Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service
JOLIET, Ill. – When rain forced cancellation of Friday's knockout qualifying session for Sunday’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway (1:30 p.m. on NBCSN), Kyle Busch was the primary beneficiary.
As the top seed in Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, and with his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota seeded first in the corresponding owners’ standings, Busch will start on the pole at the 1.5-mile track for the first of the 10 playoff races that will decide the 2016 champion.
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Busch also will get first pick of pit stalls, with the corresponding advantage of choosing the stall nearest the exit from pit road.
Brad Keselowski, who like Busch recorded a series-best four victories during the 26-race NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular season, will start on the outside of the front row, as the 16 Chase drivers take the green flag from the top 16 positions, according to respective seeding.
A three-time winner thanks to last Saturday’s victory at Richmond, Denny Hamlin will start third beside Kevin Harvick, the highest-seeded driver with two wins.
Carl Edwards and Martin Truex Jr. will take the green from fifth and sixth, respectively, with Matt Kenseth in seventh, as Toyota drivers occupy five of the top seven starting positions. Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Larson, Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Chris Buescher, Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon and Jamie McMurray are eighth through 16th on the grid, respectively.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400
Chicagoland Speedway
Joliet, Ill.
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Friday, Sept. 16
1. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota
2. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford
3. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota
4. (4) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet
5. (19) Carl Edwards, Toyota
6. (78) Martin Truex Jr, Toyota
7. (20) Matt Kenseth, Toyota
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8. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet
9. (22) Joey Logano, Ford
10. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
11. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet
12. (41) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet
13. (34) Chris Buescher #, Ford
14. (24) Chase Elliott #, Chevrolet
15. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet
16. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet
17. (88) Alex Bowman(i), Chevrolet
18. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet
19. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet
20. (6) Trevor Bayne, Ford
21. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet
22. (21) * Ryan Blaney #, Ford
23. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Ford
24. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford
25. (10) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet
26. (27) Paul Menard, Chevrolet
27. (43) Aric Almirola, Ford
28. (15) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet
29. (13) Casey Mears, Chevrolet
30. (95) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet
31. (38) Landon Cassill, Ford
32. (23) David Ragan, Toyota
33. (7) Regan Smith, Chevrolet
34. (44) Brian Scott #, Ford
35. (83) Matt DiBenedetto, Toyota,
36. (98) * Cole Whitt, Chevrolet
37. (46) Michael Annett, Chevrolet
38. (32) Joey Gase(i), Ford
39. (55) * Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet
40. (30) * Josh Wise, Chevrolet
