After a powerful start to the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series campaign at Daytona International Speedway, Team Penske returned to the top of the speed charts for the season’s second event at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Ryan Blaney, the 2023 champion of the NASCAR Cup Series, was able to set the quickest time during the second round of qualifying to secure the pole for Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400.
Blaney, piloting the No. 12 BodyArmor Zero Sugar Ford Mustang Dark Horse, posted a time of 30.908 seconds (179.371mph) to sit atop the speed charts in the second round, narrowly beating his Team Penske teammate Austin Cindric.
It’s the 11th NASCAR Cup Series pole position for the 31-year-old driver, and his first at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In the now five events under this configuration that have hosted qualifying, Blaney has not started worse than sixth.
RELATED: Starting Lineup – Ambetter Health 400
For the second straight weekend, Austin Cindric came up just short of the pole position in NASCAR Cup Series qualifying, and will start on the front row alongside his Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney come Sunday.
Josh Berry, in his second points-paying NASCAR Cup Series event for Wood Brothers Racing, posted a solid third-place qualifying result. The organization has a very strong technical alliance with Team Penske.
In a little bit of a shock, Joey Logano, who laid down the fastest time in the opening round of qualifying, only posted a lap good enough for a fourth-place starting spot in Sunday’s event.
Todd Gilliland, piloting the same Front Row Motorsports entry that secured five NASCAR Cup Series poles last season, rounded out the top five.
Each of the drivers inside the top-five pilot an entry either fielded by Team Penske, or fielded by an organization with a technical alliance with the championship-winning organization.
In sixth place was Kyle Busch, the only Chevrolet driver to advance to the final round of qualifying for Sunday’s 400-mile contest. Zane Smith was seventh, with fellow Ford Performance drivers Chris Buescher, Brad Keselowski, and Noah Gragson completing the top-10.
Bubba Wallace was the highest-qualifying Toyota Camry XSE, putting down the 14th-quickest lap in qualifying on Saturday.
William Byron, the winner of last weekend’s DAYTONA 500, will roll from 17th, sandwiched in the middle of a pair of Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kyle Larson (16th) and Chase Elliott (18th).
Joe Gibbs Racing, one of NASCAR’s top organizations, had a dismal showing in qualifying on Saturday, with the best driver in the organization being Chase Briscoe. who will roll from 25th. Christopher Bell, Ty Gibbs, and Denny Hamlin will all start worse than 32nd.
The Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway will take place on Sunday, February 23 at 3:00 PM ET on FOX, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
