Truex snares pole for Darlington Throwback Cup Series main event

Martin Truex Jr. topped qualifying Saturday morning with a lap of 169.409 mph at Darlington Raceway in his Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19 Toyota and will lead the Cup Series field to green for Sunday’s Goodyear 400.  It’s his first Busch Light Pole Award at Darlington, his first this season and the 21st of his career.

Truex described the pole-winning run as a team effort.

“It’s, I think, just a matter of everything coming together with your team,” he said. “Our cars are fast, we’re executing and we’re making good decisions. Things are coming together lately and it feels like momentum but it’s really just things coming together. It takes a lot to be running good in this series at this level consistently.”

Bubba Wallace will join Truex on the front row in his 23XI Racing Toyota after posting a 169.339 mph lap while Chevrolet drivers Ricky Stenhouse Jr., William Byron and Ross Chastain completed the top five fastest drivers in qualifying followed by Daniel Suárez, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Tyler Reddick and Brad Keselowski. Keselowski was the lone Ford in the top 10.

Starting Lineup:

Cup-Series-Darlington-Starting-Lineup12313_STARTROW

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Angie Campbell
Angie Campbell
A native of Charlotte, NC, Angela (Angie) was first introduced to racing by her father. An avid fan of NASCAR, she found a way to combine her love of racing with her passion for writing. Angie is also an award-winning member of the National Motorsports Press Association. Follow her on Twitter @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

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