Qualifying Effort Puts Dillon In Strong Position For Sunday

Austin Dillon will roll off ninth in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. He enters the race tied with Joey Logano for the final transfer spot to the next round of the Chase. Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Perhaps more than any other driver in Sunday’s Hellman’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, Austin Dillon will have to walk a tightrope.

Tied for eighth with Joey Logano in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings, Dillon needs a strong finish to advance to the Round of 8, but he can’t afford a reckless move that could sacrifice his position in the points.

Dillon got off to a good start on Saturday, advancing to the second round of knockout qualifying and earning the ninth starting position for Sunday’s elimination race in the Round of 12.

“I think it was a good run,” Dillon said after time trials. “We can do it from there. We had good speed, and hopefully it shows tomorrow in the race.”

Dillon, however, didn’t spend much time in the draft during Friday’s practice sessions. How his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet will perform in race trim remains to be seen.

“I really didn’t draft much,” he said. “It’s kind of going to be one of those things where we get out there and just feel it and see how it goes.”

But starting up front should help, even if qualifying is perhaps less important at superspeedways than it is at open-motor tracks.

“I think it does mean something, because pit selection is big, and also starting up front, so if there’s a wreck early, you’re kind of in front of it. I like being up front.”

That’s an appropriate mind-set, because Dillon needs to be near the front at the end of Sunday’s race as well as at the start. But Dillon has been there before. The grandson of team owner Richard Childress started second and finished third at Talladega in May.

Roush Fenway Drivers Invade Top 12 In Qualifying

Collectively, Roush Fenway Racing turned in an admirable performance during Saturday’s time trials, putting all three of its full-time Fords in the top 11 on the grid.

Greg Biffle led the RFR qualifying effort with a fifth-place effort, followed closely by teammate Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. in the No. 17 Fusion. Trevor Bayne was 11th in the No. 6 Ford.

“Our speedway qualifying has been really good the last couple of years,” Stenhouse said. “It’s really cool to see all of the hard work that the guys put in at the shop and Doug (Yates) with the engines pay off.

“A lot of effort goes into trying to qualify well here, because anytime you can qualify well here, it generally means you have a better drafting race car. I’m happy with our top-10 start. We’ll get a good pit stall selection and hopefully we’ll be able to keep our track position all day.”

Two of Stenhouse’s six career top-five finishes have come at restrictor-plate tracks. Bayne picked up his only NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory in the 2011 Daytona 500.

Short Strokes

The Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas of Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth all were pulled from the grid before qualifying when NASCAR inspectors noticed irregularities with the rear deck lid. The issues were corrected, and Kenseth subsequently qualified third, Hamlin eighth and Busch 14th. … Reed Sorenson made the final 12 in qualifying with the fastest lap of the day in his No. 55 Jay Robinson-owned Toyota, covering the 2.66-mile distance in 49.324 seconds (194.145 mph). But on his money lap in the final round, Sorenson slowed to 188.300 mph, qualifying 12th with a speed that would have placed him 35th in the first round. … Ryan Reed will make his first Sprint Cup start after qualifying a creditable 18th in the No. 99 Roush Fenway Ford.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Talladega Superspeedway – Talladega, AL
Hellmann’s 500 – October 23, 2016

Sunday’s Starting Lineup

1. (78) Martin Truex,Jr. (C), Toyota, 193.423 mph.
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3. (20) Matt Kenseth (C), Toyota, 193.189 mph.
4. (24) Chase Elliott # (C), Chevrolet, 193.166 mph.
5. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford, 193.123 mph.
6. (17) Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Ford, 192.975 mph.
7. (41) Kurt Busch (C), Chevrolet, 192.746 mph.
8. (11) Denny Hamlin (C), Toyota, 192.610 mph.
9. (3) Austin Dillon (C), Chevrolet, 192.177 mph.
10. (27) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 192.123 mph.
11. (6) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 192.039 mph.
12. (55) Reed Sorenson, Toyota, 188.300 mph.
13. (19) Carl Edwards (C), Toyota, 192.131 mph.
14. (18) Kyle Busch (C), Toyota, 192.039 mph.
15. (21) Ryan Blaney #, Ford, 192.039 mph.
16. (22) Joey Logano (C), Ford, 192.012 mph.
17. (48) Jimmie Johnson (C), Chevrolet, 191.704 mph.
18. (99) Ryan Reed(i), Ford, 191.700 mph.
19. (88) Alex Bowman(i), Chevrolet, 191.627 mph.
20. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 191.466 mph.
21. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 190.962 mph.
22. (4) Kevin Harvick (C), Chevrolet, 190.768 mph.
23. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 190.393 mph.
24. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 190.162 mph.
25. (44) Brian Scott #, Ford, 190.026 mph.
26. (43) Aric Almirola, Ford, 190.004 mph.
27. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 189.891 mph.
28. (13) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 189.755 mph.
29. (7) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 189.688 mph.
30. (10) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 189.643 mph.
31. (38) Landon Cassill, Ford, 189.612 mph.
32. (47) A.J. Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 189.515 mph.
33. (34) Chris Buescher #, Ford, 189.242 mph.
34. (95) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 188.775 mph.
35. (93) Matt DiBenedetto, Toyota, 188.419 mph.
36. (15) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 188.086 mph.
37. (46) Michael Annett, Chevrolet, 187.993 mph.
38. (32) Bobby Labonte, Ford, 187.368 mph.
39. (83) Jeffrey Earnhardt #, Toyota, 186.765 mph.
40. (23) David Ragan, Toyota, 186.358 mph.