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A.J. Allmendinger was the first driver on track to start the twenty five minute first round. He ran a good lap to start the session, but he would have to contend with a couple more rounds to decide the pole. Early on in the round, Kevin Harvick jumped to the top of the board in the round. Harvick looked to remain steady at the top, but Brian Vickers, who was fastest in practice earlier in the day, jumped to the top of the board with ease. The rest of the field began to head on track, but Vickers looked to be the fastest man in Pennsylvania. The minutes began to click away in the round and the action was beginning to heat up. With about nine minutes left, Dave Blaney had troubles on track. Blaney broke loose in turn 1 and his car began to slide up the track. He chased his car up the track and he spun as he looked to save it. He was able to avoid the wall and he came to a stop just on the exit of turn 1. He was able to drive away without damage. Blaney wouldn't be able to turn a lap, but he would make the show because only forty three drivers attempted to qualify. The spin brought the round to a stop for the moment, but the scene was quickly cleaned up and the round went back green. Cars returned to the speedway as the minutes started to click by once again. With about four minutes left, the battle for the twenty fourth and final transfer spot started to heat up. Paul Menard, Martin Truex Jr., Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne, and others were all battling for the final spot. A few drivers began to jump into the second round as a few drivers dropped out. With about a minute left, Kyle Larson was in the final transfer spot. The red and black flag waved and Larson remained the final driver to move on. Brian Vickers remained the fastest after the round with a very quick time. Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Danica Patrick, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kyle Busch, and others moved on while Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, and others barely missed the second round. The rather slow twenty five minute first round would move into a rather quick ten minute second round.
Joey Logano was the first driver on track to start the ten minute second round. He ran a good lap and he looked to be in the top twelve early on in the ten minutes. Early on in the round, Brad Keselowski jumped to the top of the board with a track record speed for the session. Keselowski remained on top as the minutes began to click away. Kurt Busch eventually bested his time and he moved Keselowski to second position in the round. Minutes clicked down and with about three left, the battle for the twelfth and final transfer spot began to heat up. Austin Dillon, Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, Kyle Larson, Ryan Newman, and others were battling for the spot. The final few minutes began to click away on the round and drivers were still heading on track. The red and black flag waved and Austin Dillon remained in the twelfth and final transfer spot and he was able to move on in the session. Kurt Busch remained the fastest going towards the third round. Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers, Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Joey Logano, Carl Edwards, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. also moved on while Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, Kyle Larson, and others missed the final round. A quick five minute final round would decide the polesitter at Pocono for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
Joey Logano was the first driver on track for the five minute third round. Logano ran a good lap to start the round, but it seemed like the battle for the pole would happen without him. Early on, Kevin Harvick jumped to the top of the board over the few drivers who had went out. The minutes clicked by fast through the final round and soon, only a minute and a half remained with Harvick still the man to beat. With a minute left, though, that changed. Brad Keselowski jumped to the top of the board with ease and looked to be the guy on pole with a minute left, but that changed in a matter of seconds. Denny Hamlin quickly passed the line within seconds of Keselowski and he took the provisional pole with ease. Hamlin was at the top, but he still had to outlast a few drivers. Kurt Busch looked fast on his lap, but he fell two one thousandths of a second short of taking the provisional pole. The red and black flag waved and a few drivers were still on fast laps. Carl Edwards crossed the line and he finished his run without taking the pole. This left Denny Hamlin on top and with his second pole of the season in the Cup Series. It was Hamlin's nineteenth career pole in NASCAR and the pole will continue to help him as he looks to return to prominence in NASCAR's highest series.
Denny Hamlin's last year and a half in NASCAR's highest series has been quite a struggle. Hamlin broke a bone in his back at Auto Club last year and it took him some time to recover. After returning from the injury, he struggled at almost every track. He won at Homestead to end 2013, but he needed something else to boost his career again after his struggles. He really gained that boost in Daytona this year. He won the Sprint Unlimited and his Duel race along with coming home second in the 500. It looked like he was back, but he was hit with another road block. At Auto Club, he suffered an eye injury and was forced to miss the event. This left Hamlin again searching for answers to his recent problems. He found those answers at Talladega almost a month later. He went out in the race and he was able to take the win and, practically, guarantee himself a Chase spot for this year. Flash forward to qualifying at Pocono on Friday. Hamlin went out and took the pole at a track where he has won four previous times. Hamlin will be good on Sunday and he will definitely be a factor to take his second win of the season and punch his ticket for the Chase. Kurt Busch ran fast for the entire session and he took a second place starting spot behind Hamlin. Brad Keselowski continued his success in knockout qualifying with a third place starting spot. Kevin Harvick continued to run fast for his new team with a fourth place qualifying run. Jeff Gordon has been fast recently and he continued using that speed with a fifth place starting spot. One key thing to watch on Sunday is some heavy favorites in the race at the back of the field on the start. Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, and Matt Kenseth all start outside the top twenty and have to make their way to the front. It will be a good show tomorrow and contenders will have to battle for the win through four hundred miles of triangular racing. Will Jimmie Johnson repeat in the summer at Pocono, will Kasey Kahne go back-to-back at Pocono, or will another driver head to victory lane at “The Tricky Triangle”? We will have to wait only one night before we find out these answers and a whole lot more.
(More Stats Down Below!)
Top 5 Qualifiers (With Times):
1st: Denny Hamlin 49.610 (181.415 mph)
2nd: Kurt Busch 49.612 (181.408 mph)
3rd: Brad Keselowski 49.637 (181.316 mph)
4th: Kevin Harvick 49.770 (180.832 mph)
5th: Jeff Gordon 49.858 (180.513 mph)
Notables Not in Top 5 (With Times):
6th: Kyle Busch 49.873 (180.458 mph)
7th: Joey Logano 50.048 (179.827 mph)
8th: Dale Earnhardt Jr. 50.121 (179.565 mph)
12th: Tony Stewart 50.244 (179.126 mph)
16th: Danica Patrick 50.265 (179.051 mph)
20th: Jimmie Johnson 50.370 (178.678 mph)
26th: Matt Kenseth 50.571 (177.968 mph)
27th: Kasey Kahne 50.588 (177.908 mph)
DNQs: None
Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/sprint-cup-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-qualification.html
http://racing-reference.info/getqualify/2014-14/W
-Image:
http://ww3.hdnux.com/photos/30/36/35/6416230/3/628x471.jpg
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