Bubba Wallace to Chase Final Playoff Spot From Pole in Darlington's Southern 500
What a great time to pick up your first pole position of the season, huh? Bubba Wallace, who trails Chris Buescher by 21 points for the final slot in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff field, will start the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, the final race of the regular season, from the top spot.
In an instant, Wallace felt the pressure of the Playoff cutline evaporate.
"You look at us coming in, being on the bubble, 21 points out, it's a lot of pressure, right? Well, I think the pressure just switched," Wallace confidently proclaimed after the qualifying session. "We're not here to mess around. I showed up with a more open and calm demeanor, a more free and relaxing demeanor, but at the same time, I don't want to be messed with. It's a fine balance."
Wallace, who was fastest in the opening round of qualifying after scraping the wall with his No. 23 machine, backed the speed from Round 1 up as he cranked out an impressive 29.421 second lap time (167.146 mph) in the final round of Saturday's qualifying session. The incredible lap allowed Wallace to take his first pole of the 2024 season, and third career pole overall. Wallace's lap was 0.023 seconds faster than Kyle Larson, who turned the second-fastest lap of the final round.
Wallace was thankful of every employee within his two-car 23XI Racing team, which helped his team bring the speed needed to contend for the pole Saturday at Darlington, and he knows the weekend isn't over. He needs to finish it out on Sunday, now.
"Just everybody on the 23 car, everybody back at Airspeed, those cars showing up with speed at Darlington in the Southern 500 is super cool. I've been close here, I think once or twice in qualifying. So to finally pull it out, it's like, 'finally, we got it,'" Wallace explained. "All that being said, elephant in the room, tomorrow is a different day, and I'm excited to see what tomorrow offers."
RELATED: NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Starting Lineup
Joining Wallace on the front row in Sunday's crown jewel event will be NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year contender Carson Hocevar. The driver of the No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 was just 0.024 seconds off of the fast time set by Wallace. With the runner-up starting spot, the 21-year-old Hocevar notched his career-best starting spot.
Hocevar's previous best starting position in NASCAR Cup Series competition was a ninth-place starting position in the season-opening Daytona 500, which was earned by his finishing position in the Bluegreen Vacation Duel qualifying races. The run is also the best-ever starting spot for Spire Motorsports, which fields three cars in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Chase Briscoe, who like Wallace and Hocevar, isn't locked into the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, will start from the third position in Sunday's race. Briscoe, who drives the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse, is looking to send off the Stewart-Haas Racing team with a Playoff appearance in the organization's final season in NASCAR.
If any Playoff eligible driver, who has yet to lock into the Playoffs, can win Sunday's race, they will work their way into the Playoffs. The top three starters will be drivers, who are looking to win their way into the championship battle.
Due to his Group A distinction, Larson will start fourth in Sunday's race at Darlington, despite having the second-fastest lap in the qualifying session. He'll be slotted behind Wallace (Group A), Hocevar (Group B) and Briscoe (Group B).
Martin Truex Jr., Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Christopher Bell, and Chris Buescher rounded out the top-10 qualifiers for the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington.
Reddick, who starts sixth, holds a 17-point advantage over Kyle Larson for the regular season championship battle heading into the race. Chase Elliott enters the weekend 18 points back. Whichever driver leaves Darlington as the top driver in points will receive the 15 bonus Playoff Points, which are awarded to the regular season champion.
TOBY CHRISTIE