Motorsport photo
William Byron did well to honor Jeff Gordon in No. 24 “fiery” throwback scheme by rocketing to the top of the charts in qualifying on Saturday. Just over a tenth of a second separated the drivers between second and tenth on the time sheets, but second to first was nearly the same margin as Byron put down a new Darlington record for the current Gen-7 race car.
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Byron lapped the historic track in 28.774s, beating RFK Racing’s Ryan Preece by 0.084s. This is Preece’s best qualifying effort at Darlington and just the fourth front row start of his entire career.
For Byron, this is his 15th career pole and his second of the 2025 season. And despite besting the field by a clear margin, the HMS driver claims it could have been even better.
William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
“The lap — I felt like (Turns) 1 and 2 were really good,” said Byron. “I felt like I gave up a little bit in (Turn) 4. You can kind of see that on the tracker, which was good enough to get through there. Through the middle of (Turns) 3 and 4 was also pretty decent. Just proud of that. To get a pole here is great … we usually run really well, so we just got to put it together tomorrow.”
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Denny Hamlin, who won last weekend in dominant fashion at Martinsville, qualified third on the grid and led the way for the Toyotas. Fellow Toyota drivers Chase Briscoe and Bubba Wallace qualified fourth and fifth, respectively. Austin Cindric, Tyler Reddick, Kyle Busch, Ryan Blaney, and Michael McDowell rounded out the top ten.
Big names deep in the field
The session was clean, despite a few drivers collecting their ‘Darlington stripes’ after getting up against the outside wall. Of note, both Daniel Suarez and Alex Bowman saw their lap times fall away after getting a bit too high in the corner. Both will start deep in the field with Suarez 30th and Bowman 33rd.
They are not alone when it comes to notable names with some work to do on Sunday. While Byron earned pole position, his highest-qualifying teammate was Chase Elliott in 15th while Kyle Larson was 19th.
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Christopher Bell, who some thought would be a threat for pole, only managed 17th while reigning Cup Series champion Joey Logano was 18th.
Brad Keselowski won this race one year ago but clocked in 20th after his run. Then there’s Ross Chastain who was the best of the three Trackhouse drivers, but still only 25th on the grid.
Photos from Darlington – Practice & Qualifying
Austin Cindric, Team Penske Ford
Austin Cindric, Team Penske FordJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing Toyota
Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing ToyotaJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing ToyotaJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Brad Keselowski, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
Brad Keselowski, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing FordJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Daniel Suarez, Trackhouse Chevrolet
Daniel Suarez, Trackhouse ChevroletJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing ChevroletJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Joey Logano, Team Penske Ford
Joey Logano, Team Penske FordJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Goodyear Eagle tire detail
Goodyear Eagle tire detailJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Bubba Wallace, 23XI Racing Toyota
Bubba Wallace, 23XI Racing ToyotaJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing ToyotaJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing ToyotaJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Erik Jones, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Toyota
Erik Jones, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB ToyotaJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing Toyota
Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing ToyotaJared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Josh Berry, Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Josh Berry, Wood Brothers Racing FordJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Kyle Busch, Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Kyle Busch, Richard Childress Racing ChevroletJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske Ford
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske FordJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing ToyotaJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske Ford
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske FordJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Riley Herbst, 23XI Racing Toyota
Riley Herbst, 23XI Racing ToyotaJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
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|
1 |
24 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
28.774 |
|
170.904 |
|
|
2 |
60 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.084 28.858 |
0.084 |
170.407 |
|
|
3 |
11 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.093 28.867 |
0.009 |
170.354 |
|
|
4 |
19 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.105 28.879 |
0.012 |
170.283 |
|
|
5 |
23 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.121 28.895 |
0.016 |
170.189 |
|
|
6 |
2 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.174 28.948 |
0.053 |
169.877 |
|
|
7 |
45 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.181 28.955 |
0.007 |
169.836 |
|
|
8 |
8 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.183 28.957 |
0.002 |
169.824 |
|
|
9 |
12 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.184 28.958 |
0.001 |
169.818 |
|
|
10 |
71 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.198 28.972 |
0.014 |
169.736 |
|
|
11 |
54 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.201 28.975 |
0.003 |
169.719 |
|
|
12 |
34 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.213 28.987 |
0.012 |
169.648 |
|
|
13 |
77 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.220 28.994 |
0.007 |
169.608 |
|
|
14 |
17 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.222 28.996 |
0.002 |
169.596 |
|
|
15 |
9 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.227 29.001 |
0.005 |
169.567 |
|
|
16 |
38 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.234 29.008 |
0.007 |
169.526 |
|
|
17 |
20 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.241 29.015 |
0.007 |
169.485 |
|
|
18 |
22 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.265 29.039 |
0.024 |
169.345 |
|
|
19 |
5 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.304 29.078 |
0.039 |
169.118 |
|
|
20 |
6 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.398 29.172 |
0.094 |
168.573 |
|
|
21 |
7 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.411 29.185 |
0.013 |
168.498 |
|
|
22 |
16 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.456 29.230 |
0.045 |
168.238 |
|
|
23 |
3 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.481 29.255 |
0.025 |
168.094 |
|
|
24 |
Wood Brothers Racing |
21 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.491 29.265 |
0.010 |
168.037 |
|
25 |
1 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.511 29.285 |
0.020 |
167.922 |
|
|
26 |
4 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.518 29.292 |
0.007 |
167.882 |
|
|
27 |
42 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.541 29.315 |
0.023 |
167.750 |
|
|
28 |
47 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.544 29.318 |
0.003 |
167.733 |
|
|
29 |
10 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.638 29.412 |
0.094 |
167.197 |
|
|
30 |
99 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.683 29.457 |
0.045 |
166.942 |
|
|
31 |
41 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.709 29.483 |
0.026 |
166.794 |
|
|
32 |
35 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.751 29.525 |
0.042 |
166.557 |
|
|
33 |
48 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+0.798 29.572 |
0.047 |
166.292 |
|
|
34 |
43 |
|
Toyota |
1 |
+0.843 29.617 |
0.045 |
166.040 |
|
|
35 |
51 |
|
Ford |
1 |
+0.983 29.757 |
0.140 |
165.259 |
|
|
36 |
88 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+1.154 29.928 |
0.171 |
164.314 |
|
|
37 |
33 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+1.296 30.070 |
0.142 |
163.538 |
|
|
38 |
44 |
|
Chevrolet |
1 |
+1.540 30.314 |
0.244 |
162.222 |
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