Everyone will be trying to catch Martin Truex Jr., both figuratively and literally as the first round of the 2017 NASCAR Playoffs closes out at Dover.
By his own admission, qualifying hasn’t been the biggest strength for Martin Truex Jr. this year. Thank goodness for that if you’re one of the other Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers, or they’d be trying to run him down from the time the green flag drops like they will at the Apache Warrior 400 presented by Lucas Oil.
Already safely into the Round of 12 and leading the entire field of playoff drivers in points, Truex will start from the pole on Sunday afternoon at Dover International Speedway. He just so happened to win this race last year, so he’s in as comfortable a position as it’s possible to be with eight races left to decide the championship.
Others are feeling the urgency, including Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who sits firmly on the bubble for the Round of 12 in 12th place only by virtue of a tiebreaker. He’ll have to stay ahead of Austin Dillon, Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch and Kasey Kahne to advance, and he’s starting right in the middle of just about everyone in 15th place.
Meanwhile, Dale Earnhardt Jr. might turn his final laps in a Cup Series car at Dover on Sunday, but he’ll do it starting a very respectable seventh. Tons of fans would love for Junior to get one more victory before he calls it a career, and while Dover isn’t the first place you’d name for a chance at one last checkered flag for Earnhardt, he could certainly be in the mix.
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Here’s the complete grid and starting lineup for the Apache Warrior 400 presented by Lucas Oil, which gets underway shortly after 2:00 p.m. Eastern on NBCSN:
(a) – Already advanced to the NASCAR Playoffs Round of 12
(p) – Playoff driver still in contention
- Martin Truex Jr. (a)
- Kyle Busch (a)
- Kyle Larson (a)
- Matt Kenseth (p)
- Daniel Suarez
- Denny Hamlin (p)
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Ryan Newman (p)
- Kevin Harvick (p)
- Erik Jones
- Ryan Blaney (p)
- Chase Elliott (p)
- Kurt Busch (p)
- Aric Almirola
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (p)
- Brad Keselowski (a)
- Jimmie Johnson (p)
- Joey Logano
- Clint Bowyer
- Trevor Bayne
- Kasey Kahne (p)
- Chris Buescher
- Austin Dillon (p)
- Danica Patrick
- Paul Menard
- Jamie McMurray (p)
- A.J. Allmendinger
- David Ragan
- Ty Dillon
- Michael McDowell
- Landon Cassill
- Ross Chastain
- Cole Whitt
- Brett Moffitt
- Timmy Hill
- B.J. McLeod
- Corey LaJoie
- Jeffrey Earnhardt
- Reed Sorensen
- Matt DiBenedetto