NASCAR Cup Series qualifying from Pocono Raceway is in the books, and it's Denny Hamlin who has claimed the pole ahead of Sunday's Great American Getaway 400.
The Joe Gibbs Racing star set the fastest time of Saturday evening's session with a 51.948-second effort on the penultimate lap, just enough to edge out Kyle Larson into second place.
This is the third time in as many weeks that Hamlin won pole – and could finally give him the chance to actually lead the first lap, after a start penalty at Nashville and being sent to the back for unapproved adjustments at Michigan.
Elsewhere, Daniel Suarez qualified in third and will start Sunday's race on the second row, with Ty Gibbs alongside him in the No. 54. Chase Briscoe, a fourth Toyota, rounded out the top five.
Chris Buescher, meanwhile, qualified in sixth, with Erik Jokes, John Hunter Nemechek, William Byron and Ryan Blaney rounding out the top 10 in that order.
Further down the order, it was a tougher day for some big stars. Brad Keselowski's lap ended up nearly 20 seconds off the pace thanks to an engine issue, while Chase Elliott and Christopher Bell (racing with a broken wrist) will start outside the top 20.
Bubba Wallace was the only driver not to set a time, having spun through Turn 2 and hit both the outside and inside walls.
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NASCAR Cup Series Pocono qualifying results
Here are the full qualifying results from Pocono Raceway.
| Pos | Driver (Car No.) | Team (OEM) | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denny Hamlin (11) | Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota) | 51.948s |
| 2 | Kyle Larson (5) | Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +0.055s |
| 3 | Daniel Suárez (7) | Trackhouse Racing (Chevrolet) | +0.111s |
| 4 | Ty Gibbs (54) | Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota) | +0.144s |
| 5 | Chase Briscoe (19) | Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota) | +0.184s |
| 6 | Chris Buescher (17) | RFK Racing (Ford) | +0.228s |
| 7 | Erik Jones (43) | Legacy Motor Club (Toyota) | +0.241s |
| 8 | John H. Nemechek (42) | Legacy Motor Club (Toyota) | +0.329s |
| 9 | William Byron (24) | Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +0.383s |
| 10 | Ryan Blaney (12) | Team Penske (Ford) | +0.418s |
| 11 | Joey Logano (22) | Team Penske (Ford) | +0.519s |
| 12 | Alex Bowman (48) | Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +0.536s |
| 13 | Michael McDowell (71) | Spire Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +0.540s |
| 14 | Austin Hill (33) | Richard Childress Racing (Chevrolet) | +0.589s |
| 15 | Cole Custer (41) | Haas Factory Team (Chevrolet) | +0.619s |
| 16 | Tyler Reddick (45) | 23XI Racing (Toyota) | +0.620s |
| 17 | Austin Cindric (2) | Team Penske (Ford) | +0.629s |
| 18 | Zane Smith (38) | Front Row Motorsports (Ford) | +0.643s |
| 19 | AJ Allmendinger (16) | Kaulig Racing (Chevrolet) | +0.656s |
| 20 | Josh Berry (21) | Wood Brothers Racing (Ford) | +0.679s |
| 21 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47) | HYAK Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +0.708s |
| 22 | Christopher Bell (20) | Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota) | +0.776s |
| 23 | Chase Elliott (9) | Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +0.780s |
| 24 | Ross Chastain (1) | Trackhouse Racing (Chevrolet) | +0.782s |
| 25 | Riley Herbst (35) | 23XI Racing (Toyota) | +0.870s |
| 26 | Carson Hocevar (77) | Spire Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +0.890s |
| 27 | Ty Dillon (10) | Kaulig Racing (Chevrolet) | +0.911s |
| 28 | Connor Zilisch (88) | Trackhouse Racing (Chevrolet) | +1.001s |
| 29 | Todd Gilliland (34) | Front Row Motorsports (Ford) | +1.104s |
| 30 | Noah Gragson (4) | Front Row Motorsports (Ford) | +1.129s |
| 31 | Shane van Gisbergen (97) | Trackhouse Racing (Chevrolet) | +1.243s |
| 32 | Austin Dillon (3) | Richard Childress Racing (Chevrolet) | +1.266s |
| 33 | Cody Ware (51) | Rick Ware Racing (Chevrolet) | +1.540s |
| 34 | Daniel Dye (78) | Live Fast Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +1.694s |
| 35 | Ryan Preece (60) | RFK Racing (Ford) | +1.773s |
| 36 | Casey Mears (62) | Beard Motorsports (Chevrolet) | +2.264s |
| 37 | Brad Keselowski (6) | RFK Racing (Ford) | +19.188s |
| 38 | Bubba Wallace (23) | 23XI Racing (Toyota) | No Time |
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