Dover International Speedway became the pioneer of NASCAR’s new inclement-weather procedures for Sprint Cup qualifying on Saturday. The qualifying for Sunday’s FedEx 400 was washed out, meaning the starting order is determined by the speeds in Friday’s practice session at the Monster Mile.
As such, perennial Monster-vanquisher Jimmie Johnson will start on the pole for Sunday’s race. Alongside him will be A.J. Allmendinger, who was edged out by six-thousandth of a mile-per-hour – a length of time that defies any comprehensible comparison.
Previously, the starting order would have been determined by the points standings. Under the new system, teams have more control over their own destiny, as they can alter their practice plans to account for the possibility of a rainout if the weather forecast is iffy.
“The new system definitely requires some thinking before hand and playing close attention to the weather,” Johnson said. “We elected to start in race trim yesterday. When we saw that speed and the threat of weather, at that point we switched into qualifying trim, and we worked really hard to try to outrun that lap [Allmendinger] ran. It’s a challenging routine.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. will start third, followed by Kasey Kahne and Joey Logano. Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Brad Keselowski and Kevin Harvick complete the top-10.
The "FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks" will get underway with the green flag on May 15 at 1 p.m. at the Monster Mile.
Click here for the complete starting lineup for tomorrow's race.
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