RICHMOND, Va. – For the second time this season, Hendrick Motorsports will have all five cars roll of the grid in the Sprint Cup Series.
Jeff Gordon, piloting the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet SS, will lead his teammates to the green flag in tomorrow night's race at Richmond International Speedway in 11th position. Following closely behind, making his second Sprint Cup Series start, Chase Elliott will begin Saturday’s race in 16th competing in the No. 25 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet SS.
“I feel like it was a really strong qualifying effort for us. It’s my second race, so I’m excited just to be in the show,” Elliott said. “To qualify 16th is a great starting point. I look forward to tomorrow night.”
Narrowly missing the second round of qualifying, Dale Earnhardt Jr. will line up tomorrow night in 26th in the No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet SS. Earnhardt took to Twitter post-qualifying to let fans know that his car has "great speed."
After a top-10 position in practice, Jimmie Johnson was a bit puzzled when his No. 48 Lowe’s ProServices Chevrolet SS began to slide during his qualifying run. The team took to the garage after Round 1 to make adjustments and prepare for tomorrow’s night race. Johnson will start under the lights in 37th.
Kasey Kahne also had a strong practice, finishing first. But when it came time to qualify, the No. 5 Great Clips Chevrolet SS earned a 40th-place starting position.
“I think our Great Clips Chevy was actually pretty good in practice -- race (trim) and in qualifying (trim), so we’ll see how tomorrow night goes,” Kahne said.
Joey Logano claimed Friday night's pole at Richmond International Raceway.