There is a tie at the top of the leaderboard in NASCAR Cup Series qualifying from EchoPark Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Joey Logano will be credited with securing the pole for Saturday’s Quaker State 400 Presented by Walmart, but the margin between him and his de facto teammate Josh Berry was non-existent… literally.
Both Logano and Berry made it around the 1.54-mile superspeedway in 30.979 seconds, which equates to an average speed of 178.960mph. It’s the 32nd career pole position for the three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion.
It’s the first time in 17 years, since the 2007 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway, that two drivers have tied at the top of the qualifying leaderboard. On that afternoon, Jeff Gordon was given the nod ahead of David Gilliland.
Josh Berry, who went to Victory Lane for the first time in his NASCAR Cup Series career earlier this season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, was unable to secure his first career pole, as the tie was broken by owner points.
“Well, you know, we all have the same things and Team Penske does a great job at building the same cars, it seems like,” said Logano. “All of us are in the top four there. Proud of everyone at the shop, proud of Roush-Yates Engines. This is always a test of how close you can build your cars, but how much speed you can put in them.”
Ryan Blaney, another member of the Team Penske brigade, will start third. The No. 12 Ford Mustang qualified just 0.004 seconds slower than the two drivers tied at the top of the leaderboard.
Austin Cindric and Ryan Preece rounded out the top five. Brad Keselowski was sixth, with Cole Custer seventh, Zane Smith eighth, and Alex Bowman and Chase Briscoe rounding out the top-10.
Other notables include Kyle Larson (11th), Chris Buescher (13th), Chase Elliott (15th), William Byron (18th), Tyler Reddick (23rd), Bubba Wallace (24th), Christopher Bell (28th), Kyle Busch (29th), Denny Hamlin (33rd), Ross Chastain (34th), and Shane Van Gisbergen (35th).
The Quaker State 400 at EchoPark Speedway will take place on Saturday, June 28, at 7:00 pm ET.
