NASCAR Cup Series: Kevin Harvick takes pole for 2018 Gander Outdoors 400
By Asher Fair
Kevin Harvick took the pole position for the Gander Outdoors 400, which is the 21st race on the 36-race 2018 NASCAR Cup Series schedule.
Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick took the pole position for the 21st race of the 36-race 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season, the Gander Outdoors 400, at Pocono Raceway.
Harvick took the pole position for the 160-lap race by recording a top lap speed of 177.750 miles per hour (50.633 seconds) the three-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Pocono Raceway triangle in Long Pond, Pennsylvania in his #4 Ford in the third and final round of qualifying.
Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch qualified in second place alongside Harvick in his #18 Toyota as the highest qualifying Toyota driver for the race. His Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Daniel Suarez rounded out the top three by qualifying in third in his #19 Toyota.
Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kyle Larson is the highest qualifying Chevrolet driver for the race. He qualified in fourth place alongside Suarez in his #42. Team Penske’s Joey Logano rounded out the top five by qualifying in fifth in his #22 Ford as the race’s second highest qualifying Ford driver behind Harvick.
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Furniture Row Racing’s Martin Truex Jr., who won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway early last month, qualified in 14th place in his #78 Toyota, as he failed to make it into the final round of qualifying.
Of the 12 drivers who made it into the third and final round of qualifying for the race, five are Chevrolet drivers, four are Toyota drivers and just three are Ford drivers.
Chevrolet drivers securing more than two or three positions in the top 12 on starting grids this season has not been common, so for more Chevrolet to have more drivers qualified in the top 12 on the starting grid for tomorrow’s race than Toyota and Ford do shows that they are continuing to improve despite the fact that the only Chevrolet driver who has won a race so far this season is Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon, who won the Daytona 500 back in mid-February.
Here are the full qualifying results for the 2018 Gander Outdoors 400 at Pocono Raceway.
| Qualifying Results |
| 1st – Kevin Harvick |
| 2nd – Kyle Busch |
| 3rd – Daniel Suarez |
| 4th – Kyle Larson |
| 5th – Joey Logano |
| 6th – William Byron |
| 7th – Denny Hamlin |
| 8th – Erik Jones |
| 9th – Brad Keselowski |
| 10th – Jamie McMurray |
| 11th – Chase Elliott |
| 12th – Austin Dillon |
| 13th – Kurt Busch |
| 14th – Martin Truex Jr. |
| 15th – Jimmie Johnson |
| 16th – Ryan Newman |
| 17th – Paul Menard |
| 18th – Ryan Blaney |
| 19th – Aric Almirola |
| 20th – Alex Bowman |
| 21st – Clint Bowyer |
| 22nd – Darrell Wallace Jr. |
| 23rd – Matt Kenseth |
| 24th – Kasey Kahne |
| 25th – Chris Buescher |
| 26th – Michael McDowell |
| 27th – A.J. Allmendinger |
| 28th – Ty Dillon |
| 29th – David Ragan |
| 30th – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 31st – Matt DiBenedetto |
| 32nd – Jeffrey Earnhardt |
| 33rd – J.J. Yeley |
| 34th – Corey Lajoie |
| 35th – Ross Chastain |
| 36th – Kyle Weatherman |
| 37th – Landon Cassill |
| 38th – Reed Sorenson |
| 39th – B.J. McLeod |
| 40th – Timmy Hill |
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Be sure to tune in to NBC Sports Network tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. ET for the live broadcast of the 2018 Gander Outdoors 400 from Pocono Raceway.