Logano, Earnhardt Jr. fastest in Saturday practices

MARTINSVILLE, VA - OCTOBER 26: Jeff Gordon (R), driver of the #24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet, talks with Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 National Guard Chevrolet, speak in the garage during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500 Powered By Kroger at Martinsville Speedway on October 26, 2013 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
MARTINSVILLE, VA - OCTOBER 26:  Jeff Gordon (R), driver of the #24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet, talks with Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 National Guard Chevrolet, speak in the garage during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500 Powered By Kroger at Martinsville Speedway on October 26, 2013 in Martinsville, Virginia.  (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
MARTINSVILLE, VA – OCTOBER 26: Jeff Gordon (R), driver of the #24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet, talks with Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 National Guard Chevrolet, speak in the garage during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 Powered By Kroger at Martinsville Speedway on October 26, 2013 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams logged many laps in Saturday’s practice sessions, but Penske Racing’s Joey Logano was fastest in the first practice and Hendrick Motorsport’s Dale Earnhardt Jr. topped the speed charts in final practice.

Logano ran a total of 47 laps in Saturday’s first practice and in the process posted a best lap of 97.468 mph.  Kyle Busch was second quickest in the first session, and he posted the best consecutive 10-lap average speed at 96.590 mph.

Earnhardt Jr. was in control of the leaderboard most of final practice once he posted a speed of 97.533 mph. Earnhardt ran 70 laps in the final practice session.

Chase contender Matt Kenseth finished fourth in Saturday’s first practice just ahead of standings leader Jimmie Johnson in eighth. Kenseth outdid Johnson in final practice as well, finishing fifth and sixth, respectively.

Greg Engle
About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.