The NASCAR Cup Series drivers had to wait to find out for sure where they were starting on Sunday afternoon, but the field is set now for The Glen.
Denny Hamlin thought he had the pole for the Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Saturday. He just had to wait until Sunday to find out for sure.
Hamlin and his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch turned in the two fastest times in qualifying on Saturday evening in New York, but after NASCAR decided it was holding the cars for inspection until Sunday morning, they had a bit of time before it was confirmed they would start Sunday’s race from Row 1. In the end, both cars passed inspection, giving JGR the front row sweep.
The Fords of Kurt Busch and Paul Menard, which would have started 21st and 14th, respectively, were not so lucky. NASCAR announced that both cars failed inspection and would start at the rear of the field, with Kurt Busch ahead of Menard based on their season to date point totals.
Chevrolet teams have lacked some speed in 2018, to say the least, but they had enough to get around the Watkins Glen road course on Saturday. As a result, four will start in the top 10, including Chase Elliott, who will once again try to lock down his first Cup Series win from P3. AJ Allmendinger, who finished second in the XFINITY Series race on Saturday and desperately needs a win on his best track to make the playoffs, starts eighth.
The Go Bowling at The Glen is set to start right around 3:00 p.m. ET, with coverage airing on NBC.
2018 Go Bowling at The Glen starting grid for Watkins Glen International
- Denny Hamlin – No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota
- Kyle Busch – No. 18 M&M’S Crunchy Mint Toyota
- Chase Elliott – No. 9 SunEnergy1 Chevrolet
- Martin Truex Jr. – No. 78 5-hour Energy/Bass Pro Shops Toyota
- Kyle Larson – No. 42 Credit One Bank/DC Solar Chevrolet
- Joey Logano – No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford
- Aric Almirola – No. 10 Go Bowling Ford
- AJ Allmendinger – No. 47 Kroger ClickList Chevrolet
- Erik Jones – No. 20 buyatoyota.com Toyota
- Kasey Kahne – No. 95 Procore Chevrolet
- Ryan Blaney – No. 12 PPG Ford
- Michael McDowell – No. 34 K-LOVE RADIO Ford
- Jimmie Johnson – No. 48 Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet
- Jamie McMurray – No. 1 GEARWRENCH Chevrolet
- Kevin Harvick – No. 4 Busch Beer Ford
- William Byron – No. 24 Hertz Chevrolet
- Brad Keselowski – No. 2 Wabash National Ford
- Clint Bowyer – No. 14 Rush Truck Centers Ford
- Ryan Newman – No. 31 Lucas Oil Chevrolet
- Chris Buescher – No. 37 Velveeta Chevrolet
- Daniel Suarez – No. 19 STANLEY Toyota
- Alex Bowman – No. 88 Nationwide Children’s Hospital Chevrolet
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – No. 17 Ford Ford
- Austin Dillon – No. 3 Dow Chevrolet
- David Ragan – No. 38 Bad Boy Mowers Ford
- Matt Kenseth – No. 6 NESN Ford
- Parker Kligerman – No. 96 Gaunt Brothers Racing Toyota
- Matt DiBenedetto – No. 32 Zynga Poker Ford
- Bubba Wallace – No. 43 Medallion Bank/Petty’s Garage Chevrolet
- Ty Dillon – No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet
- Cole Whitt – No. 72 Chevrolet
- Ross Chastain – No. 15 Chevrolet
- Josh Bilicki – No. 51 Jacob Companies Ford
- Spencer Gallagher – No. 23 Allegiant Toyota
- Landon Cassill – No. 00 StarCom Fiber Chevrolet
- Kurt Busch – No. 41 Haas Automation/Monster Energy Ford
- Paul Menard – No. 21 Menards/Sylvania Ford