ROCKINGHAM, N.C. – Qualifying late in Friday’s time trials at Rockingham Speedway, Corey Day stormed to the pole position, navigating the 0.94-mile track in 22.717 seconds (148.963 mph).
After claiming the first pole of his career in the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Day will lead the field to green in Saturday’s North Carolina Education Lottery 250 Presented by Black’s Tire (2:30 p.m. ET on The CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
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In the qualifying race for the season’s first Dash 4 Cash Award, Day will start beside defending O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Jesse Love, who held the provisional pole at 148.545 mph (22.781 seconds), until Day bettered his time as the next-to-last qualifier.
Love took the checkered flag in last year’s Rockingham race but was disqualified when his No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet failed post-race inspection because of a rear suspension infraction. Sammy Smith, the runner-up on track, was declared the winner.
After the pole-winning lap, Day thought he might have gained on the rest of the field through the first two corners.
“If I had to guess, I thought I rolled through (Turns) 1 and 2 really, really good,” said Day, who has finished ninth or better in the last six races this season and is seventh in the series standings.
“Obviously, I still have to look at it – I could be wrong on that – but yeah, my car just felt super solid rolling the center of the corner… I was definitely confident with it there. We’ve had organizational tests here the last couple years. That definitely helps, getting laps around this place.”
Parker Retzlaff qualified third at 148.278 mph, followed by series leader and 2024 champion Justin Allgaier, who won the previous two O’Reilly Series races, at Darlington and Martinsville.
Carson Kvapil qualified fifth, joining Allgaier as a JR Motorsports driver in the top five on the grid. JRM has won the last five O’Reilly Series races. A sixth victory would tie Joe Gibbs Racing (2008) for the longest consecutive streak in series history.
At least one JR Motorsports driver has finished in the top 10 for 64 consecutive races, tied for the second-longest streak all-time. Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing holds the record of 79 straight races with a driver in the top 10 (2008-2010).
Taylor Gray qualified sixth on Friday, with Sam Mayer, Brandon Jones, Sheldon Creed and rookie Brent Crews completing the top 10.
The four highest-finishing series regulars in Saturday’s race will qualify to run for a $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus in the April 11 Suburban Propane 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway, the first of four Dash 4 Cash events.
The highest finisher among the four eligible drivers will claim the bonus at Bristol.
Smith, the defending race winner, was 19th-fastest in the JR Motorsports No. 8 Chevrolet. Cleetus McFarland qualified 35th out of 37 cars for his O’Reilly Series debut in the No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.
Sieg brothers top charts in Rockingham practice
Kyle Sieg set the pace in O’Reilly Auto Parts Series practice at Rockingham, topping older brother Ryan in a 1-2 family effort.
The younger Sieg posted a fast lap of 145.812 mph in the No. 28 RSS Racing Chevrolet, eclipsing his brother’s lap by just 0.004 seconds. Ryan Sieg clocked in at 145.787 mph in the RSS No. 39 Chevy.
MORE: Practice results | Weekend schedule
Richard Childress Racing driver Austin Hill was third-fastest, followed by Haas Factory Team’s Sheldon Creed, and then Jesse Love in another Childress entry to round out the top five.
The session was briefly halted for a rain shower, but quickly resumed after track-drying efforts took hold. Practice for the Craftsman Truck Series’ event was also interrupted by rain earlier in the day.
Contributing: Staff reports