Denny Hamlin has won the Busch Pole Award for Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Hamlin, the series points leader, will start his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota from the pole position.
Defending Xfinity Series champion Austin Cindric won the pole for Saturday’s EchoPark 250 (5 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford, and John Hunter Nemechek is on the pole for Saturday’s Fr8Auctions 200 (2:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) in the No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota. Cindric and Nemechek are the most recent winners in their respective series.
RELATED: Atlanta weekend schedule | 2021 Cup Series standings
As NASCAR adapted to COVID-19 protocols last season, practice and qualifying were eliminated at a majority of national-series events to limit at-track time, exposure and to cut race weekend costs. To determine starting lineups, competition officials used grouped draws, added inversions for weekend doubleheaders, and eventually adopted a performance-metrics formula. That metrics format remains in place this season, drawing on performance from both individual races and season-long results.
NASCAR’s metrics formula for 2021 weighs:
- 25 percent: Driver’s finishing position from the previous race
- 25 percent: Car owner’s finishing position from the previous race
- 35 percent: Team owner points ranking
- 15 percent: Fastest lap from the previous race
See the full lineup for Sunday’s Cup Series race below.
| Start pos. |
Driver | Car # | Team |
| 1 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 2 | Martin Truex Jr. | 19 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 3 | Joey Logano | 22 | Team Penske |
| 4 | Brad Keselowski | 2 | Team Penske |
| 5 | Chase Elliott | 9 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 6 | Kyle Larson | 5 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 7 | Kevin Harvick | 4 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 8 | Christopher Bell | 20 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 9 | William Byron | 24 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 10 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | Team Penske |
| 11 | Kurt Busch | 1 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 12 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 47 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 13 | Austin Dillon | 3 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 14 | Alex Bowman | 48 | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 15 | Bubba Wallace | 23 | 23XI Racing |
| 16 | Aric Almirola | 10 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | 17 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 18 | Michael McDowell | 34 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 19 | Kyle Busch | 18 | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 20 | Matt DiBenedetto | 21 | Wood Brothers Racing |
| 21 | Ross Chastain | 42 | Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 22 | Erik Jones | 43 | Richard Petty Motorsports |
| 23 | Ryan Preece | 37 | JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 24 | Chase Briscoe | 14 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 25 | Daniel Suarez | 99 | Trackhouse Racing Team |
| 26 | Justin Haley | 77 | Spire Motorsports |
| 27 | Cole Custer | 41 | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 28 | Ryan Newman | 6 | Roush Fenway Racing |
| 29 | Tyler Reddick | 8 | Richard Childress Racing |
| 30 | Corey LaJoie | 7 | Spire Motorsports |
| 31 | BJ McLeod | 78 | Live Fast Motorsports |
| 32 | Anthony Alfredo | 38 | Front Row Motorsports |
| 33 | Cody Ware | 51 | Petty Ware Racing |
| 34 | James Davison | 15 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 35 | Quin Houff | 00 | StarCom Racing |
| 36 | Joey Gase | 53 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 37 | Josh Bilicki | 52 | Rick Ware Racing |
| 38 | Timmy Hill | 66 | Motorsports Business Management |
| 39 | Austin Cindric | 33 | Team Penske |
Practice and qualifying are tentatively scheduled for eight Cup Series races this year. Busch Pole Qualifying was held for the season-opening Daytona 500; the next race with time trials scheduled is the March 28 event at Bristol Motor Speedway’s dirt track.