DAYTONA

“I think it’s still a little surreal,” said Bowman, who will race in his second Daytona 500.

“It’s a dream come true just to drive for Hendrick Motorsports,” Bowman said. “I never would have thought it would happen after the

path my career took.”

Denny Hamlin, the 2016 winner, qualified second in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing with a lap at 195.092. Only the top two cars locked in spots for next Sunday’s season-opening race in this round of qualifying. The remainder of the field will be set by a pair of qualifying races Thursday.

Bowman was a driver

struggling to piece together a schedule when Earnhardt was injured in 2016. Earnhardt missed the second half of that season with a concussion, and Bowman was tabbed to fill in for 10 of those races.

The 24-year-old Arizona native impressed Rick Hendrick enough that when Earnhardt said he would retire at the end of 2017, Bowman

got the job.

He made his boss proud, too, with the polewinning run. Hendrick is now tied with Harry Ranier for the record of most consecutive Daytona 500 poles at four. Jeff Gordon won the pole in 2015, Chase Elliott won it the past two seasons and now Bowman has the honor.

Bowman downplayed his role.