Two Ford Drivers Secure Front Row for Sunday’s Race
In last nights NASCAR Cup Series qualifying, the new Ford Mustang Dark Horse impressed, living up to its name. Joey Logano from Team Penske dominated, securing pole position for the Daytona 500 with a blazing lap.
With a final-round speed of 181.947 mph, Logano edged out Michael McDowell by a mere 0.071 seconds, marking his 29th career pole. Logano humbly credited his team for the achievement, acknowledging their tireless effort in crafting top-notch cars.
Logano commented, “This is all about the team,” who scored the 29th pole of his career. “I’d like to take credit, but I can’t today. The guys have done such an amazing job working on these cars. Speedway qualifying is 100 percent the car.
It’s noteworthy that Logano’s pole-winning run defied expectations, considering the recent dominance of Chevrolets and Hendrick Motorsports power at Daytona.
However, Fords showcased their prowess, navigating the superspeedway with ease.
Notable performances include Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, and William Byron securing third, fifth, and sixth positions, respectively. Austin Cindric, the 2022 Daytona 500 winner, represented Ford with a strong fourth-place finish.
As anticipation builds for Sunday’s race, only Logano and McDowell have their starting positions secured, leaving the rest of the field to be determined in the upcoming Bluegreen Vacations Duel 150-mile qualifying races on Thursday night.
FULL QUALIFYING RESULTS HERE
Additional noteworthy storylines include:
- Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, who failed to time into Sunday’s race in his No. 84 Legacy Motor Club Toyota;
- Toyota Race Cars struggle with super speedway speed, with Erik Jones leading the manufacturer’s effort with a 22nd-place run. Johnson was 35th fastest;
- In the race among six unchartered cars for four available spots, Kaz Grala was unable to make a qualifying run because of a mechanical failure on his No. 36 Ford, locking Anthony Alfredo (20th fastest overall) into Sunday’s race with a lap at 179.648 mph, fastest among the open cars.
- Only two drivers who know where they will start on Sunday are Logano and McDowell, both former DAYTONA 500 winners. The rest of the field will be set in Thursday night’s Bluegreen Vacations Duel 150-mile qualifying races, with the odd-numbered qualifiers racing in Duel 1 and the even-numbered qualifiers competing in Duel 2.
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Article by AutomotiveWoman.com Editor, Juliana Chiovitti, aka @AutomotiveWoman online
IMAGES: NASCAR
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