NASCAR at Pocono Raceway 2016: Lineup, starting grid for Pennsylvania 400

Martin Truex Jr. will try for his second win of 2016 Monday in the Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono. And by all accounts, just as he has on so many occasions this season, he looks like the favorite.

You can watch the race, which was postponed from a Sunday start, at 10:30 a.m. ET Monday morning on NBCSN. The green flag is scheduled for 11:07 a.m. If you’re at work, you can use NBC Sports Live Stream to watch on your computer or mobile device.

In qualifying, Truex captured the pole with a lap of 179.244 mph over de facto teammate Carl Edwards. He backed that speed up by pacing the final round of practice on Saturday. And as if another reason is needed why Truex is considered the driver to beat, he’s believed to be stewarding the same car he used to blitz the field at Charlotte.

When asked if he was in fact wheeling the same car, Truex either didn’t know or tried to play coy. Because teams continually turn over chassis, it’s not always easy to keep track.

“It’s funny, people ask that -- this car, that car - these cars these days I don’t think it really matters,” Truex said. “They’re built identical to each other. I can get in five different race cars in five weeks and not tell you which one is which.”

But what if it is the same car? Does that mean Truex should be expected to replicate his Charlotte performance?

“Maybe it has a little magic in it,” Truex said. “We’ll find out come Sunday I suppose if we can lead almost every lap. We’ll see what happens.”

It has been a constant in 2016 to see Truex Jr.‘s No. 78 Toyota up front, leading laps and well positioned to score a win. Yet another constant this season is that victory seemingly within grasp somehow eluding Truex and Furniture Row Racing’s failing to end up in victory lane.

There was the painstakingly close loss in the Daytona 500, the strategy call that backfired, the multiple part failures that knocked him out of contention, all among the tribulations Truex has endured.

Were it not for poor execution, fluke occurrences or just rotten luck, Truex could conceivably have five or more wins on the year. Instead, despite leading more laps than anyone else, he owns just one.

Truex’s season of frustration includes:

“We’ve had some crazy things happen for sure,” Truex said Friday at Pocono Raceway. “We’ve had more problems than a lot of people and I don’t really know what to attribute that to, but I think our guys are doing a good job of making sure it won’t happen twice at least.”

It hasn’t been all disappointment for Truex. There has been one bright spot. A night where everything came together, no parts broke, and he closed out a race that he utterly and completely controlled from beginning to end.

Exhibiting overwhelming dominance, Truex led 392 of 400 laps (and a NASCAR-record 588 miles) to win the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. His fourth career victory virtually locked him into the Chase for the Sprint Cup playoff, and further solidified his status as a championship contender.

Pennsylvania 400 starting lineup