By Aaron Bearden, Motorsports Editor
JOLIET, Ill. — The summer heat treated Paul Menard and Wood Brothers Racing just fine at Chicagoland Speedway.
Less than two hours removed from an eighth-place run in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race, Menard shot atop the charts to claim the pole for Sunday’s Overton’s 400. The run was Menard’s second-career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series pole, coming a decade after his first pole run at Daytona International Speedway in 2008.
Ryan Blaney slotted in just behind his former team with a second-place qualifying effort. Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin and Kurt Busch rounded out the top five, with Clint Bowyer, Aric Almirola, Brad Keselowski, William Byron and Erik Jones completing the top 10.
The session proved to be a challenge the field. The blistering temperatures of an uncharacteristically hot June day made for a slick ride around the bumpy 1.50-mile oval, and a host of drivers including Menard, Elliott, Daniel Suarez, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Larson arrived for the session just shortly removed from 300 miles of racing in the Xfinity Series.
Elliott was forced to travel to the Infield Care Center for fluids between the two runs, but he proved no worse for wear in the session. Suarez led the way in Round 2 before slotting 11th in the final round. Larson won the Xfinity Series race for Chip Ganassi Racing, but qualified a season-worst 20th.
The biggest surprise of the time trials came from the Cup Series’ top three drivers – Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and Harvick. The trio have combined to win 12 of the season’s 16 races, but none qualified better than 12th for Sunday’s 400-mile race in Chicagoland.
With qualifications complete, the cars will now be subjected to an inspection prior to a full-field impound. If a car fails post-qualifying inspection once, their time will be disallowed and the team will start from the rear. Two failures will see the additional penalty of a crew member being ejected. A car that fails three or more times will be fined 10 owner and driver points.
Coverage for the Overton’s 400 will begin on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. on NBCSN.