Kyle Larson inherits NASCAR pole after rainout at Kentucky

SPARTA, KY - JULY 10: Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 Target Chevrolet, practices for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quaker State 400 Presented by Advance Auto Parts at Kentucky Speedway on July 10, 2015 in Sparta, Kentucky. (Photo by Sarah Crabill/Getty Images)
SPARTA, KY - JULY 10:  Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 Target Chevrolet, practices for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quaker State 400 Presented by Advance Auto Parts at Kentucky Speedway on July 10, 2015 in Sparta, Kentucky.  (Photo by Sarah Crabill/Getty Images)
SPARTA, KY – JULY 10: Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 Target Chevrolet, practices for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quaker State 400 Presented by Advance Auto Parts at Kentucky Speedway on July 10, 2015 in Sparta, Kentucky. (Photo by Sarah Crabill/Getty Images)

Kyle Larson can thank Mother Nature for a career first. Larson will lead the field to the green for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quaker State 400 after NASCAR made the decision to cancel qualifying Friday afternoon after rain shortened the only practice session the Sprint Cup series has had this week. It was the second week in a row that rain has washed out qualifying.

Larson put down a lap at 182.537 mph in a shortened 50-minute practice session halted by rain at 11:20 a.m. on Friday. With a new set of competition rules for the 1.5 mile speedway, and with teams having had no practice this week, NASCAR decided to cancel the qualifying in the hopes of giving teams more practice with the new low-downforce package being introduced for this race.

“I was glad we got a little bit of track time there,” Larson said.MORE>>>

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.