Overnight rain washed away all the rubber laid down from practices and Xfinity qualifying, but it didn’t stop Edwards from taking the pole.
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The much-anticipated qualifying for Sunday’s Cheez-It 355 at the Glen had a different feel this year with teams expecting much faster speeds because the entire 2.45 mile road course was repaved since the last time NASCAR visited. Unfortunately, Mother Nature stepped in with overnight rain washing away the rubber that had been put down the previous day.
“There are a lot of nuances about this place now that have changed with the new pavement and a real hard tire,” A.J. Allmendinger said in a press release after clocking in with the fastest speed in the final practice yesterday. He timed in at 69.149 (127.551 mph).
Sprint Cup knockout qualifying also had a different look as there were only two rounds, the first lasting 25 minutes with the top dozen advancing to race for the pole. The first cars out on the track found that there wasn’t the kind of speed they ran on Friday as times were nearly two seconds slower, and with a little more than 15 minutes left, debris put the brakes on some runs for cleanup in the bus stop area.
Just before the red flag, Paul Menard had a braking issue entering the inner loop and wound up plowing into the grassy area that did some damage to his front splitter and finished 33rd.
Some teams chose to wait before hitting the track and it paid off to some degree because the early cars put down some much-needed rubber and times improved although still off from Friday.
Defending champion Joe Logano was quickest in the first round at 69.880 (126.216), the only car that broke into the 69-second range, while Allmendinger was fourth. Michael McDowell in the No. 95 Toyota advanced finishing seventh. Tony Stewart, who is trying to hang on to a top-30 points spot to make the chase, also advanced getting the last spot.
Some of the drivers that missed the cut were Jimmie Johnson (13th), Kevin Harvick (15th) and Jeff Gordon (21st). Road course whiz Boris Said could not find any speed in the No. 32 Ford and will start in the back of the field in 37th.
In the 10 minute second round, Carl Edwards ran one lap and it was the fastest at 69.689 (126.562) for the pole while Kyle Larson (69.871/126.233) will start next to him on the front row. Yesterday 24 cars cracked the 69-second mark, but today the pole time was more than a half-second off. Only seven cars in both rounds turned that trick in qualifying.
Here is the lineup for the Cheez-It 355 at the Glen:
Row 1 – Carl Edwards / Kyle Larson
Row 2 – Tony Stewart / Matt Kenseth
Row 3 – Kyle Busch / Denny Hamlin
Row 4 – Joey Logano / Ryan Newman
Row 5 – AJ Allmendinger / Jamie McMurray
Row 6 – Michael McDowell / Brad Keselowski
Row 7 – Jimmie Johnson / Martin Truex Jr.
Row 8 – Kevin Harvick / Chase Elliott
Row 9 – Kurt Busch / Austin Dillon
Row 10 – Ryan Blaney / Casey Mears
Row 11 – Jeff Gordon / Cole Whitt
Row 12 – Kasey Kahne / Greg Biffle
Row 13 – Chris Buescher / David Ragan
Row 14 – Brian Scott / Clint Boyer
Row 15 – Regan Smith / Rickey Stenhouse Jr.
Row 16 – Danica Patrick / Trevor Bayne
Row 17 – Paul Menard / Aric Almirola
Row 18 – Matt DiBenedetto / Alex Kennedy
Row 19 – Boris Said / Michael Annett
Row 20 – Josh Wise / Landon Cassill