Jeff Gordon wins 80th pole at Talladega
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| Jeff Gordon |
| Harold Hinson for Chevy |
Jeff Gordon surged to the 80th Coors Light Pole Award of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Saturday afternoon qualifying at Talladega Superspeedway.
Gordon, in his final full season driving the Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 Chevrolet, notched a fast lap of 194.793 mph on the 2.66-mile track. The Coors Light Pole Award was also Gordon's third of the season and fourth at Talladega.
"We definitely have a fast Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet. I think we've shown that all weekend long. But you never know what you've got until you put it on the clock. I am so proud of this pole because we got the pole in Daytona, but it was a totally different format. I knew the car was fast there.
"For this team to bring another car, a different car here, and all the hard work from the engine shop and what they do with the bodies, and chassis and prep. A lot of hard work goes into this and Alan Gustafson (crew chief) takes a lot of pride in these. They should, this is awesome. And awesome for Hendrick Motorsports to be on the front row. This was all them. I played a small role at Daytona, but I played NO role today, but it was fun."
Kasey Kahne pushed the Hendrick No. 5 Chevy to a lap of 193.685 mph, snaring the second starting spot for Sunday's GEICO 500 (1 p.m. ET, FOX). Gordon, the last driver to make a qualifying attempt, was .281 seconds better than teammate Kahne.
[adinserter name="GOOGLE AD"]Ryan Blaney qualified third at 193.611 mph in the Wood Brothers Racing No. 21 Ford. Teammates Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson were next, placing all four Hendrick Motorsports cars in the top five starting spots.
The session was the series' first since NASCAR mandated rules changes for qualifying on tracks where restrictor plates are used to limit engine horsepower. The group qualifying format introduced before the 2014 season often created large aerodynamic packs, gamesmanship and the threat of multi-car crashes.
After a particularly wreck-heavy Speedweeks to open the season for all three national series at Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR competition officials dropped the group format for Daytona and Talladega. Instead, drivers participated in single-car runs, released to the track in staggered intervals, in two rounds — the opening round for all cars, with the final 12 advancing to the final round.
David Ragan, making his final start in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota in place of the injured Kyle Busch, was ninth-fastest in qualifying. He'll move to the Michael Waltrip Racing No. 55 Toyota for the rest of the season, starting next weekend at Kansas Speedway, where JGR development driver Erik Jones plans to make his Sprint Cup debut in the No. 18.
In the meantime, team owner and occasional driver Michael Waltrip qualified the No. 55 ride in 23rd spot for Sunday's 500-miler at Talladega.
Defending Sprint Cup Series champion and current points leader Kevin Harvick was 24th-fastest in the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 4 Chevrolet. Defending race winner Denny Hamlin managed the 17th-fastest lap in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota.
Kyle Larson took the 13th starting spot in the Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet, missing out on a place in the final round by just three-thousandths of a second. Michael McDowell and rookie Jeb Burton failed to qualify for the 43-car field.
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – POLE SITTER
"We definitely have a fast Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet. I think we've shown that all weekend long. But you never know what you've got until you put it on the clock. I am so proud of this pole because we got the pole in Daytona, but it was a totally different format. I knew the car was fast there. For this team to bring another car, a different car here, and all the hard work from the engine shop and what they do with the bodies, and chassis and prep. A lot of hard work goes into this and Alan Gustafson (crew chief) takes a lot of pride in these. They should, this is awesome. And awesome for Hendrick Motorsports to be on the front row. This was all them. I played a small role at Daytona, but I played NO role today, but it was fun."
[adinserter name="GOOGLE AD"]KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 FARMERS INSURANCE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 2ND
"The Hendrick (Motorsports) cars are really strong, and the engines are running great. Our Farmers Insurance Chevy was fast right there. I told Jeff (Gordon, pole sitter) I was coming to the front row. I knew I wouldn't beat him because he is really quick, but I knew we could get up to second. I was really happy with that. It is a good starting spot. Hopefully tomorrow we stay out of trouble and we are there at the end and have a shot."
ON HIS QUALIFYING EFFORT:
“It’s great to be on the front row. I knew I wouldn’t beat him (Jeff Gordon, pole winner) because he’s really quick. But I knew we could get up to second with a couple of things there. So, I was really happy. That’s a good starting spot. Hopefully tomorrow we stay out of trouble and are there at the end and have a shot."
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 NATIONWIDE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 4TH
ON QUALIFYING:
“The car ran good. We got into that last round. We don’t have as much speed as some of the other guys, but we will work on it. Get to go ahead and get ready for the race."
YOU SAID YOU DON’T HAVE AS MUCH SPEED AS THE OTHER GUYS CAN YOU MAKE THAT UP WITH KNOWLEDGE AND SMARTS?
“Oh I mean we were close. There were only a couple of guys that were a little quicker than us. I feel pretty good about our car really to be honest with you. We are right up there. We have good speed."
HOW WAS THE QUALIFYING RUN FOR YOU? HOW HAPPY ARE YOU WITH THE RACE CAR?
“I’m glad we made the last round. It shows the car has good speed. I feel pretty good about it."
THOUGHTS ON NEW QUALIFYING FORMAT:
“It’s the way it ought to be. The fastest car gets the pole."
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 5TH
ON THE NEW QUALIFYING FORMAT:
“I think it’s a great way to manage the requirement of qualifying. We tried to make it more exciting with group drafting and that had some issues to it. I think it’s a good balance. It’s an efficient way we have two rounds not necessarily the most exciting thing, but still far better than the old single car three lap deal that we had. I think it’s a good kind of blend of the two worlds."
TONY STEWART, NO. 14 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER BOATS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 6TH
ON HIS QUALIFYING RUN:
“We are definitely going to be in the top 10 right now for sure. I’m proud of Chad (Johnston, crew chief) and really proud of our guys in our fab shop. You kind of wish – this is the event where you wish those guys could all be here because it really shows the fruit of their labor more than it does what we do here at the track. The work that takes place before you get to the shop shows up when you get here."
PAUL MENARD, NO. 27 QUAKER STATE/MENARDS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 7TH
ON THE NEW QUALIFYING FORMAT:
“It’s a lot better than the alternative. The old style with the single car two times laps that was just way too long. So this format we can get it done a lot sooner. The drafting deal everybody just played so many games and you put yourself at risk of tearing up a race car. This is the best of the three for sure."
YOU’VE BEEN REALLY FAST ALL SEASON DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE A WINNING CAR FOR SUNDAY?
“Oh yeah. We definitely have a winning car for Sunday, but unfortunately at Talladega about 30 other people do too."
CASEY MEARS, NO. 13 GEICO CHEVROLET – QUALIFIED 11TH
HOW SATISFIED ARE YOU WITH EVERYTHING?
“I think it went well. Anytime you can be this good on a superspeedway, it’s all very close and tight. I’m excited about the Geico 500 this weekend. Our guys brought a really fast car, so it should be a fun race tomorrow."
WHAT WOULD IT MEAN TO YOU TO CELEBRATE WITH THE GEICO FOLKS OVER THERE IN VICTORY LANE?
“I tell you what, it would mean a lot to me to be in any Victory Lane, but definitely with this being a Geico race and a lot of their folks being here, it would be a lot more fun for sure. We’ve got a good shot at it. Every superspeedway this year and last year, we’ve actually ran real well. So hopefully we can be there at the end and have something to say about it."
[adinserter name="GOOGLE AD"]KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 13TH
"I think we had decent speed. Happy we did single-car qualifying because normally the way we qualify on superspeedways I somehow miss the draft and end up…I think we started 42nd here last time. So, the Target Chevy should be alright. We'll see. Everybody's kind of equal here, so we will see."
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 14TH
ON THE NEW QUALIFYING FORMAT:
“I like it. I think it’s the way it should be. I think it’s great for the guys they take a lot of pride in this. You see a lot of nervous crew chiefs out through there wanting to make sure they show some speed in their cars. I think it’s good to show. This matters to me just to see where all your cars are. The No. 27 (Paul Menard) was quite a bit faster than us. We obviously got some stuff we can learn to get better. It’s good for the guys. In my opinion I like it, it’s simple and now we can go race."
ARE HERE AND DAYTONA YOUR TWO BEST SHOTS TO GET IN THE CHASE?
“Yeah, I think we definitely have to get a win. I think Michigan, Pocono, Kansas are all good tracks for us too, the big 1.5-mile’s. We have gotten better and we have another shot at Bristol too where we had a good shot at winning a couple of weeks ago. I’m optimistic to what is ahead. I definitely take a lot of pride in Talladega and Daytona. ECR engines run well here and hopefully we can put ourselves in a position to win."
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 4 OUTBACK STEAKHOUSE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 24TH
ON THE NEW QUALIFYING FORMAT:
“I think it definitely shows a more traditional way of showing who has the fastest cars and it rewards the efforts that the guys put into it. I think it’s gone pretty smooth and I think it was a great adjustment."
ON STARTING POSITION FOR SUNDAY:
“Our starting position won’t be very good, but I feel good about where our car is in the draft. That is the main thing."
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 MCDONALD’S CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 27TH
ON THE NEW QUALIFYING FORMAT:
“I think the qualifying is good. It seems like it’s going to go by fairly fast. The fastest car will be on the pole, which is ultimately I think what you want when you come to a place like this. Yeah, I think the qualifying format is good."
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT IN THE RACE?
“I don’t think the race will be any different than what we typically would have had because at some point it all gets shuffled around. I don’t think qualifying will have any effect on the race."
ON THE CHAOS OF THE FINAL LAPS:
“With 10 laps to go everybody is a crazy man. No one puts themselves above anyone else on what they are willing to do to win. It’s very circumstantial so you get to the front and once you get to that front pack to be able to hold on it. You have to have a good car, you have to make good decisions and you have to be lucky."
HOW DO YOU ASSESS YOUR CHANCES?
“We just have to wait and see how the race plays out tomorrow. You have to finish and avoid the incidents. We blew a tire out here last year in the front. There is a lot that can happen. You just have to survive."
MARTIN TRUEX, JR., NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW/DENVER MATTRESS CHEVROLET – QUALIFIED 36TH
"Good thing this happened at a superspeedway where qualifying doesn't carry the importance as it does on intermediate and short tracks. I wish we could have done better but didn't have the speed. We'll just have to be patient while working our way to the front and avoid in early wrecks."
Results
| Pos | Car | Driver | Manufacturer | Sponsor | Speed | Time | Behind |
| 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | Drive to End Hunger | 194.793 | 49.160 | Leader |
| 2 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Chevrolet | Farmers Insurance | 193.685 | 49.441 | –0.281 |
| 3 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Ford | Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center | 193.611 | 49.460 | –0.300 |
| 4 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr | Chevrolet | Nationwide | 193.599 | 49.463 | –0.303 |
| 5 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | Lowe's | 193.427 | 49.507 | –0.347 |
| 6 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats | 193.419 | 49.509 | –0.349 |
| 7 | 27 | Paul Menard | Chevrolet | Quaker State / Menards | 193.412 | 49.511 | –0.351 |
| 8 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Toyota | Dollar General | 193.357 | 49.525 | –0.365 |
| 9 | 18 | David Ragan | Toyota | Pedigree | 193.006 | 49.615 | –0.455 |
| 10 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Toyota | PEAK Commercial & Industrial Toyota Camry | 192.808 | 49.666 | –0.506 |
| 11 | 13 | Casey Mears | Chevrolet | No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet SS | 192.703 | 49.693 | –0.533 |
| 12 | 9 | Sam Hornish Jr | Ford | Medallion Bank | 192.343 | 49.786 | –0.626 |
| 13 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chevrolet | Target | 192.792 | 49.670 | –0.510 |
| 14 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Chevrolet | Bass Pro Shops | 192.789 | 49.671 | –0.511 |
| 15 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | Miller Lite | 192.777 | 49.674 | –0.514 |
| 16 | 33 | Brian Scott | Chevrolet | Shore Lodge | 192.765 | 49.677 | –0.517 |
| 17 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | FedEx Express | 192.738 | 49.684 | –0.524 |
| 18 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Chevrolet | Caterpillar | 192.715 | 49.690 | –0.530 |
| 19 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Chevrolet | Haas Automation | 192.680 | 49.699 | –0.539 |
| 20 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Ford | Ortho Ford Fusion | 192.672 | 49.701 | –0.541 |
| 21 | 22 | Joey Logano | Ford | Shell Pennzoil | 192.622 | 49.714 | –0.554 |
| 22 | 19 | Carl Edwards | Toyota | Arris | 192.587 | 49.723 | –0.563 |
| 23 | 55 | Michael Waltrip | Toyota | Aaron's Dream Machine | 192.181 | 49.828 | –0.668 |
| 24 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet | Outback Steak House | 192.050 | 49.862 | –0.702 |
| 25 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Chevrolet | GoDaddy | 191.835 | 49.918 | –0.758 |
| 26 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Ford | Advocare Ford Fusion | 191.727 | 49.946 | –0.786 |
| 27 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chevrolet | McDonald's | 191.627 | 49.972 | –0.812 |
| 28 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Ford | Fresh From Florida | 191.616 | 49.975 | –0.815 |
| 29 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr | Ford | Fifth Third Bank Ford Fusion | 191.581 | 49.984 | –0.824 |
| 30 | 40 | Landon Cassill | Chevrolet | TBA | 191.497 | 50.006 | –0.846 |
| 31 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger | Chevrolet | Kroger/Hungry Jack | 191.252 | 50.070 | –0.910 |
| 32 | 32 | Bobby Labonte | Ford | C&J Energy Services | 191.176 | 50.090 | –0.930 |
| 33 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Chevrolet | Diathrive | 191.016 | 50.132 | –0.972 |
| 34 | 98 | Josh Wise | Ford | Phoenix Construction | 190.757 | 50.200 | –1.040 |
| 35 | 51 | Justin Allgaier | Chevrolet | Brandt | 190.738 | 50.205 | –1.045 |
| 36 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr | Chevrolet | Furniture Row/Visser Precision | 190.715 | 50.211 | –1.051 |
| 37 | 7 | Alex Bowman | Chevrolet | Golden Corral Chevrolet | 190.624 | 50.235 | –1.075 |
| 38 | 34 | Chris Buescher | Ford | CSX / Play It Safe | 190.408 | 50.292 | –1.132 |
| 39 | 38 | David Gilliland | Ford | Farm Rich | 190.276 | 50.327 | –1.167 |
| 40 | 46 | Michael Annett | Chevrolet | Bene-fit | 190.147 | 50.361 | –1.201 |
| 41 | 35 | Cole Whitt | Ford | Speed Stick | 189.752 | 50.466 | –1.306 |
| 42 | 23 | J.J. Yeley | Toyota | Dr. Pepper | 189.242 | 50.602 | –1.442 |
| 43 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto | Toyota | – | – | – |
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