Hamlin Dominates: Pole Position at Gateway and Leads NASCAR Playoffs

Denny Hamlin Dominates Qualifying at World Wide Technology Raceway

MADISON, Ill. – Denny Hamlin continues his perfect streak in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, securing the pole position at World Wide Technology Raceway this Saturday. This is Hamlin’s 46th pole in his career and the third of the season for the Joe Gibbs Racing star, who also led the standings in last week’s playoff opener at Darlington Raceway.

“We made some big adjustments from where we were in practice,” Hamlin said, who achieved a lap of 139.190 mph in his No. 11 Toyota. “That’s what they did so well last week for qualifying. Now we have an excellent track position and we just have to maintain it, and we’ll be in good shape.”
Denny Hamlin

Kyle Larson qualified in second place, alongside Hamlin, achieving his first top-10 finish on the 1.25-mile oval east of St. Louis.

Chase Briscoe qualified third.
Ross Chastain.
Ryan Blaney.
William Byron.
Tyler Reddick.
Christopher Bell.
Austin Cindric completed the top nine starting positions, all playoff drivers, for Sunday’s 300-mile race at Gateway.

This situation contrasts with the start of the playoffs in Darlington, where only four championship-eligible drivers finished in the top 10 in the Southern 500, a historic low for a playoff opener. Among the disappointments was Larson, whose 19th place finish at Darlington continued a five-race drought without a top-five finish.

“I think our team needs it more than anything,” said the 2021 Cup champion. “We haven’t been able to celebrate much, so we’ll definitely celebrate a front-row starting spot at Gateway. It’s been a tough and inconsistent couple of months, so even qualifying well feels really good.”
Kyle Larson

Alex Bowman, who hasn’t finished above 13th at Gateway, qualified 25th as the only playoff driver to start outside the top 20. Bowman is tied with Josh Berry (who qualified 12th) for last place in the points standings among the 16 playoff drivers.