bigbadbrother
10-04-2014, 01:49 AM
Jared Turner
Kevin Harvick remained the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series' resident qualifying king on Friday, winning the pole for Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.
Harvick, one of 12 remaining drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, topped a qualifying session for the eighth time this season and for the third race in a row at the 1.5-mile Kansas City track.
Two non-Chase drivers -- Aric Almirola and Brian Vickers -- clocked in second and third, respectively, in the decisive third and final round of qualifying, as Chase drivers Joey Logano and Jeff Gordon completed the top five.
Filling out the top 12 -- those who reached the final qualifying round -- were Chase drivers Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr., followed by non-Chaser Tony Stewart, Chase driver Kasey Kahne, non-Chaser Greg Biffle and Chaser Carl Edwards.
It was Harvick, however, who had the biggest cause for celebration after continuing his Kansas qualifying dominance by shattering his own track record set here in the spring
"For whatever reason, this fits everything I have going on with my driving style, but in the end it's about having fast cars," said Harvick, whose No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevy eclipsed all other speeds in the final round with a lap of 197.621 mph that was almost 3 mph faster than his previous record pole time at Kansas.
Not among the 24 drivers advancing out of the first qualifying round were three Chase drivers -- Denny Hamlin (25th), Matt Kenseth (27th) and Jimmie Johnson (32nd).
Johnson, the reigning and six-time Sprint Cup Series champion, spun off Turn 2 with about three minutes left in the opening round, but managed not to hit anything with his No. 48 Chevrolet.
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But with Johnson's tires flat-spotted and the rule that teams can't change tires in the middle of a round, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was left with his worst starting spot for a Chase race since 2005.
Hamlin, who recorded an identical lap time with fellow Chase driver Ryan Newman in the opening round, questioned why Newman advanced to the next round on a tiebreaker based on Chase seeding.
Although all 12 title contenders are tied in points entering Sunday's race, Newman's team was ahead of Hamlin's in owner points before the points were reset following last weekend's Chase Challenger Round finale at Dover.
"We have a win; they don't," Hamlin said of Newman. "Our cars just don't have any speed. Balance is fine, just three-tenths, four-tenths off consistently -- all of our cars are. It's just disappointing we can't have any more speed out of our cars."
Newman went on to qualify 17th, failing to be among the dozen drivers advancing to the final round.
"It's not what we wanted to start with our Caterpillar Chevrolet SS, but after the little drama we had and being tied with the 11 car (Hamlin) on that first round, I am happy that we got the opportunity to beat seven more of them," Newman said.
Kenseth, part of the Chase trio that didn't reach the second round, was understandably displeased.
"It was disappointing," he said. "Us as a group, that's about where we were in practice. A disappointing day, but we'll be ready for the race tomorrow and hopefully have it right on Sunday."
Hollywood Casino 400
Qualifying
Pos Driver Car # Make Qual. Speed
1 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 197.621
2 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 196.307
3 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 196.150
4 Joey Logano 22 Ford 196.050
5 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 196.050
6 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 196.021
7 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 195.972
8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 195.702
9 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 195.518
10 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 195.362
11 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 194.974
12 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 194.721
13 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 195.270
14 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 195.164
15 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 195.080
16 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 195.059
17 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 195.016
18 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 194.918
19 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 194.868
20 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 194.833
21 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 194.679
22 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 194.609
23 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 194.259
24 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 194.021
25 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 193.736
26 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 193.653
27 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 193.611
28 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 192.678
29 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 192.096
30 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 191.993
31 David Gilliland 38 Ford 191.198
32 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 191.123
33 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 190.988
34 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 190.840
35 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 190.799
36 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 190.725
37 David Ragan 34 Ford 190.644
38 J.J. Yeley 83 Toyota 189.900
39 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 188.917
40 Timmy Hill 33 Chevrolet 188.547
41 Mike Bliss 37 Chevrolet 188.416
42 Joey Gase 32 Ford 186.767
43 Mike Wallace 66 Toyota 183.057
Kevin Harvick remained the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series' resident qualifying king on Friday, winning the pole for Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.
Harvick, one of 12 remaining drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, topped a qualifying session for the eighth time this season and for the third race in a row at the 1.5-mile Kansas City track.
Two non-Chase drivers -- Aric Almirola and Brian Vickers -- clocked in second and third, respectively, in the decisive third and final round of qualifying, as Chase drivers Joey Logano and Jeff Gordon completed the top five.
Filling out the top 12 -- those who reached the final qualifying round -- were Chase drivers Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr., followed by non-Chaser Tony Stewart, Chase driver Kasey Kahne, non-Chaser Greg Biffle and Chaser Carl Edwards.
It was Harvick, however, who had the biggest cause for celebration after continuing his Kansas qualifying dominance by shattering his own track record set here in the spring
"For whatever reason, this fits everything I have going on with my driving style, but in the end it's about having fast cars," said Harvick, whose No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevy eclipsed all other speeds in the final round with a lap of 197.621 mph that was almost 3 mph faster than his previous record pole time at Kansas.
Not among the 24 drivers advancing out of the first qualifying round were three Chase drivers -- Denny Hamlin (25th), Matt Kenseth (27th) and Jimmie Johnson (32nd).
Johnson, the reigning and six-time Sprint Cup Series champion, spun off Turn 2 with about three minutes left in the opening round, but managed not to hit anything with his No. 48 Chevrolet.
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But with Johnson's tires flat-spotted and the rule that teams can't change tires in the middle of a round, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was left with his worst starting spot for a Chase race since 2005.
Hamlin, who recorded an identical lap time with fellow Chase driver Ryan Newman in the opening round, questioned why Newman advanced to the next round on a tiebreaker based on Chase seeding.
Although all 12 title contenders are tied in points entering Sunday's race, Newman's team was ahead of Hamlin's in owner points before the points were reset following last weekend's Chase Challenger Round finale at Dover.
"We have a win; they don't," Hamlin said of Newman. "Our cars just don't have any speed. Balance is fine, just three-tenths, four-tenths off consistently -- all of our cars are. It's just disappointing we can't have any more speed out of our cars."
Newman went on to qualify 17th, failing to be among the dozen drivers advancing to the final round.
"It's not what we wanted to start with our Caterpillar Chevrolet SS, but after the little drama we had and being tied with the 11 car (Hamlin) on that first round, I am happy that we got the opportunity to beat seven more of them," Newman said.
Kenseth, part of the Chase trio that didn't reach the second round, was understandably displeased.
"It was disappointing," he said. "Us as a group, that's about where we were in practice. A disappointing day, but we'll be ready for the race tomorrow and hopefully have it right on Sunday."
Hollywood Casino 400
Qualifying
Pos Driver Car # Make Qual. Speed
1 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 197.621
2 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 196.307
3 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 196.150
4 Joey Logano 22 Ford 196.050
5 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 196.050
6 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 196.021
7 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 195.972
8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 195.702
9 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 195.518
10 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 195.362
11 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 194.974
12 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 194.721
13 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 195.270
14 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 195.164
15 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 195.080
16 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 195.059
17 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 195.016
18 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 194.918
19 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 194.868
20 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 194.833
21 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 194.679
22 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 194.609
23 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 194.259
24 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 194.021
25 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 193.736
26 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 193.653
27 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 193.611
28 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 192.678
29 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 192.096
30 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 191.993
31 David Gilliland 38 Ford 191.198
32 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 191.123
33 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 190.988
34 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 190.840
35 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 190.799
36 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 190.725
37 David Ragan 34 Ford 190.644
38 J.J. Yeley 83 Toyota 189.900
39 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 188.917
40 Timmy Hill 33 Chevrolet 188.547
41 Mike Bliss 37 Chevrolet 188.416
42 Joey Gase 32 Ford 186.767
43 Mike Wallace 66 Toyota 183.057