After posting the fastest speeds in each of the first two sessions, Matt Kenseth seemingly set himself up to win the pole position in qualifying Friday at Kansas Speedway.
NASCAR Kansas 2016 qualifying results: Martin Truex Jr. edges Matt Kenseth for pole
Truex’s fast lap gives him first pole in four years.
Not so. Martin Truex Jr. (190.921 mph) edged Kenseth (190.564 mph) in the decisive third round to capture the No. 1 starting position for Saturday night’s GoBowling.com 400. The pole is Truex’s first since April 2012 at Texas Motor Speedway, a span of 147 races.
“We feel like we made some mistakes throughout qualifying and it took us a while to figure out this three round deal,” Truex said. “Things have really been going well for us and clicking well.”
Although Kansas has been a strong suit of Truex’s over the years, including leading a race-high 95 laps a year ago, he remains winless on the 1.5-mile intermediate track. Last season, pit strategy worked against the Furniture Row Racing team and Truex placed ninth, and twice he’s finished runner-up.
Denny Hamlin qualified third, giving Toyota a sweep of the top three positions. Joe Gibbs Racing fields cars for Kenseth and Hamlin and shares a close technical alliance with Furniture Row.
Kurt Busch drove a Stewart-Haas Chevrolet to fourth, with Brad Keselowski in a Team Penske Ford fifth.
GoBowling.com 400 starting lineup
| Position | Driver | Make | Speed |
| 1 | Martin Truex, Jr. | Toyota | 190.921 |
| 2 | Matt Kenseth | Toyota | 190.564 |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | 190.402 |
| 4 | Kurt Busch | Chevrolet | 190.134 |
| 5 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | 189.907 |
| 6 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | 189.873 |
| 7 | Ryan Blaney | Ford | 189.673 |
| 8 | Ryan Newman | Chevrolet | 189.553 |
| 9 | Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. | Ford | 189.261 |
| 10 | Trevor Bayne | Ford | 188.627 |
| 11 | Paul Menard | Chevrolet | 188.114 |
| 12 | Carl Edwards | Toyota | 187.957 |
| 13 | Chase Elliott | Chevrolet | 189.003 |
| 14 | Joey Logano | Ford | 188.983 |
| 15 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | 188.719 |
| 16 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | 188.587 |
| 17 | Austin Dillon | Chevrolet | 188.567 |
| 18 | Kyle Larson | Chevrolet | 188.541 |
| 19 | Aric Almirola | Ford | 188.390 |
| 20 | Greg Biffle | Ford | 188.055 |
| 21 | Jamie McMurray | Chevrolet | 187.898 |
| 22 | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | Chevrolet | 187.013 |
| 23 | Danica Patrick | Chevrolet | 186.812 |
| 24 | Matt DiBenedetto | Toyota | 186.503 |
| 25 | Chris Buescher | Ford | 187.428 |
| 26 | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet | 187.156 |
| 27 | Kasey Kahne | Chevrolet | 187.149 |
| 28 | Brian Scott | Ford | 187.071 |
| 29 | A.J. Allmendinger | Chevrolet | 186.690 |
| 30 | Michael McDowell | Chevrolet | 186.677 |
| 31 | Casey Mears | Chevrolet | 186.638 |
| 32 | Regan Smith | Chevrolet | 186.387 |
| 33 | Clint Bowyer | Chevrolet | 186.290 |
| 34 | David Ragan | Toyota | 185.491 |
| 35 | Landon Cassill | Ford | 184.938 |
| 36 | Josh Wise | Chevrolet | 183.555 |
| 37 | Cole Whitt | Chevrolet | 183.038 |
| 38 | Joey Gase | Ford | 181.953 |
| 39 | Michael Annett | Chevrolet | 178.436 |
| 40 | Reed Sorenson | Chevrolet | 177.480 |
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