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NASCAR at Bristol 2019 Qualifying Results: Denny Hamlin Secures Pole Position

Paul Kasabian

Denny Hamlin won the pole position for the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race in Bristol, Tennessee, on Friday thanks to a qualifying time of 14.848.

Kyle Larson finished second at 14.874 on the Bristol Speedway track, while Martin Truex Jr. took third.

Kyle Busch, who has won three times at Bristol since 2017, will start 31st.

Here's a look at the entire race order, final times and reaction with the Cup Championship Playoffs only one month away.

           

Race Order and Final Times

1. Denny Hamlin: 14.848

2. Kyle Larson: 18.474

3. Martin Truex Jr.: 14.875

4. Kurt Busch: 14.896

5. Aric Almirola: 14.901

6. Chase Elliott: 14.923

7. Matt DiBenedetto: 14.937

8. Kevin Harvick: 14.940

9. Erik Jones: 14.945

10. Alex Bowman: 14.963

11. Joey Logano: 14.976

12. Ryan Blaney: 14.981

13. Brad Keselowski: 14.997

14. Ryan Newman: 15.002

15. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: 15.028

16. David Ragan: 15.053

17. Daniel Hemric: 15.084

18. Daniel Suarez: 15.088

19. Austin Dillon: 15.116

20. Clint Bowyer: 15.129

21. William Byron: 15.166

22. Bubba Wallace: 15.188

23. Ryan Preece: 15.192

24. Ty Dillon: 15.225

25. Paul Menard: 15.243

26. Corey LaJoie: 15.273

27. Matt Tifft: 15.275

28. Michael McDowell: 15.311

29. Chris Buescher: 15.314

30. Jimmie Johnson: 15.331

31. Kyle Busch: 15.340

32. Landon Cassill: 15.366

33. BJ McLeod: 15.468

34. Quin Houff: 15.579

35. Josh Bilicki: 15.631

36. JJ Yeley: 15.732

37. Reed Sorenson: 15.733

38. Kyle Weatherman: 15.786

39. Ross Chastain: 15.840

Results via NASCAR.com.

    

Reaction

Hamlin has been on fire of late, finishing no worse than fifth in each of his last five races and winning at Pocono Raceway. 

That streak may roll to six after Hamlin won the pole.

He referenced his momentum in post-qualifying remarks, per Performance Racing Network:

The 34-time Monster Energy Cup Series winner also had a funny remark regarding the runner-up Larson:

The 38-year-old has won three times this year, also taking down the Daytona 500 and the O'Reilly Auto Parts 500. He is fourth in the Monster Energy Cup Series standings.

Elsewhere, a prominent story going into this race will be whether the Busch brothers can take down another race at Bristol.

The two have historically dominated the two Monster Energy Cup races held at Bristol every year. Kyle Busch won the Food City 400 five times from 2007-2019, including the last two races. Older brother Kurt has won that event four times, including three straight in 2002-2004.

Kyle also has the one-win edge at the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, taking it down four times compared to his older brother's three. However, Kurt won the last edition there in 2018.

Kurt is well-positioned for another victory thanks to finishing fourth in qualifying, although Kyle will start 31st.

Coming from behind to win hasn't been an insurmountable task for Busch at Bristol, as he started 18th in the 2017 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race before winning. Going from 31st to first is a far tougher task, but it's hard to bet against the Busches at Bristol.

The 266.5-mile race will begin Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET. NBCSN will carry the television broadcast.

   

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