Kevin Harvick wins the pole for the first Saturday night showdown of 2019
Richmond Raceway will shine under the lights this weekend in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series’ first Saturday night race of 2019. Their second Virginia race in four weeks will kick off Saturday, April 13 with the Toyota Owners 400. It’s the ninth of 36 races this season, held on a .75-mile oval that runs like a short track but often races like an intermediate.
NASCAR’s weekly soap opera surrounding group qualifying died down on Friday, at least for one week. Instead, parity became the major storyline as the top four drivers were from four different organizations. A Ford, Chevy and Toyota also took the top three spots as each manufacturer flexed some competitive muscle.
Just 37 cars competed for 40 spots this weekend, meaning all drivers made the race. NASCAR hasn’t attracted a full field of cars for the Cup Series since February’s season-opening Daytona 500.
One week after failing pre-race inspection three times, forcing a pass-through penalty after the start of the race Kevin Harvick bounced back by winning the pole for the Toyota Owners 400. He’s the first driver to win multiple Cup Series poles this season (Harvick also earned the top spot at Las Vegas last month).
1. Kevin Harvick
2. Erik Jones
3. Kurt Busch
4. Joey Logano
5. Kyle Busch
6. Martin Truex Jr.
7. Chase Elliott
8. Austin Dillon
9. Daniel Suarez
10. Jimmie Johnson
11. Chris Buescher
12. Brad Keselowski
13. Paul Menard
14. Kyle Larson
15. Aric Almirola
16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
17. Alex Bowman
18. Denny Hamlin
19. William Byron
20. Matt Tifft
21. Clint Bowyer
22. David Ragan
23. Ryan Preece
24. Daniel Hemric
25. Michael McDowell
26. Bubba Wallace
27. Matt DiBenedetto
28. Corey Lajoie
29. Ryan Blaney
30. Ty Dillon
31. Ryan Newman
32. Landon Cassill
33. Bayley Currey (i)
34. Jeb Burton (i)
35. Quin Houff
36. Joey Gase (i)
37. Ross Chastain (i)
(i) - Ineligible to collect Cup Series points
Failed To Qualify
None
QUALIFYING NOTES
- Harvick’s pole was the 27th of his NASCAR Cup Series career. 21 of them have come in the last five-plus seasons driving for Stewart-Haas Racing.
- Erik Jones (2nd) had his best qualifying effort since winning the pole position at Las Vegas last fall. He’s got back-to-back top-5 starts for the first time in 2019.
- Kurt Busch (3rd) had his best qualifying session overall since joining Chip Ganassi Racing this season. Busch’s average start entering the weekend was just 20.1.
- Jimmie Johnson (10th) has now qualified 11th or better in five straight races.
- Chris Buescher (11th) has his best starting spot this season. It’s his best on an oval track since Kansas way back in May 2018.
- Denny Hamlin (18th) had his worst qualifying performance of the year. It’s the first time in 2019 he’s started outside the top 10.
- Matt Tifft (20th) was the highest-qualifying rookie.
- Jeb Burton (34th) returns to Rick Ware Racing for his second Cup start of the year. He ran 35th at Martinsville after brake problems with the No. 51 Chevrolet.
- Joey Gase (36th) is running Carl Long’s unchartered car this week with a special paint scheme that honors the legendary Sam Bass. Bass, one of the sport’s most famous artists, died earlier this year after a long battle with kidney illness. He was 57.
NASCAR RACE BREAKDOWN
Race: Toyota Owners 400
Track: Richmond Raceway
Date: Saturday, April 13
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: FOX
Radio: MRN, SIRIUS XM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 400 laps (266.5 miles)
Stage 1: 100 Laps
Stage 2: 100 Laps
Final Stage: 200 Laps
PRE-RACE ANALYSIS
