DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Daytona 500 qualifying, which began under a convoluted system causing a near revolt, ended with Jeff Gordon winning the pole position Sunday at Daytona International Speedway.
Daytona 500 2015 qualifying results: Jeff Gordon on pole for final Daytona 500
Jeff Gordon is on the pole in what will be his final start in the Great American Race.
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
With a lap of 201.293 mph -- the first pole-winner to top 200 mph since Bill Elliot in 1987 -- Gordon will lead the field to the green flag in what will be his 23rd and final season. The four-time Sprint Cup champion and three-time Daytona 500 winner announced in January he would retire from full-time racing at the end of the season
“I can’t think of anything cooler than to start this season,” Gordon said. “My final Daytona 500, my final full season, on the pole.”
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The pole was Gordon’s second Daytona 500 pole and came as a result of an advantageous spot towards the back of a group of cars. That positioning allowed Gordon to post his speed just as the clock hit zero in the third and final round of knockout qualifying. He previously won the pole in 1999, a race Gordon would go on to win.
Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson will start second in next Sunday’s Great American Race. The front-row sweep was Hendrick’s fourth.
Only the top two positions are secured -- the balance of the 43-car field will be set in Thursday’s twin qualifying races. Other drivers locking in spots Sunday on speed: Aric Almirola, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Jamie McMurray and Carl Edwards. For Edwards, in his first season with Joe Gibbs Racing, the accomplishment brought much relief as he had no points from 2014.
“We had about four or five meetings about trying to figure out how we were going to do this,” Edwards said. “I don’t know that the meetings actually helped, but this means a lot for everybody at JGR to support this (No.) 19 team so much and to get us locked into the 500.”
Sunday marked the first time group qualifying was used to determine the front row for NASCAR’s most prestigious race. The system divides drivers into groups and allows multiple cars on the track at a time.
It was a format which proved controversial -- many drivers attempted gamesmanship directly attributed to a wreck involving Clint Bowyer and Reed Sorenson, in addition to sitting on pit road until the very last minute of their session.
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Several drivers, including defending Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick as well as Tony Stewart, expressed their frustration with departure of single-car runs in qualifying.
“Excited about Thursday’s races our car is extremely fast!” Harvick wrote on his Twitter page. “Sucks that 56 years of tradition at Daytona where fast cars ruled had ended.”
The 57th Daytona 500 is Sunday, Feb. 22.
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