Busch bumps way to pole at Pocono
Track conditions at Turn 2 anger, frustrate drivers
LONG POND, Pa. — NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying can be fraught with twists, turns and unexpected bumps in the road.
Friday’s qualifying session at Pocono Raceway, which saw Kurt Busch capture the pole for Sunday’s Axalta ‘We Paint Winners’ 400, had them all.
Throughout the day, Turn 2 — the Tunnel Turn — was a major topic of concern.
“There are grocery store parking lots around the country that are jealous of those three bumps that have developed there,” said Busch, speculating that an offseason beautification project with a water feature, enhancing the exterior tunnel entry, somehow created the lumpy racing surface.
Carl Edwards, who qualified second, said: “To me, if they could just go ahead and take some bumps like that and put them over in the other corners, too, it would be even better. It adds something. As long as it’s not breaking parts, I believe it gives us an opportunity to set up passes.”
Ultimately, the issue with the bumpy track took a back seat when Denny Hamlin spun in Turn 1 in the final minute of qualifying, halting the session with 39 seconds remaining and preventing himself and four other drivers from posting a time in the final round.
“It really is a bizarre set of circumstances,” said Jimmie Johnson, a winner of four races this season but one of the drivers left in the qualifying cold. “It’s just unfortunate (for) the guys that were on the track. But as long as NASCAR is consistent (with the rule) through all three series, then we will take our medicine and just deal with it. We (start) ninth. That is the best we’ve been in a while.”
Joey Logano, the last driver not from Hendrick Motorsports to win at Pocono, was not so forgiving. Logano said he already had a “headache” thanks to the bumps — and that was before his lap in progress was negated by Hamlin’s spin.
“A car spins out and they throw a red flag for it, and then you don’t get an opportunity to go out and make a lap,” Logano said. “I don’t understand it. It makes me mad. I don’t get it. We didn’t even have a chance to try to put our car up front.”
Busch suggested that Pocono Raceway attempt to grind the bumps before Sunday’s race. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was encouraged that Pocono Raceway CEO Brandon Igdalsky was not only aware of the situation but also planning to take action before the Sprint Cup Series returns in late July.
“I feel like they understand that while we can probably get through this weekend with what’s back there right now, it’s probably not in their best interest to leave it as is,” Earnhardt said. “It will continue to get worse, and I don’t think that we can get our racecars through there if it gets much worse than it is.”
Edwards will start second on the grid in Sunday’s race.
“My plan with Denny (Joe Gibbs Racing teammate) almost worked out,” Edwards said jokingly. “But he didn’t spin early enough to keep Kurt from catching me.”
Martin Truex Jr. qualified third, unaware that the session was cut short but well aware of the challenges in Turn 2.
“It’s wild,” he said. “The first time through there, I thought either our car was way off or there’s something wrong with the racetrack. The bumps are 10 times bigger than they were last year, which is crazy. You’re going across bumps that are 8-10 inches tall and, literally, the tires are coming off the ground.”
Jeff Gordon qualified fourth, and series leader Kevin Harvick, who posted the fastest lap in each of the first two qualifying sessions, was fifth. Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne were the other drivers who were burned by Hamlin’s spin, having waited too long to attempt a lap in the five-minute session.