Hamlin claims Martinsville pole while chasing Larson in title standings
Kyle Larson can clinch the NASCAR Cup Series championship before the finale if his lead reaches 76 points or more after Martinsville.
Denny Hamlin claimed the pole for Martinsville Speedway's Xfinity 500 with a 19.226-second lap, reaching 98.492 miles per hour. He heads into the race trailing NASCAR Cup Series standings leader Kyle Larson by 73 points.
The qualifying result gave Hamlin his sixth pole this season and the 54th of his career. It was also his sixth pole at Martinsville, his home track. Larson can secure the title without waiting for the Nov. 8 finale at Homestead if his advantage after Martinsville is 76 points or more.
Ty Gibbs, Hamlin's teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing, secured the other front-row spot. Larson qualified third; Austin Cindric placed fourth, followed by Joey Logano in fifth. Ryan Preece converted the fastest practice time into sixth on the grid.
Alex Bowman took seventh, the best qualifying position among non-Chase drivers. William Byron will line up eighth, with Chase Elliott ninth and Josh Berry 10th.
At the back of the field, Josh Bilicki placed 36th after recording 20.004 seconds at 94.661 miles per hour, the slowest qualifying lap. A practice incident left Cody Ware unable to post a lap, putting him last in 37th. The scheduled start is shortly after 2 p.m. ET; NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will carry coverage.
