Taylor Gray wins first O’Reilly pole of 2026 at Phoenix

Taylor Gray claimed the pole position for the GOVX 200 at Phoenix Raceway on Friday, March 6. 

The event’s starting lineup was determined through a single-car, single-lap qualifying format. In this format, all 40 competitors vying for 38 starting spots cycled around Phoenix Raceway once to post the fastest lap amongst one another. The competitor who posted the fastest single lap was awarded the pole position.

During the qualifying session, Gray, who was the eighth-fastest competitor during Friday’s practice session, clocked in a single qualifying lap at 130.743 mph in 27.535 seconds. The result was enough for the Artesia, New Mexico, native to secure the top-starting spot over the reigning NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion, Jesse Love.

With the result, Gray achieved his fourth O’Reilly career pole position and his first since Dover Motor Speedway in July 2025. Gray’s first O’Reilly pole of 2026 was also the first of the year for both Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota. 

Gray will share the front row with Jesse Love, the latter of whom clocked in his best single-lap session at 130.695 mph in 27.545 seconds. For Saturday’s main event, Love will attempt to win at Phoenix for a second consecutive time after his first time occurred in November 2025, an event to which he also achieved his first O’Reilly championship.

Brandon Jones, Anthony Alfredo and rookie Brent Crews will start in the fop five, respectively. William Byron, who is making his first of three O’Reilly starts in the No. 88 HendrickCars.com/JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro entry, qualified in sixth place while Sammy Smith, rookie Corey Day, Jeb Burton (fastest in practice) and Kyle Sieg completed the top-10 starting grid.

With 40 competitors vying for 38 starting spots, Josh Williams and Blake Lothain were the two competitors who failed to qualify for the main event.

Phoenix – Qualifying position, Best speed, Best time:

1. Taylor Gray, 130.743 mph, 27.535 seconds
2. Jesse Love, 130.695 mph, 27.545 seconds
3. Brandon Jones, 130.525 mph, 27.581 seconds
4. Anthony Alfredo, 130.100 mph, 27.671 seconds
5. Brent Crews, 130.039 mph, 27.684 seconds
6. 6 William Byron, 129.776 mph, 27.740 seconds
7. Sammy Smith, 129.739 mph, 27.748 seconds
8. Corey Day, 129.692 mph, 27.758 seconds
9. Jeb Burton, 129.608 mph, 27.776 seconds
10. Kyle Sieg, 129.413 mph, 27.818 seconds
11. Harrison Burton, 129.324 mph, 27.837 seconds
12. Sam Mayer, 129.278 mph, 27.847 seconds
13. Austin Hill, 129.116 mph, 27.882 seconds
14. Carson Kvapil, 129.079 mph, 27.890 seconds
15. William Sawalich, 128.852 mph, 27.939 seconds
16. Sheldon Creed, 128.834 mph, 27.943 seconds
17. Justin Allgaier, 128.714 mph, 27.969 seconds
18. Ryan Sieg, 128.567 mph, 28.001 seconds
19. Nick Sanchez, 128.507 mph, 28.014 seconds
20. Brennan Poole, 128.470 mph, 28.022 seconds
21. Jeremy Clements, 128.461 mph, 28.024 seconds
22. Garrett Smithley, 128.265 mph, 28.067 seconds
23. Dean Thompson. 128.187 mph, 28.084 seconds
24. Chandler Smith, 128.173 mph, 28.087 seconds
25. Rajah Caruth, 127.982 mph, 28.129 seconds
26. Blaine Perkins, 127.687 mph, 28.194 seconds
27. Austin Green, 127.682 mph, 28.195 seconds
28. Patrick Staropoli, 126.895 mph, 28.370 seconds
29. Daniel Dye, 126.743 mph, 28.404 seconds
30. Lavar Scott, 126.484 mph, 28.462 seconds
31. Parker Retzlaff, 126.436 mph, 28.473 seconds
32. Nathan Byrd, 125.479 mph, 28.690 seconds
33. Josh Bilicki, Owner Points
34. Austin J. Hill, Owner Points
35. Joey Gase, Owner Points
36. Dawson Carm, Owner Points
37. Mason maggio, Owner Points
38. Ryan Ellis, Owner Points

The 2026 GOVX 200 at Phoenix Raceway is scheduled to occur on Saturday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m. ET on the CW Network, MRN Radio and SiriusXM.