Across all three of NASCAR’s National Series, Joe Gibbs Racing has been on fire, scoring two of the last three wins in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and back-to-back wins in the NASCAR Cup Series.
John Hunter Nemechek will look to continue that streak of dominance, after scoring the pole for Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Shriners Children’s 200 at Darlington Raceway, the second of his career.
Driving the No. 20 Toyota Supra, Nemechek posted a quick time of 29.613 seconds (166.062mph) to score his first pole of the season by more than a tenth of a second over his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate.
Ryan Truex, who scored the victory in the Xfinity Series last event at Dover Motor Speedway, will start alongside Nemechek on the front row in Saturday’s event, his best starting spot since Pocono in 2018.
Kyle Larson, joining Kaulig Racing for a one-off event at Darlington Raceway, will start Saturday’s 200-mile event in third place. Sam Mayer and Cole Custer also qualified inside the top five.
Chandler Smith posted the sixth-quickest time in Friday’s session, while Sheldon Creed, Parker Retzlaff, Sammy Smith, and Austin Hill completed the top-10.
With 41 drivers entered for Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Darlington, three drivers failed to qualify for the event and will be sent packing before getting an opportunity to race.
Garrett Smithley collects his fifth DNQ of 2023 for JD Motorsports, while Chad Finchum and Dawson Cram pick up additional DNQs for MBM Motorsports and CHK Racing, respectively.
STARTING LINEUP
Qualifying Results: 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Shriners Children’s 200 at Darlington
