Brad Keselowski has secured the pole position for the second consecutive week, this time for Sunday’s race at Darlington (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1). His previous pole position was at Kansas, where he finished third and currently holds the sixth spot in the points standings. Keselowski earned the pole through NASCAR’s qualifying formula, which takes into account various factors such as a driver’s finishing position from the previous race, the car owner’s finishing position, team owner points, and the driver’s fastest lap.
Kevin Harvick will start second, followed by Kyle Busch in third, Martin Truex Jr. in fourth, and William Byron in fifth. The race on Sunday will feature different horsepower and downforce rules compared to 2020, with Cup Series cars having 200 more HP and less downforce. This change is expected to result in higher straightaway speeds and more passing opportunities, possibly leading to the return of the “Darlington stripe” on cars that scrape the wall for speed.
Starting lineup
1. Brad Keselowski
2. Kevin Harvick
3. Kyle Busch
4. Martin Truex Jr.
5. William Byron
6. Chase Elliott
7. Denny Hamlin
8. Matt DiBenedetto
9. Austin Dillon
10. Tyler Reddick
11. Chris Buescher
12. Joey Logano
13. Michael McDowell
14. Kyle Larson
15. Daniel Suarez
16. Ryan Blaney
17. Kurt Busch
18. Ross Chastain
19. Alex Bowman
20. Ryan Newman
21. Christopher Bell
22. Chase Briscoe
23. Bubba Wallace
24. Cole Custer
25. Anthony Alfredo
26. Erik Jones
27. Aric Almirola
28. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
29. Ryan Preece
30. Corey LaJoie
31. Justin Haley
32. BJ McLeod
33. Cody Ware
34. JJ Yeley
35. Quin Houff
36. James Davison
37. Josh Bilicki
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