RELATED: Final practice results | Truex on pole | Weekend schedule
Kyle Busch secured the top spot in final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Busch, a two-time New Hampshire winner, clocked a fast lap of 130.950 mph around the 1.058-mile track. Busch’s Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota is scheduled to start seventh in Sunday’s Overton’s 301 (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin tied for second on the leaderboard, posting identical speeds of 130.568 mph. Truex’s Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Toyota will lead the 39-car field to green after claiming the Coors Light Pole in Friday qualifying. Hamlin’s speed came in a back-up car, unloaded after his primary car was damaged in a crash in opening practice.
Kyle Larson landed the fourth-fastest spot in final practice at 130.514 mph in the Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet. Larson will start last in Sunday’s 301-lapper after his apparent pole-winning qualifying speed was disallowed Friday.
Chase Elliott completed the top five, just ahead of Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson in the 55-minute final tune-up.
Aric Almirola, set to make his first start after a seven-race absence because of injury, was 21st-fastest in the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Ford. Almirola has been sidelined since suffering a broken back in a May 13 crash at Kansas Speedway.
Seven teams had time deducted from Saturday’s final practice for either failing pre-race inspection last week at Kentucky Speedway or pre-qualifying inspection Friday at New Hampshire — or both. The following teams were held for 15 minutes:
- Stewart-Haas Racing No. 4 Ford of Kevin Harvick
- Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 Chevrolet of Chase Elliott
- Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 Chevrolet of Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The following teams were docked 30 minutes of time in final practice:
- Stewart-Haas Racing No. 14 Ford of Clint Bowyer
- Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet of Kyle Larson
- Furniture Row Racing No. 77 Toyota of Erik Jones
- Circle Sport/The Motorsports Group No. 33 Chevrolet of Jeffrey Earnhardt
Truex tops in Saturday early practice
RELATED: Practice 2 results | Best 10-lap times
Coors Light Pole winner Martin Truex Jr. backed up his show of speed Saturday morning in the second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Truex, the series’ points leader, registered the fastest lap in the 55-minute session, driving the Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Toyota to a 131.338 mph speed. He’ll start first in Sunday’s Overton’s 301 (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) on the 1.058-mile track.
Kyle Larson, second to Truex in the standings, was also second to Truex on the practice leaderboard, just .001 seconds back at 131.333 mph in the Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet. Larson had initially taken first place in Friday’s qualifying, but his speed was disallowed after his car failed post-qualifying inspection for an unapproved rear decklid fin.
Jimmie Johnson was third-fastest in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 Chevrolet at 131.184 mph, just ahead of his teammate Chase Elliott in fourth (131.162). Brad Keselowski rounded out the top five (131.071) in the Team Penske No. 2 Ford.
Aric Almirola, in the midst of his first race weekend since breaking his back in a May 13 crash at Kansas, was 25th-fastest in the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Ford.
Teams experimented with different racing grooves after track workers re-applied the PJ1 traction agent in the turns. Officials added to the bottom lane and then extended the top lane with a four-foot wide strip of the traction compound before Saturday’s on-track activity.