NASCAR: Denny Hamlin Claims Pole Position for Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway
Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, claimed his second pole position of the season and the 42nd of his career on Saturday afternoon at Nashville Superspeedway. Hamlin’s fast lap of 160.354 mph (29.859 seconds) around the 1.33-mile oval was just .095-seconds faster than his teammate Christopher Bell, securing him the top starting position for Sunday’s Ally 400.
In a new format to set the starting grid, the pole winner is placed in the first position, with the remaining drivers organized by speed and qualifying group. This places Josh Berry of Stewart-Haas Racing on the outside of the front row, with Bell starting in third position.
Hamlin expressed confidence in his car’s performance, stating, “Felt pretty good about it all day. Seems like we definitely have fixed some of the things we weren’t very good with last year. I definitely feel pretty good about it and we’ll certainly work on it overnight to make it a little bit better.”
The NASCAR Cup Series championship co-leader, Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports, will start alongside Bell in the second row. Brad Keselowski, Tyler Reddick, William Byron, Ty Gibbs, Chris Buescher, and Austin Cindric round out the top ten starting positions.
Defending race winner Ross Chastain will start 20th, while Chase Elliott will start 13th. Justin Haley’s Rick Ware Racing team faced penalties for an unapproved adjustment, resulting in a rear start and a pit road pass-through penalty after the green flag on Sunday.
In practice sessions, Ty Gibbs set the pace with the fastest lap at 159.287 mph, followed by Ryan Blaney, Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, and Todd Gilliland. Blaney showed strong long-run speed, topping the consecutive 10-lap averages category.
As anticipation builds for the Ally 400 on Sunday, fans can expect an exciting race with Hamlin leading the field from the pole position. Stay tuned for more updates and coverage of NASCAR action at Nashville Superspeedway.
By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service. Special to Field Level Media.
