Rookie Kyle Larson continued his impressive first season winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup series pole at Pocono Raceway on Friday. Larson survived the three rounds of knockout qualifying putting down a track qualifying record lap of 183.438 mph (49.063 seconds). The record is the 15th Cup track qualifying record set thus far in 2014.
“I had some butterflies before that last round,” Larson said. “I knew we had a shot at the pole and I was nervous. I hit all three corners about as good as I could.”
Larson becomes the first graduate of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity initiative to win a pole in NASCAR’s top level.
“It’s great to get my first ‘real’ pole,” Larson said. “I got the pole at Richmond, but that was due to qualifying raining out and we were quickest in practice. This time we got to beat the rain by a little bit and actually got to earn the pole. It was exciting last round for us. “ MORE>>>
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.
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