DOVER, Del. — Thanks to a persistent mist that moved into the area and hovered in the air at Dover Int’l Speedway on Friday afternoon, Coors Light Pole Qualifying was washed out for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, handing Brad Keselowski the top starting spot for the Citizen Soldier 400.
Keselowski will start first by virtue of the rulebook, which places all 16 Chase drivers in the first eight rows by way of their standing in owners’ points.
This is the sixth time in 2016 that qualifying has been cancelled due to weather. Rain also forced qualifying to be scrapped in the spring at Dover this year, as well.
Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr., who won the opening race of the Chase playoffs in Chicago on Sept. 18, will share the front row ahead of Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano.
Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Chase Elliott and Carl Edwards are the rest of the top 10 starters.
Kurt Busch, Kyle Larson, Jamie McMurray, Austin Dillon, Tony Stewart and Chris Buescher fill out the front eight rows of the starting grid.
Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kasey Kahne and Jeff Gordon share the ninth row and are the highest-starting non-championship contenders, rolling off 17th and 18th, respectively.
The three-round knockout session was scheduled to begin at 3:40 p.m. ET, but wet weather delayed that schedule until the persistent mist forced the complete scrapping of qualifications.
Sunday’s race is the final race of three in the Round of 16 for the Chase. At the end of the 400-mile distance, four drivers will be eliminated from championship contention, with the remaining 12 advancing on to the second round.
Sprint Cup teams will have two practice sessions on Saturday, weather permitting, to dial their cars in for race trim.
Those practices roll off at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. ET, on CNBC and NBCSN, respectively.
About the Writer
Jacob Seelman is the Managing Editor of Race Chaser Online and creator of the Motorsports Madness radio show, airing at 7 p.m. Eastern every Monday on the Performance Motorsports Network.
Seelman grew up in the sport, watching his grandparents co-own the RaDiUs Motorsports NASCAR Cup Series team in the 1990s.
The 22-year-old is currently studying Broadcast Journalism at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C., and is also serving as the full-time tour announcer for the Must See Racing Sprint Car Series.
Email Jacob at: editor@racechaseronline.com
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