2018 Auto Club Speedway: Starting Lineup – NASCAR Cup Series

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying results from March 16th, 2018 at Auto Club Speedway

Today, they set the grid for Auto Club Speedway.

View the full Auto Club Speedway starting lineup below.

Auto Club Menu: MENCS
TV | Prac 1 | Qual | Prac 2 | Prac 3 | Race

Round 1 – Report
Auto Club Qualifying

It’s a 15 minute session for round 1. Harvick to the the top of the board early! He’s looking to make it 4 in a row.

Several cars are having inspection issues. Jimmie Johnson, Chase Elliott and Clint Bowyer are a few that are struggling to get through the line.

Teams are “The faster the race track the more important the aerodynamics are. It’s kinda no surprise that they would be pushing the limits,” Scott Miller, NASCAR Senior VP of Competition tells Fox Sports.

5 minutes remain in round 2, Kyle Larson hits the track. He’s 2nd by a half tenth. That’s the closest anyone has been to Harvick so far this weekend.

Clint Bowyer, Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Alex Bowman and more failed to make it through the Optical Scanning Station to turn a lap. It’s possible that some of these teams might be purposely failing inspection so they start on new tires in the race, maybe.

All four Hendrick Motorsports drivers failed to make it to the track. An employee for Hendrick Motorsports stated the rear deck lid was the problem area for all 4 cars. He stated that as they made changes, they weren’t showing on their trip through the scanner.

Round 1 Results: 1. Kevin Harvick (38.147); 2. Kyle Larson (38.193); 3. Martin Truex Jr (38.390); 4. Paul Menard; 5. Erik Jones; 6. Brad Keselowski; 7. Ryan Blaney; 8. Ryan Blaney; 9. Joey Logano; 10. Austin Dillon; 11. Kurt Busch; 12. Kyle Busch;

Round 2 – Report
Auto Club Qualifying

10 minutes in round 2, McMurray is the first driver on track. Joey Logano to the top of the board early. After one round, most cars are a full tenth slower. This racing surface is old, worn out and bumpy thus it’s brutal on tires.

7 minutes to go, Kurt Busch hits the top of the time sheet. Correction, Harvick jumps Busch and sits back in P1.

Kevin Harvick wins round 1. He slows by two full tenths in his round two run. 4 cars do not turn a lap in round 2.

Round 2 Results: 1. Kevin Harvick (38.355); 2. Kyle Busch (38.411); 3. Kyle Larson (38.491); 4. Kurt Busch; 5. Ryan Blaney; 6. Joey Logano; 7. Chris Buescher; 8. Erik Jones; 9. Martin Truex Jr; 10. Austin Dillon; 11. Ryan Newman; 12. Brad Keselowski;

Round 3 – Report
Auto Club Qualifying

5 minute run for the pole. Most drivers sit on the pit lane.

2 minutes remain, 3 cars have turned a lap. Martin Truex Jr jumps to the top of the board.

30 seconds to go, no time from Harvick but he’s on track. Harvick is outside the top 5!

Martin Truex Jr will start from the pole at Auto Club Speedway!

View the full Auto Club Speedway starting lineup below.

Auto Club Speedway
Starting Lineup

Pos | Driver | Time

1. Martin Truex Jr
38.592

2. Kyle Busch
38.619

3. Kyle Larson
38.683

4. Erik Jones
38.700

5. Austin Dillon
38.770

6. Joey Logano
38.798

7. Kurt Busch
38.880

8. Ryan Blaney
38.903

9. Ryan Newman
38.951

10. Kevin Harvick
39.038

11. Brad Keselowski
39.054

12. Chris Buescher
39.058

13. Trevor Bayne
38.973

14. Paul Menard
39.004

15. Jamie McMurray
39.106

16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr
39.169

17. Ty Dillon
39.198

18. Matt DiBenedetto
39.259

19. Darrell Wallace Jr
39.377

20. Gray Gaulding
41.105

21. David Ragan

22. Michael McDowell

23. Jeffrey Earnhardt

24. Reed Sorenson

25. Denny Hamlin
No Time

26. Clint Bowyer
No Time

27. Aric Almirola
No Time

28. Alex Bowman
No Time

29. William Byron
No Time

30. Daniel Suarez
No Time

31. Chase Elliott
No Time

32. AJ Allmendinger
No TIme

33. Jimmie Johnson
No Time

34. Kasey Kahne
No Time

35. Timmy Hill
No Time

36. Ross Chastain
No Time

37. Cole Whitt
No Time

Martin Truex Jr on the pole at Auto Club Speedway
FONTANA, CA – MARCH 16: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Bass Pro Shops/5-hour ENERGY Toyota, poses with the Busch Pole Award after qualifying on the pole for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway on March 16, 2018 in Fontana, California. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
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Auto Club Speedway | NASCAR

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