MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin claimed the 49th Busch Light Pole Award of his NASCAR Cup Series career Saturday afternoon, claiming the number one starting spot for Sunday’s Cook Out 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Martinsville Speedway, a track where he has long established himself as one of the best.
Hamlin’s JGR No. 11 Toyota turned a lap of 98.241 mph around the half-mile Martinsville oval — 0.056 seconds faster than another one of the track’s recent best performers: William Byron in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. They will lead the field to green on Sunday, with Hamlin racing for his second victory of the season and Byron hoping to put a Chevrolet in Victory Lane for the first time in 2026.
Advertisement
RELATED: Starting lineup | At-track photos: Martinsville
“I knew it was possible simply from where my car was in practice,” said Hamlin, who now has five career Martinsville pole awards. “Any time you’ve got fast lap speed in practice here that’s in the top 12, you’re close enough there that qualifying trim doesn’t change your car that much.
“You’ve got enough speed to where you nail it and do a good enough job as a driver you’ve got a chance at the pole, so I knew it was very possible, but truthfully, I approached the lap to get in the top eight. I think I’d go faster if I went and did it again right now, but I think I’ll go on and stand on my time,” he added with a smile.
Hamlin now ties Bobby Issac for the 10th most pole awards in Cup Series history, a mark that genuinely seemed to surprise Hamlin, who answered questions about it with an immediate and competitive response: “Who has the next most on the list?” Ryan Newman is next with 51.
Advertisement
“I never really go into any weekend thinking about qualifying on pole, it’s really kind of a sidebar to how my Saturday goes,” Hamlin said. “It’s pretty awesome, and really, with age, the hardest part is actually still having a fast time. It’s one thing to be able to manage races and use your experience to your advantage. But usually, the first thing to go is your raw speed, and we’re still knocking off poles, which is really good.”
Wood Brothers Racing’s Josh Berry was third quickest in the No. 21 Ford and will share the second row with Hamlin’s JGR teammate Ty Gibbs in the No. 54 Toyota.
Trackhouse Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen turned an impressive oval qualifying effort with a fifth-place showing in the No. 97 Chevrolet.
Austin Cindric, Carson Hocevar, championship leader Tyler Reddick, Joey Logano and Chase Elliott round out the top-10 in the starting grid.
Advertisement
Wallace leads field during practice
Bubba Wallace put down the fastest lap in Saturday’s 50-minute practice session. It took a 96.195 mph circuit around the Virginia short track to top the speed charts. A pair of Toyota drivers in Ty Gibbs (96.117 mph) and Denny Hamlin (95.966 mph) joined Wallace in the top three while Chase Elliott (95.937 mph) and Todd Gilliland (95.932 mph) rounded out the top five.
Elliott was best in 10 consecutive-lap average, followed by Wallace, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson and Josh Berry.
MORE: Practice results
Reddick struggled for pace in practice. He was 21st in his fastest single-lap speed and 31st on 10 consecutive-lap average.
Contributing: Staff Report
