With back-to-back wins and only one finish worse than second since 2012, Kyle Busch was far from a shocker to see atop the qualifying cards Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Ripping around the 2.5-mile track in 48.051 seconds (187.301 mph), Busch beat Kevin Harvick by a quarter-second to take pole for the second straight time at Indy, fourth of 2017 and 23rd of his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.
Can he become the first to win the Brickyard 400 three straight times?
“I certainly like to think so,” Busch said. “I’m fortunate to be in a fast racecar here in Indy. It’s been a lot of fun these last couple years.”
Harvick, who won the race in 2003 and is a usual contender here, starts second after a mistake in Turn 1 in the final round that may have cost him.
“I got a little sideways in Turn 1, a little over-cautious in Turn 2,” he said. “Our goal was to run the same speed in every round and I think that was the right approach.”
Jamie McMurray rolls off third, his best qualifying effort in his 15th Indy race. Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin completed the top five.
Martin Truex Jr. ended sixth with Joey Logano, Ryan Newman, Erik Jones and Ryan Blaney the top 10.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. missed the final round by one position and will start 13th in his final Brickyard 400 Sunday.
That's #CoorsLightPole No. 4 on the season for @KyleBusch! pic.twitter.com/J8ikoUqkMl
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 22, 2017
We had a fast car today. Hate we missed it in quals… go again tomorrow #Brickyard400
— Kasey Kahne (@kaseykahne) July 22, 2017
#NASCAR | @KevinHarvick starts on front row for Sunday's Brickyard 400 @IMS. @joeylogano 7th @blaney 10th @keselowski 11th @KurtBusch 12th pic.twitter.com/wni0wwLUgA
— Ford Performance (@FordPerformance) July 22, 2017
So much #Appreci88ion, we can barely find @DaleJr. #NW88JR pic.twitter.com/ogvf4CI8Ya
— Nationwide Sports (@NW_Sports) July 22, 2017
About the author
Growing up in Easton, Pa., Zach Catanzareti has grown his auto racing interest from fandom to professional. Joining Frontstretch in 2015, Zach enjoys nothing more than being at the track, having covered his first half-season of 18 races in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2017. With experience behind the wheel, behind the camera and in the media center, he thrives on being an all-around reporter.
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