Race Weekend Central

Drama Doesn’t Stop Kevin Harvick from Winning Kansas Pole

Kevin Harvick swept all three rounds of qualifying on Friday (May 11) to win the pole at Kansas Speedway in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Harvick was 0.150-seconds faster than second-place Ryan Blaney, who earned his second front-row Kansas start, while Harvick scored his fourth pole at the 1.5-mile track.

Kyle Busch broke up the Ford sweep of the top five in third while Aric Almirola and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top five.

The qualifying session started out with some drama as a good chunk of the field was still in the inspection line. While some drivers made it out to turn a lap, some cutting it very close, a few drivers failed to turn a lap. Clint Bowyer, Matt Kenseth, Michael McDowell, Kasey Kahne, Matt DiBenedetto, and a few others will all start at the rear of the field Saturday night.

The drama didn’t stop there. About halfway through the second round, Kyle Larson got loose on the entrance of Turn 4 resulting in his No. 42 spinning. Despite not making hard contact with the wall, the right-rear quarter sustained light damage with the tires flat spotted, meaning they will have to change the tires and start from the rear of Saturday’s field.

At the end of the second session, both Jimmie Johnson and Jamie McMurray failed to turn a lap. Both drivers nearly missed a chance to qualify as they both cut it close in the inspection line. Johnson decided not to turn a lap while McMurray’s car failed to fire up. They will start Saturday’s race in 23rd and 24th.

The KC Masterpiece 400 goes live on FOX Sports 1 Saturday (May 12) at 8 p.m. ET.

FULL QUALIFYING RESULTS

About the author

His favorite tracks on the circuit include Barber Motorsports Park, Iowa Speedway, Martinsville Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville, and Bristol Motor Speedway.

During the season, Christian also spends time as a photographer with multiple other outlets shooting Monster Energy AMA Supercross, Minor League & Major League Baseball, and NCAA Football.

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