Looking for his first win since the May 24 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Carl Edwards topped the field in their first laps with the new high-drag package at Michigan.
Edwards put down a 36.726-second lap to top Friday’s opening practice session for the Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway. The Columbia, Missouri, native took the top spot on his final run of the session, ending the lap with an average speed of 196.046 mph around the 2-mile circuit.
Kevin Harvick ended the session in second after laying down a 36.950-second circuit around the Brooklyn, Michigan, track. Harvick, 39, is looking for his first win since claiming back-to-back races at Las Vegas and Phoenix in March.
Austin Dillon (36.984) ended the session in third with an average speed of 194.679 mph on his quickest lap. Tony Stewart (36.997) and Denny Hamlin (37.088) rounded out the top five, with Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch, David Ragan, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth finishing out the top 10.
Matt Crafton participated in the practice session in the No. 43 Ford typically driven by Aric Almirola. Almirola, who currently sits 16th in series points, sat the session out while suffering from illness. Crafton, who made his first-career NSCS start in the season-opening Daytona 500, ended the session in 29th.
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will return to Michigan International Speedway for Coors Light Pole Qualifying at 5:05 p.m. ET.
2015 PURE MICHIGAN 400 FIRST PRACTICE SPEEDS
| Position | Car No. | Driver | Manu. | Sponsor | Avg. Speed | Time | Diff. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Carl Edwards | Toyota | Arris | 196.046 | 36.726 | Leader |
| 2 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet | Jimmy John's/ Budweiser | 194.858 | 36.95 | 0.224 |
| 3 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Chevrolet | Dow | 194.679 | 36.984 | 0.258 |
| 4 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | Mobil 1 / Bass Pro Shops | 194.61 | 36.997 | 0.271 |
| 5 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | FedEx Freight | 194.133 | 37.088 | 0.362 |
| 6 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Chevrolet | Farmers Insurance | 193.903 | 37.132 | 0.406 |
| 7 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | Interstate Batteries | 193.856 | 37.141 | 0.415 |
| 8 | 55 | David Ragan | Toyota | Aaron's Dream Machine Online Version | 193.798 | 37.152 | 0.426 |
| 9 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr | Chevrolet | Microsoft | 193.569 | 37.196 | 0.47 |
| 10 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Toyota | Dollar General | 193.543 | 37.201 | 0.475 |
| 11 | 22 | Joey Logano | Ford | Shell Pennzoil | 193.299 | 37.248 | 0.522 |
| 12 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Chevrolet | Haas Automation | 193.04 | 37.298 | 0.572 |
| 13 | 9 | Sam Hornish Jr | Ford | Transportation Impact | 192.854 | 37.334 | 0.608 |
| 14 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Ford | Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center | 192.802 | 37.344 | 0.618 |
| 15 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | Pepsi | 192.792 | 37.346 | 0.62 |
| 16 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | LOWES | 192.74 | 37.356 | 0.63 |
| 17 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger | Chevrolet | Kroger/Scott'Products | 192.627 | 37.378 | 0.652 |
| 18 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr | Chevrolet | Furniture Row/Visser Precision | 192.38 | 37.426 | 0.7 |
| 19 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chevrolet | Cessna/McDonald's | 192.261 | 37.449 | 0.723 |
| 20 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Chevrolet | Caterpillar | 192.246 | 37.452 | 0.726 |
| 21 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Ford | Advocare Ford Fusion | 192.082 | 37.484 | 0.758 |
| 22 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | Miller Lite | 191.923 | 37.515 | 0.789 |
| 23 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Ford | Ortho Ford Fusion | 191.816 | 37.536 | 0.81 |
| 24 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Chevrolet | GoDaddy | 191.281 | 37.641 | 0.915 |
| 25 | 27 | Paul Menard | Chevrolet | Richmond/Menards | 191.26 | 37.645 | 0.919 |
| 26 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chevrolet | Target | 191.235 | 37.65 | 0.924 |
| 27 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Toyota | 5-Hour Energy | 191.083 | 37.68 | 0.954 |
| 28 | 13 | Casey Mears | Chevrolet | No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet SS | 190.85 | 37.726 | 1 |
| 29 | 43 | Matt Crafton | Ford | 190.759 | 37.744 | 1.018 | |
| 30 | 51 | Justin Allgaier | Chevrolet | Brandt | 190.597 | 37.776 | 1.05 |
| 31 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr | Ford | Zest Ford Fusion | 189.389 | 38.017 | 1.291 |
| 32 | 46 | Michael Annett | Chevrolet | Pilot Flying J | 188.808 | 38.134 | 1.408 |
| 33 | 7 | Alex Bowman | Chevrolet | Advanced Patient Care | 188.073 | 38.283 | 1.557 |
| 34 | 38 | David Gilliland | Ford | MDS Transportation | 187.779 | 38.343 | 1.617 |
| 35 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto | Toyota | Cosmo Motors | 187.744 | 38.35 | 1.624 |
| 36 | 35 | Cole Whitt | Ford | Dockside Logistics LLC | 187.71 | 38.357 | 1.631 |
| 37 | 26 | Jeb Burton | Toyota | Maxim/Estes | 187.622 | 38.375 | 1.649 |
| 38 | 34 | Brett Moffitt | Ford | CSX Play It Safe | 187.383 | 38.424 | 1.698 |
| 39 | 40 | Landon Cassill | Chevrolet | Snap Fitness | 187.271 | 38.447 | 1.721 |
| 40 | 32 | Josh Wise | Ford | SKUTTLE TIGHT | 184.388 | 39.048 | 2.322 |
| 41 | 33 | Travis Kvapil | Chevrolet | TBA | 183.505 | 39.236 | 2.51 |
| 42 | 98 | Timmy Hill | Ford | Premium Motorsports | 180.474 | 39.895 | 3.169 |
| 43 | 62 | Reed Sorenson | Chevrolet | Premium Motorsports | 180.225 | 39.95 | 3.224 |
| 44 | 23 | J.J. Yeley | Toyota | Dr. Pepper | 178.138 | 40.418 | 3.692 |
Aaron Bearden is a Frontstretch alumnus who’s come back home as the site’s Short Track Editor. When he isn’t working with our grassroots writers, he can be found talking about racing on his Morning Warmup newsletter, pestering his wife/dog or convincing himself the Indiana Pacers can win an NBA title.
Practice? ….we’re talking about PRACRICE?!? Funny that Carl is on top after his chilly mid practice interview, where he gave the drag & rules package …em …other than glowing reviews. Interesting to hear such inauthentic pseudo-political double-speak rhetoric coming from a stock car driver! Pretty sure what he wanted to say was more like what KyBu remarked after winning the first COT race, hehehe! My, how things have changed!
*PRACTICE (no delete button, smh?)