Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville: Martin Truex Jr. takes pole
By Ted Fleming
Jeff Gordon will get a top-10 starting spot in what may be the final Cup race of his illustrious career.
With a speed of 98.206 mph (19.282 seconds), Martin Truex Jr. (No. 78 Toyota) will lead the field to the green flag for the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, just one week after he was eliminated from the Chase for the Sprint Cup. It was his 12th career pole and fifth this season.
“Mostly because it’s Martinsville – I’ve been second here a few times,” Truex said when asked if he was excited to get the pole or redemption after being eliminated from the Chase last week. “This place is just so tough and that first pit stall is just so critical to having a shot at winning here. I would love to get my first grandfather clock. And a little bit after last week, this helps a little bit. All in all, just proud of the guys for coming here with a game plan and executing.”
Joey Logano (No. 22 Ford), who was hoping to set a Martinsville record with four straight poles, led the first round with a speed of 98.323 mph and was sixth in round two at 97.714, but failed in his quest with a final lap of 98.165, just .008 seconds behind Truex.
Two drivers surprised by making the final round as AJ Allmendinger (No. 47 Chevy) will start fourth and David Ragan (No. 23 Toyota).
“Just a solid session,” said Allmendinger. “The first session was a little bit crazy with all the cautions and red flags and trying to get out. I didn’t get a really good feel of the car the first run just trying to get it in. The second run we were kind of just a little bit off. I was happy to get into the last group because I didn’t feel like the lap was good enough. The last run made the right adjustments and I thought I got everything I could out of it.”
In what could be his final Sprint Cup race ever, Jeff Gordon (No. 88 Chevy) will begin in row five with a 10th. He is the defending champion of the fall race at Martinsville.
“It’s exciting to be back,” Said Gordon. “I love this track. Obviously, I have amazing memories from this race last year. I guess there was a part of me that wasn’t sure if I wanted to come back and take away from that, but at the same time I’ve always said if there is one track that I feel like I could get back in the car and feel comfortable and competitive it’s this track. For that I’m happy that I’m here. It’s been a good day so far. I feel like the car has pretty good speed and the comfort is there. Just working on the balance and having fun.”
While all eight Chase drivers made it into the second round, three failed to move into the run for the pole. Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, and Hurt Busch will start 17th, 20th and 23rd, respectively.
Next: Here is a look at the Sprint Cup Goody’s Fast Relief 500
PIT NOTES:
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. brought out the red flag during the first round when his rear end came around and hit the wall destroying the No. 17 Ford. He will go to a backup car for the race on Sunday from the 39th spot. Austin Dillon also had an issue causing a stoppage with 9:11 remaining. He was able to get back out to make a complete run although he could not advance to the second round and will start 32nd.
Qualifying began on pit row and after cars have set their time they would return to the garage area to cool engines because of space considerations. In subsequent rounds, cars started from the garage. The first round was 20 minutes (24 advance) followed by a 10 minute second (12 advance) and a five minute run for the pole.
GOODY’S FAST RELIEF 500 STARTING LINEUP:
1 – Martin Truex Jr.
2 – Joey Logano
3 – Jimmie Johnson
4 – AJ Allmendinger
5 – Chase Elliott
6 – Tony Stewart
7 – Carl Edwards
8 – Denny Hamlin
9 – Kyle Busch
10 – Jeff Gordon
11 – Kyle Larson
12 – David Ragan
13 – Ryan Newman
14 – Jamie McMurray
15 – Ryan Blaney
16 – Aric Almirola
17 – Matt Kenseth
18 – Paul Menard
19 – Brad Keselowski
20 – Kevin Harvick
21 – Regan Smith
22 – Kasey Kahne
23 – Kurt Busch
24 – Danica Patrick
25 – Greg Biffle
26 – Casey Mears
27 – Matt DiBenedetto
28 – Clint Boyer
29 – Chris Buescher
30 – Michael McDowell
31 – Trevor Bayne
32 – Austin Dillon
33 – Landon Cassill
34 – Reed Sorenson
35 – Brian Scott
36 – Gray Gaulding
37 – Dylan Lupton
38 – Jeffrey Earnhardt
39 – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
40 – Michael Annett
Who do you think wins the race?