In the 46th annual FedEx 400, it was only fitting that the No. 11 FedEx Cares Toyota, piloted by Denny Hamlin, scored the pole position, with a speed of 160.121 mph and a time of 22.483 seconds.
With his pole run, Hamlin has now secured that honor in three of the six races at the Monster Mile.
“It’s great,” Hamlin said of his first place starting spot. “Our car has been running great. We’re getting better and this kind of shows it.
“We still haven’t won here but we’ve been a lot more competitive. Whatever about this qualifying just suits my style. We’ve qualified well here in the past and haven’t raced well but I’m confident that on Sunday we will be contenders.”
Hamlin not only credited participating in a Goodyear tire test for at least a portion of his qualifying success, but he also paid tribute to the FedEx employees, whom he represents.
“It’s so special,” Hamlin said. “The FedEx Cares car is about the employees and the hours they spend volunteering. My team just brought me another fast Camry.
“The extra laps here I got from the test gives me that extra confidence. Overall, we’re just clicking away, getting a little better as the season goes.”
Martin Truex Jr., behind the wheel of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Visser Precision Chevrolet, took the outside pole in the same car that had raced just several days ago at Charlotte. Truex was just a bit slower than Hamlin, with a time of 22.539 seconds and a speed of 159.723 mph.
“We were close,” Truex said. “For whatever reason, the car got really tight. Missed it a little bit but had an awesome race car. The team hit it damn near perfect. Another good day and can’t wait to see what we can do on Sunday.”
What made Truex’s qualifying run so extraordinary was that his team in Denver turned the Charlotte car into the Dover car in almost 24 hours.
“It’s just awesome to see the effort put in,” Truex said. “I’m thankful for all the hard work back in Denver. This car got back there from Charlotte Monday night and had to leave to come here Tuesday night. Awesome job by my team to turn that car around.
“Everyone is very excited about how we’ve been running and everyone can just taste that victory. They are working extra hard to do whatever it takes to get over that extra hump.
“I have to say thanks to everyone and I love driving their cars.”
This was also Truex’s best qualifying effort of the season to date.
The third place starter for the race will be Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet. Larson qualified in 22.545 seconds and a speed of 159.681 mph.
“It’s an aggressive race track, which suits my style,” Larson said. “It’s a good start and it’s been awhile since I’ve been in the media center.
“Looking forward to trying to get faster and we have good pit selection. I’m hoping for a good race on Sunday.”
Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch round out the top ten in the starting lineup.
Jeb Burton was the fastest qualifying rookie and will start in the 35th position.
The full starting lineup for the FedEx 400, which is set to kick off shortly after 1:00 PM on Sunday afternoon on FOX Sports, is as follows:
2015 NSCS FedEx 400 Starting Lineup
| Pos | Car | Driver | Team | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Cares Toyota | 22.483 | 160.121 |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row/Visser Precision Chevrolet | 22.539 | 159.723 |
| 3 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Target Chevrolet | 22.545 | 159.681 |
| 4 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Dollar General Toyota | 22.546 | 159.674 |
| 5 | 22 | Joey Logano | Shell Pennzoil Ford | 22.557 | 159.596 |
| 6 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | ditech Chevrolet | 22.571 | 159.497 |
| 7 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Safety-Kleen Ford | 22.573 | 159.483 |
| 8 | 19 | Carl Edwards | Stanley Toyota | 22.609 | 159.229 |
| 9 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Ford EcoBoost Ford | 22.635 | 159.046 |
| 10 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Skittles Toyota | 22.645 | 158.975 |
| 11 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | McDonald’s/Cessna Chevrolet | 22.683 | 158.709 |
| 12 | 3 | Austin Dillon | DOW Chevrolet | 22.743 | 158.29 |
| 13 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Haas Automation Chevrolet | 22.657 | 158.891 |
| 14 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Lowe’s Pro Services Chevrolet | 22.668 | 158.814 |
| 15 | 55 | David Ragan | Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota | 22.69 | 158.66 |
| 16 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Nationwide Chevrolet | 22.716 | 158.479 |
| 17 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Caterpillar Chevrolet | 22.747 | 158.263 |
| 18 | 27 | Paul Menard | Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Chevrolet | 22.76 | 158.172 |
| 19 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Miller Lite Ford | 22.761 | 158.165 |
| 20 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | AAA Insurance Toyota | 22.764 | 158.144 |
| 21 | 13 | Casey Mears | GEICO Chevrolet | 22.771 | 158.096 |
| 22 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | 3M Chevrolet | 22.773 | 158.082 |
| 23 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Smithfield Ford | 22.773 | 158.082 |
| 24 | 51 | Justin Allgaier | AccuDoc Solutions/FOE Chevrolet | 22.83 | 157.687 |
| 25 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Farmers Insurance Chevrolet | 22.746 | 158.27 |
| 26 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Code 3 Associates/Mobil 1 Chevrolet | 22.773 | 158.082 |
| 27 | 33 | Brian Scott(i) | ACME Chevrolet | 22.779 | 158.04 |
| 28 | 9 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Twisted Tea Ford | 22.832 | 157.673 |
| 29 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger | Scott Products Chevrolet | 22.834 | 157.66 |
| 30 | 7 | Alex Bowman | Chevrolet | 22.886 | 157.301 |
| 31 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | AdvoCare Ford | 22.912 | 157.123 |
| 32 | 38 | David Gilliland | The Pete Store Ford | 22.922 | 157.054 |
| 33 | 10 | Danica Patrick | GoDaddy Chevrolet | 22.98 | 156.658 |
| 34 | 46 | Michael Annett | Pilot Flying J Chevrolet | 22.983 | 156.638 |
| 35 | 26 | Jeb Burton # | Maxim Fantasy Sports Toyota | 22.985 | 156.624 |
| 36 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto # | Burger King Toyota | 23.114 | 155.75 |
| 37 | 35 | Cole Whitt | Ford | Owner Points | |
| 38 | 34 | Brett Moffitt # | Dockside Logistics Ford | Owner Points | |
| 39 | 98 | Josh Wise | Ford | Owner Points | |
| 40 | 23 | JJ Yeley(i) | Dr Pepper Toyota | Owner Points | |
| 41 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan(i) | Chevrolet | Owner Points | |
| 42 | 32 | Mike Bliss(i) | CorvetteParts.net Ford | Owner Points | |
| 43 | 40 | Landon Cassill(i) | CRC Brakleen Chevrolet | Owner Points |
(i) Ineligible for Driver Points in this Series,
# Denotes Rookie
Source: Timing and Scoring provided by NASCARMedia/NASCAR Statistics
