This season, Tyler Reddick and 23XI Racing have been one of the strongest teams when it comes to road courses on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule, winning earlier in the season at Circuit of The Americas.
Now, with the team’s championship hopes relying on a strong run from the Corning, California native, the two-time Xfinity Series champion has delivered, and will lead the field to green in Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400.
Posting a time of 81.214 seconds (102.839mph), Reddick was able to clinch the sixth NASCAR Cup Series pole of his career Saturday at Charlotte’s ROVAL, by being at the top of the timesheet when a late-session caution was thrown.
Christopher Bell was second-quickest in the final round of qualifying, and for the fourth time in six playoff events, will start from the front row in his No. 20. Non-playoff driver Daniel Suarez clocked in third.
Bubba Wallace, after being second in practice, posted the fourth-quickest lap in the final round of qualifying, with Kyle Busch in fifth.
AJ Allmendinger, Joey Logano, and Chase Elliott rounded out the top-eight – as the drivers who made a lap in the final round before the late caution.
That late caution came as a result of 23XI Racing team owner Denny Hamlin, who got loose under braking entering the backstretch chicane, before spinning his No. 11 Toyota Camry TRD and hopping over the curbs.
Hamlin’s spin halted the session with 54 seconds remaining, ensuring that no driver would be able to get back around to begin a lap, thus ending the session. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver would be credited with ninth, while teammate Ty Gibbs was given 10th.
Martin Truex, Jr. will start from 11th after being the quickest driver to not advance to the final round of qualifying on Saturday, missing the final round by two-hundredths of a second.
The regular-season champion was the highest-qualifying of the post-season drivers that will start outside of the top-10 in the Bank of America ROVAL 500 on Sunday. Ross Chastain (12th), William Byron (14th), Ryan Blaney (17th), Brad Keselowski (19th), and Chris Buescher (20th) all turned laps that relegated them outside the top-10.
Kyle Larson, who enters Sunday’s cut-off race at Charlotte’s ROVAL just 15 points above the cutline, will have to start at the rear of the pack, after sustaining major damage to his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet in a practice crash.
Larson will be joined by Ty Dillon at the rear of the field to start Sunday’s race, after the Spire Motorsports driver also smacked the wall at the exit of the first corner, causing significant damage to the No. 77 Chevrolet.
Qualifying Results – Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte’s ROVAL
Qualifying Results: NASCAR Cup Series Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte
