RELATED: Full starting lineup
LAS VEGAS — Carl Edwards will go to a backup No. 19 Toyota following an accident in the second round of knockout pole qualifying Friday afternoon at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Edwards’ Toyota hit the Turn 2 wall about five minutes into the second session and his Joe Gibbs Racing team had already unloaded a back-up version of the Camry before Edwards finished doing media interviews about the situation.
Edwards said he was still unsure as to the exact cause of the accident but believed most likely the car’s right rear tire blew to cause the crash, which flattened the right side of the primary car.
“It’s frustrating because the car was really fast but they say the backup is just as fast,” Edwards said. “I guarantee that car will be as good as this one.”
Edwards had been fourth-fastest in the opening round of time trials and is a two-time Las Vegas winner. He was credited with the 24th starting position but will drop to the rear at the start of Sunday’s Kobalt 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Two of his JGR teammates — Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin — advanced to the 12-car final round of qualifying, in which Kurt Busch won and notched his second straight pole.