Pilot Ryan Preece secured the pole position for Saturday night’s race at Richmond Raceway. Preece will seek to secure a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Preece earned his second pole position in 212 Cup races, with a lap at 121.381 mph on the 0.75-mile oval aboard his No. 60 Ford.
Preece’s previous pole was at Martinsville Speedway in April 2023. He still has the possibility of reaching the playoffs through points standings, but a victory would guarantee him an automatic spot. Tyler Reddick, who could secure his playoff spot with a good result on Saturday, qualified in second place. AJ Allmendinger will start third even though his No. 16 Chevrolet failed pre-race inspection twice, resulting in the loss of his pit stall selection and the ejection of crew chief Jaron Antley. Denny Hamlin and Chase Elliott rounded out the top five in the standings. In addition to Preece, Reddick, and Allmendinger, six other winless drivers qualified in the top 15: Brad Keselowski (sixth), Alex Bowman (ninth), Michael McDowell (tenth), Austin Dillon (eleventh), Chris Buescher (twelfth), and Carson Hocevar (fifteenth). Ty Gibbs (22nd) and Kyle Busch (28th) will have a more difficult path to the front. Joey Logano, three-time Cup champion and two-time Richmond winner, will start last on the 38-car grid after failing to complete a lap in qualifying. Logano hit the wall in Turn 4 during practice due to a problem with the front right tire of his No. 22 Ford. The starting position is crucial in Richmond, where there are often long green flag runs, making it easy to lose a lap. Last August’s race had only three caution flags, tying the fewest on a short track since the Next Gen car debuted in 2022.What a great car!
Ryan Preece
