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April 14, 2021

Martin Truex Jr. secures Busch Pole Award for Richmond Raceway


Martin Truex Jr. has won the Busch Pole Award for Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Richmond Raceway.

Truex, the series’ only two-time winner this year, will start his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota from the pole position. He has finished among the top three in the last four Richmond races, a span that includes a season sweep of both events there in 2019.

Ben Rhodes won the pole for Saturday’s ToyotaCare 250 (1:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) for the Camping World Truck Series. He’s set to start first in the No. 99 ThorSport Racing Toyota.

RELATED: Richmond 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 Martin Truex Jr. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing
2 Denny Hamlin 11 Joe Gibbs Racing
3 Chase Elliott 9 Hendrick Motorsports
4 William Byron 24 Hendrick Motorsports
5 Joey Logano 22 Team Penske
6 Kyle Larson 5 Hendrick Motorsports
7 Ryan Blaney 12 Team Penske
8 Christopher Bell 20 Joe Gibbs Racing
9 Kevin Harvick 4 Stewart-Haas Racing
10 Kyle Busch 18 Joe Gibbs Racing
11 Austin Dillon 3 Richard Childress Racing
12 Chris Buescher 17 Roush Fenway Racing
13 Tyler Reddick 8 Richard Childress Racing
14 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing
15 Bubba Wallace 23 23XI Racing
16 Matt DiBenedetto 21 Wood Brothers Racing
17 Kurt Busch 1 Chip Ganassi Racing
18 Ross Chastain 42 Chip Ganassi Racing
19 Ryan Newman 6 Roush Fenway Racing
20 Brad Keselowski 2 Team Penske
21 Cole Custer 41 Stewart-Haas Racing
22 Aric Almirola 10 Stewart-Haas Racing
23 Michael McDowell 34 Front Row Motorsports
24 Alex Bowman 48 Hendrick Motorsports
25 Ryan Preece 37 JTG Daugherty Racing
26 Chase Briscoe 14 Stewart-Haas Racing
27 Daniel Suarez 99 Trackhouse Racing Team
28 James Davison 15 Rick Ware Racing
29 Anthony Alfredo 38 Front Row Motorsports
30 Erik Jones 43 Richard Petty Motorsports
31 Josh Bilicki 52 Rick Ware Racing
32 Quin Houff 00 StarCom Racing
33 Cody Ware 51 Petty Ware Racing
34 Justin Haley 77 Spire Motorsports
35 BJ McLeod 78 Live Fast Motorsports
36 Corey LaJoie 7 Spire Motorsports
37 Garrett Smithley 53 Rick Ware Racing
38 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 but rain canceled the qualifying races for Bristol Motor Speedway’s dirt-track race. The next Cup Series event with qualifying scheduled is the May 23 debut at the Circuit of the Americas road course in Austin, Texas.

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