NASCAR: Martinsville starting lineup - Brad Keselowski takes pole

Brad Keselowski took the pole position for the final race of the round of 8 of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

As calculated earlier this week, Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski has taken the pole position for the third and final race of the round of 8 of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs at Martinsville Speedway, the Xfinity 500.

This race marks the 12th race for which the starting lineup has been set by the following formula: 50% weight on each driver’s most recent race finish (25% based on the driver and 25% based on the car), 35% weight on each team’s position in the owner standings and 15% weight on the rank of each driver’s fastest lap from the most recent race.

Keselowski took the pole position for this 500-lap race around the four-turn, 0.526-mile (0.847-kilometer) oval in Ridgeway, Virginia by finishing in sixth place at Texas Motor Speedway with the third fastest lap behind the wheel of his #2 Ford. His #2 team sits in third in the owner standings.

More from NASCAR Cup Series

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. finished in second place in the most recent race at Texas Motor Speedway with the 10th fastest lap behind the wheel of his #19 Toyota, and his #19 team sits in seventh in the owner standings.

As a result, he is set to start alongside Keselowski on the front row in second. Those two drivers have combined to win each of the last three races at Martinsville Speedway, with Truex winning the last two, including last year’s round of 8 race to lock himself into the Championship 4 for the third straight season and fourth time in five years.

Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin are set to share the second row in third and fourth place behind the wheels of their #88 Chevrolet and #11 Toyota, respectively.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kurt Busch are set to share the third row in fifth and sixth place behind the wheels of their #4 Ford and #1 Chevrolet, respectively.

Team Penske’s Joey Logano and Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott are set to round out the remaining playoff field in seventh and eighth place behind the wheels of their #22 Ford and #9 Chevrolet, respectively, with Logano set to enter this race as the only driver already locked into the Championship 4 thanks to his win at Kansas Speedway to open up the round of 8.

Due to a NASCAR rule, only the eight remaining championship contenders are allowed to start in the top eight. If this were not a rule, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch would have taken the pole position for this race, as he had the best score in the starting lineup formula.

Busch, whose #18 team sits in ninth place in the owner standings, won the race at Texas Motor Speedway with the fourth fastest lap behind the wheel of his #18 Toyota. He is set to start in ninth, the highest of any driver who is not still in championship contention.

Here is the full starting lineup for the 2020 Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

Starting Lineup
1st – Brad Keselowski
2nd – Martin Truex Jr.
3rd – Alex Bowman
4th – Denny Hamlin
5th – Kevin Harvick
6th – Kurt Busch
7th – Joey Logano
8th – Chase Elliott
9th – Kyle Busch
10th – Ryan Blaney
11th – Christopher Bell
12th – Matt DiBenedetto
13th – William Byron
14th – Austin Dillon
15th – Cole Custer
16th – Clint Bowyer
17th – Tyler Reddick
18th – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
19th – Erik Jones
20th – Aric Almirola
21st – Ryan Newman
22nd – Ryan Preece
23rd – John Hunter Nemechek
24th – Michael McDowell
25th – Ty Dillon
26th – Corey LaJoie
27th – Jimmie Johnson
28th – Chris Buescher
29th – Daniel Suarez
30th – Brennan Poole
31st – Matt Kenseth
32nd – Bubba Wallace
33rd – Josh Bilicki
34th – Timmy Hill
35th – Quin Houff
36th – TBD
37th – James Davison
38th – J.J. Yeley
39th – Joey Gase

dark. Next. Top 10 NASCAR drivers of all-time

Tune in to NBC at 2:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, November 1 for the live broadcast of the 2020 Xfintiy 500 from Martinsville Speedway.

Home/NASCAR Cup Series

NASCAR: Martinsville starting lineup – Brad Keselowski takes pole

By Asher Fair | Oct 29, 2020

Brad Keselowski took the pole position for the final race of the round of 8 of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway.