Kyle Larson Collects Darlington O’Reilly Pole

Jonathan McCoy, TobyChristie.com

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Kyle Larson is picking up right where he left off in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

After winning the series’ most recent event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Larson, piloting the No. 88 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports, drove a stellar lap to claim the pole for Saturday’s Sports Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 at Darlington Raceway.

The defending NASCAR Cup Series champion was the last of the 39 drivers to hit the racetrack in Saturday’s single-vehicle qualifying session from the 1.366-mile track in Darlington, South Carolina, and was able to dethrone his fellow Cup Series rival, Christopher Bell.

STARTING LINEUP: Sport Clips 200 at Darlington, Starting Lineup

With a lap time of 29.994 seconds (163.953mph), Larson was the only driver able to dip into the 29-second bracket in qualifying and, in turn, collected his ninth career pole in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

Christopher Bell, the quickest driver in NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series practice, making a one-off start for Joe Gibbs Racing in the No. 19 Toyota GR Supra, will roll from the outside of the front row.

Carson Kvapil and Justin Allgaier, teammates at JR Motorsports, will share the second row after qualifying third and fourth. Kvapil is driving the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro this weekend for JR Motorsports, his third car in the last four weeks.

Parker Retzlaff rounded out the top-five in qualifying, driving the No. 99 Chevrolet for Viking Motorsports. Sam Mayer, William Sawalich, Brandon Jones, Ross Chastain, and defending NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Jesse Love rounded out the top-10.

Other notables starting outside the top-10 include Austin Hill (11th), Corey Day (12th), Sheldon Creed (13th), Taylor Gray (15th), and Sammy Smith (18th). Rajah Caruth, driving the No. 32 for Jordan Anderson Racing this weekend, will start 19th.

The Sports Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 at Darlington will take place at 5:30 PM ET on The CW, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Joseph Srigley

Joseph maintains the role of Managing Editor for TobyChristie.com, while also working as an Editor for Racing America. Additionally, Joseph graduated from the University of Windsor in 2022 with a Business Administration degree, a specialization in Supply Chain Management and Data Analytics, and a minor in Mathematics.