Ryan Blaney captured the Busch Pole Award for Sunday's Cook Out Southern 500 (6 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs' Round of 16 opener at Darlington Raceway.
RELATED: Complete schedule for Darlington | Betting odds
Blaney will start his No. 12 Team Penske Ford from the first spot for the first time this season, in search of his first Darlington victory. Blaney, a playoff driver, is coming off back-to-back wins to close out the regular season.
Daniel Hemric claimed the pole for Saturday's NASCAR Xfinity Series Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help A Hero 200 (3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM) in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, while Sheldon Creed, playoff driver of the No. 2 GMS Racing Chevrolet, earned the pole for Sunday's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series In It To Win It 200 (1:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM).
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 night's Cup Series race below.
| Start pos.
|
Driver |
Car # |
Team |
| 1 |
Ryan Blaney |
12 |
Team Penske |
| 2 |
Denny Hamlin |
11 |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 3 |
Kurt Busch |
1 |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 4 |
Chase Elliott |
9 |
Hendrick Motorsports |
| 5 |
Alex Bowman |
48 |
Hendrick Motorsports |
| 6 |
Kyle Larson |
5 |
Hendrick Motorsports |
| 7 |
Tyler Reddick |
8 |
Richard Childress Racing |
| 8 |
Aric Almirola |
10 |
Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 9 |
Kevin Harvick |
4 |
Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 10 |
Martin Truex Jr. |
19 |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 11 |
Joey Logano |
22 |
Team Penske |
| 12 |
Kyle Busch |
18 |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 13 |
Christopher Bell |
20 |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 14 |
William Byron |
24 |
Hendrick Motorsports |
| 15 |
Michael McDowell |
34 |
Front Row Motorsports |
| 16 |
Brad Keselowski |
2 |
Team Penske |
| 17 |
Bubba Wallace |
23 |
23XI Racing |
| 18 |
Ryan Preece |
37 |
JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 19 |
Ryan Newman |
6 |
Roush Fenway Racing |
| 20 |
Justin Haley |
77 |
Spire Motorsports |
| 21 |
Austin Dillon |
3 |
Richard Childress Racing |
| 22 |
Erik Jones |
43 |
Richard Petty Motorsports |
| 23 |
Ross Chastain |
42 |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
| 24 |
Chase Briscoe |
14 |
Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 25 |
Corey LaJoie |
7 |
Spire Motorsports |
| 26 |
Daniel Suarez |
99 |
TrackHouse Racing |
| 27 |
BJ McLeod |
78 |
Live Fast Motorsports |
| 28 |
Josh Bilicki |
52 |
Rick Ware Racing |
| 29 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
47 |
JTG Daugherty Racing |
| 30 |
Matt DiBenedetto |
21 |
Wood Brothers Racing |
| 31 |
Cole Custer |
41 |
Stewart-Haas Racing |
| 32 |
Anthony Alfredo |
38 |
Front Row Motorsports |
| 33 |
Cody Ware |
51 |
Petty Ware Racing |
| 34 |
Chris Buescher |
17 |
Roush Fenway Racing |
| 35 |
Joey Gase |
15 |
Rick Ware Racing |
| 36 |
James Davison |
53 |
Rick Ware Racing |
| 37 |
Quin Houff |
00 |
StarCom Racing |
Practice and qualifying are tentatively scheduled for eight Cup Series races this year. Just one race remains with Busch Pole Qualifying on the schedule -- the season-ending championship race Nov. 7 at Phoenix Raceway.