NASCAR: Alex Bowman on Bristol pole; Martin Truex Jr. penalized
By Asher Fair
Alex Bowman is now set to start the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race at Bristol Motor Speedway from the pole position after Martin Truex Jr. was penalized.
Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. was initially slated to start the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race at Bristol Motor Speedway from the pole position after a random draw set the starting lineup for the 16 drivers who already qualified for the race.
But Truex’s #19 Toyota, as it has done so many times this season for the points-paying races, failed pre-race inspection twice ahead of this 140-lap race around the four-turn, 0.533-mile (0.858-kilometer) high-banked oval in Bristol, Tennessee.
Truex is set to drop to the rear of the field, meaning he will start in 20th place. Four spots still need to be filled in the lineup for this race, with three set to be determined by the 85-lap All-Star Open and another set to be determined by the NASCAR Fan Vote.
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This penalty promotes Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman to the pole position in his #88 Chevrolet, and Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney is set to start alongside of him on the front row in his #12 Ford.
Technically, Blaney is the driver slated to advance to Truex’s number one starting spot by virtue of being the one initially slated to line up behind him. He is set to have lane choice, while Bowman is still set to be the control car. Bowman was initially slated to start in second place with Blaney in third.
As for the rest of the confirmed starting lineup, the drivers in the odd positions are set to move up one lane each on the inside. The choose cone rule will not be used for the initial race start.
Here is the updated starting lineup for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race at Bristol Motor Speedway among the 16 drivers who are set to compete.
Starting Lineup
1st – Alex Bowman
2nd – Ryan Blaney
3rd – Kevin Harvick
4th – Justin Haley
5th – Kurt Busch
6th – Matt Kenseth
7th – Brad Keselowski
8th – Cole Custer
9th – Ryan Newman
10th – Kyle Busch
11th – Chase Elliott
12th – Joey Logano
13th – Denny Hamlin
14th – Jimmie Johnson
15th – Erik Jones
16th – Martin Truex Jr.
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Tune in to Fox Sports 1 this evening at 7:00 p.m. ET for the live broadcast of the All-Star Open, and stay tuned in for the live broadcast of the All-Star Race at 8:30 p.m. ET.