Kyle Busch turns fastest lap at Pocono for second straight pole

LONG POND, Pa. — Kyle Busch walked off a podium and noted he was glad the press conference microphones were affixed to stands. No chance of a mic drop. Busch poked fun at his terse response-and-drop to a question a couple of weeks ago that was scrutinized around NASCAR. Busch could have made the boastful move with another outstanding qualifying effort.

With his crew chief suspended, Busch turned a lap of 179.151 mph on Friday to win the pole at Pocono Raceway.

Busch has suddenly mastered the art of starting first. He won the pole last week at Dover International Speedway in a race that became derailed when a tire came off the No. 18 Toyota during a pit stop.

That’s a big no-no in NASCAR and the Joe Gibbs Racing team was slapped with some big penalties. Busch crew chief Adam Stevens, tire carrier Kenny Barber and tire changer Jake Seminara were suspended four races for the infraction, and their punishments start at Pocono. Race engineer Ben Beshore is the interim crew chief. “I think it just shows Adam Stevens is able to prepare his team, prepare his cars,” Busch said. “You’ve got to have good personnel and Adam chooses all that. Joe gives us all the right tools we need in order to be successful.”

This might be a theme at Pocono — big brother Kurt Busch won this race last year with his crew chief serving a one-race suspension.

Martin Truex Jr. starts second and Matt Kenseth third for a 1-2-3 start for Toyota. Ryan Blaney was fourth, followed by Kurt Busch and Brad Keselowski, all Ford drivers.

Darrell Wallace Jr. starts 16th in the No. 43 Ford and will become the first black driver in a Cup race since 2006. Wallace is filling in for injured driver Aric Almirola at Richard Petty Motorsports. Petty, who won 200 NASCAR races, stood by Wallace and offered encouragement.