Rainout hands Harvick Chicagoland pole, leaves other Chasers deep in the field

JOLIET, IL - SEPTEMBER 18: Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Jimmy John's / Budweiser Chevrolet, stands in the garage area before practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series myAFibRisk.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on September 18, 2015 in Joliet, Illinois. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images)
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JOLIET, IL - SEPTEMBER 18:  Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Jimmy John's / Budweiser Chevrolet, stands in the garage area before practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series myAFibRisk.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on September 18, 2015 in Joliet, Illinois.  (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images)
JOLIET, IL – SEPTEMBER 18: Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Jimmy John’s / Budweiser Chevrolet, stands in the garage area before practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series myAFibRisk.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on September 18, 2015 in Joliet, Illinois. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images)

Mother Nature put a little extra pressure on some of NASCAR’s Chase drivers Friday as rain washed out qualifying for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup series MyAFibRisk.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.  According to NASCAR rules, Kevin Harvick was awarded the pole based on practice speeds earlier in the day. It’s the 16th career pole for Harvick, his second of the year and his first at Chicagoland.

“I am most proud of my team for having a fast race car to come to the track; having a plan and doing all the things they did to pay attention to the weather,” Harvick said. “They put a lot emphasis on trying to lay a fast lap down just like everybody to get a good starting position with the way that the weather was. Rodney (Childers) and Mike (Bugarewicz) and everybody on the team have done a good job. Just proud of that.”

“Obviously having the first pit stall and having good track position to start is important,” he added. 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.