It looked as though Riley Herbst would upset road course-savvy veterans for the NASCAR Xfinity Series pole at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, but AJ Allmendinger had other plans as he snagged the pole with seconds remaining in qualifying for the Pennzoil 150.
Allmendinger locked up the top spot in his No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet with a speed of 97.834 mph.
The pole is Allmendinger’s third of the season and sixth of his career, as well as his first on a road course this season.
Ty Gibbs catapulted with a few seconds remaining to join Allmendinger on the front row. Herbst will start from the third position, with NASCAR Cup Series driver Alex Bowman alongside him in fourth.
Sam Mayer will launch from fifth, while Chase Briscoe will start sixth at his home track.
A pair of JR Motorsports drivers set the fourth row, with Noah Gragson qualifying in seventh and Josh Berry in eighth.
Austin Hill and Justin Allgaier rounded out the top 10.
The No. 13 of Brad Perez, the No. 66 of JJ Yeley, the No. 78 of Josh Williams and the No. 90 of Mason Filippi failed to qualify for the race. Parker Kilgerman suffered a power steering issue on his No. 35 Chevrolet and was unable to make a qualifying lap. However, he is locked into the race on owner points.
Xfinity Starting Lineup for Indianapolis Road Course
The Pennzoil 150 is set to air Saturday, July 30 at 3:30 p.m. ET on the USA Network.
Entering his fifth year with Frontstretch, Luken Glover is the author of The Underdog House, shedding light on the motivation and performance of NASCAR's dark horse teams as they strive to fight to the top. Additionally, Glover reports for the site at various events, and he contributes in the video editing department.
A 2023 graduate of the University of the Cumberlands, Glover is a middle school math and PE teacher, as well as a basketball coach. He is passionate about serving in his church, playing/coaching a wide variety of sports, and researching motorsports history.