NASCAR: 2019 Ford EcoBoost 400 qualifying rained out; Denny Hamlin on pole

Qualifying for the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 season finale, the Ford EcoBoost 400, at Homestead-Miami Speedway was rained out. As a result, Denny Hamlin is set to start from the pole position.

For the 18th consecutive NASCAR Cup Series season but for the final time for the foreseeable future, Homestead-Miami Speedway is set to play host to the Championship 4 season finale, the Ford EcoBoost 400, this Sunday, November 17.

Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch and Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick are set to battle for the championship in this race, with the highest finisher winning the title. This race is set to feature 40 drivers, meaning there will be 36 non-championship contenders in the field as well.

Homestead-Miami Speedway is one of 10 tracks on the schedule only once in the 2019 season, and it is the first of these 10 tracks to host a race since Indianapolis Motor Speedway closed out the regular season back in early September.

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The Charlotte Motor Speedway roval could be considered among these tracks, and it hosted a round of 16 playoff race in late September, but the track’s oval also hosted a race in late May.

Entering Sunday afternoon’s Ford EcoBoost 400, 13 drivers representing six different teams have won at least one race so far this year. Additionally, six of them representing five of these teams have won at least one race in the playoffs.

All four Championship 4 drivers representing both Championship 4 teams have been victorious this season, and on at least four occasions. They have combined to win 21 races so far in 2019, including the last four.

Unfortunately, the field for this 267-lap season finale around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Homestead-Miami Speedway oval in Homestead, Florida was set per the rule book.

The qualifying session itself was originally scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. ET tomorrow afternoon, but because both practice sessions were rained out today, that window is set to feature a practice session itself.

For everyone but the Championship 4 drivers, it was set based on owner points. For the Championship 4 drivers, who all enter the race with 5,000 points, it was set based on best finish in the round of 8, and second best finish among the top three since Truex, Hamlin and Harvick all won a race in the round while Busch did not.

As a result, Hamlin is set to start from the pole position aside of Harvick in second place. Truex is set to start in third alongside Busch in fourth.

Homestead-Miami Speedway is scheduled to host the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 season finale this Sunday, November 17. NBC is set to broadcast the Ford EcoBoost 400 live beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET.