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 this Saturday at the World Wide Technology Raceway. This is the 46th pole position of his career and the third of the season for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver, who also led the qualifying in the playoffs’ inaugural race last week at Darlington Raceway.

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

Denny Hamlin

Kyle Larson secured the second spot on the grid, alongside Hamlin, achieving his first top-ten result in qualifying at 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.

These playoff drivers occupied the top nine spots for Sunday’s 300-mile race at Gateway. This result contrasts with the start of the playoffs in Darlington, where only four championship-eligible drivers finished in the top ten in the Southern 500, a historic low for an initial playoff race. Among the disappointments, Larson, whose 19th place at Darlington extended his drought to five races 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 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 place at Gateway, qualified in 25th place, being the only playoff driver to start outside the top 20. Bowman is tied with Josh Berry (who qualified 12th) in the last position of the standings among the 16 playoff drivers.