Michael McDowell Secures Pole Position as Ford Dominates NASCAR Cup Qualifying at Atlanta

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Michael McDowell claimed his fifth pole position of the season on Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, with Ford drivers taking seven of the top 10 spots for Sunday’s playoff opener.

McDowell won the pole with a lap speed of 179.267 mph around the 1.54-mile circuit. Reigning Cup champion Ryan Blaney will start second after completing his lap at 178.844 mph.

Todd Gilliland, McDowell’s teammate at Front Row Motorsports, qualified third with a lap of 178.770 mph. Josh Berry (178.453 mph) will start in fourth position, while Austin Cindric (178.430 mph) qualified fifth. All of the top five drivers were in Fords. The other Ford drivers in the top 10 were Joey Logano, who will start seventh with a lap of 178.361 mph, and Chase Briscoe, last weekend’s Southern 500 winner, who will start 10th after recording a lap of 178.086 mph.

Kyle Larson was the top non-Ford driver, qualifying his Chevrolet in sixth position with a lap of 178.367 mph. Ty Gibbs was the highest-placed Toyota driver and will start in 20th after completing his lap at 177.125 mph.

Gibbs is one of six playoff drivers starting from 20th or lower on the grid. The others are Martin Truex Jr. (22nd), Tyler Reddick (23rd), Christopher Bell (26th), Daniel Suarez (30th), and Denny Hamlin (38th). All but Suarez are driving Toyotas.

Hamlin explained that his car experienced a powertrain issue during his qualifying lap, resulting in only the second occasion in his career that he will start a race from last place.

USA Network will provide live coverage of the race on Sunday. Pre-race coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. ET, with the race itself starting at 3 p.m. ET.