 196.046
30 38 united_states David Ragan  Ford 36.776 1.160 15.698
31 27 united_states Paul Menard  Chevrolet 36.807 1.191 195.615
32 23 united_states Ryan Sieg  Toyota 37.177 1.561 193.668
33 83 united_states Corey Lajoie  Toyota 37.408 1.792 192.472
34 72 united_states Cole Whitt  Chevrolet 37.594 1.978 191.520
35 15 united_states Reed Sorenson  Chevrolet 37.834 2.218 190.305
36 33 united_states Jeffrey Earnhardt  Chevrolet 37.895 2.279 189.999
37 34 united_states Landon Cassill  Ford 0.000   0.000

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