Hampton, Ga. — Ryan Blaney turned the fastest lap in Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session at EchoPark Speedway to earn the Busch Light Pole Award for Sunday night’s Quaker State 400.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

The No. 12 Team Penske Ford driver posted a speed of 179.912 mph, marking his 14th career Cup pole and his second of the 2026 season. It is also his second pole at the 1.54-mile high-banked oval.

Blaney’s teammate Joey Logano (No. 22 Ford) qualified second, giving Team Penske a front-row sweep for the night race under the lights.

“I feel like we’ve seen that,” Blaney said of the Toyotas qualifying effort. “They don’t really qualify great at these speedways, just the build of their race car. So usually that means they can probably be aggressive in the draft and get in the middle and get to the top and things like that. I’m sure we’re going to see them up there.

“If you look at the spring race here and Toyotas were really, really good when it came race time. Hopefully, our balance in the race is good enough to be able to either maintain the lead or, if we get shuffled back, be able to go forward. You really don’t know that until the race starts.”

Ryan Blaney wins Busch Light Pole Award at EchoPark Speedway. Image courtesy of Team Penske

The Chevrolets of Kyle Larson (No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports) and Austin Dillon (No. 3 Richard Childress Racing ) make up row two.

Daniel Suárez will start fifth with the Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets of Alex Bowman and defending race winner Chase Elliott, Cindric, Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain and Brad Keselowski, owner-driver of the No. 6 RFK Racing Ford, rounding out the top 10.

Session Notes

EchoPark Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway) is a classic drafting track where pack racing, tire management, and late-race strategy often decide the outcome. Qualifying speeds hovered near the 180 mph mark, consistent with the high-banked layout that favors momentum and clean air.

The session set the starting lineup for the 260-lap, 400.4-mile Quaker State 400, the 20th points race of the 2026 season and one of the final regular-season events before the playoffs. With seven races remaining in the regular season, the starting positions carry extra weight for drivers battling for Chase berths.

Race day schedule (Sunday, July 12):
– Gates open early afternoon
– Pre-race activities and driver intros in the evening
– Green flag at 7 p.m. ET

Blaney will lead the field to green Sunday night as he looks to convert another strong qualifying effort into a victory at one of NASCAR’s most unpredictable venues. Expect big packs, multiple lead changes, and potential late drama on the 1.54-mile oval.

Starting Lineup

Pos
No.
Driver
Team
Time
Speed (mph)
Behind

1
12
Ryan Blaney
BODYARMOR FLASH IV Ford
30.815s
179.912
-0.000s

2
22
Joey Logano
Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford
30.851s
179.702
-0.036s

3
5
Kyle Larson
HendrickCars.com Chevrolet
30.902s
179.406
-0.087s

4
3
Austin Dillon
Titan Risk Solutions Chevrolet
30.904s
179.394
-0.089s

5
7
Daniel Suárez
Freeway Insurance Chevrolet
30.910s
179.359
-0.095s

6
48
Alex Bowman
Ally Chevrolet
30.933s
179.226
-0.118s

7
9
Chase Elliott
NAPA Auto Parts/CHOA Chevrolet
30.937s
179.203
-0.122s

8
2
Austin Cindric
Menards/Quaker State Ford
30.939s
179.191
-0.124s

9
1
Ross Chastain
Moose Fraternity Chevrolet
30.976s
178.977
-0.161s

10
6
Brad Keselowski
BuildSubmarines.com Ford
31.019s
178.729
-0.204s

11
43
Erik Jones
Dollar Tree Toyota
31.027s
178.683
-0.212s

12
97
Shane van Gisbergen
SuperFile Chevrolet
31.031s
178.660
-0.216s

13
17
Chris Buescher
Kroger/Heinz Ketchup/Artesano Brioche Buns Ford
31.065s
178.465
-0.250s

14
77
Carson Hocevar
Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet
31.074s
178.413
-0.259s

15
47
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Clemco Chevrolet
31.080s
178.378
-0.265s

16
10
Ty Dillon
Grizzly Nicotine Pouches Chevrolet
31.083s
178.361
-0.268s

17
21
Josh Berry
eero Ford
31.095s
178.292
-0.280s

18
71
Michael McDowell
Delaware Life Chevrolet
31.100s
178.264
-0.285s

19
60
Ryan Preece
Solomon Plumbing Ford
31.109s
178.212
-0.294s

20
19
Chase Briscoe
Freebird Spring Water Toyota
31.112s
178.195
-0.297s

21
34
Todd Gilliland
Ruedebusch Development & Construction Inc. Ford
31.119s
178.155
-0.304s

22
23
Bubba Wallace
Columbia PFG/Academy Toyota
31.129s
178.098
-0.314s

23
54
Ty Gibbs
Monster Energy Toyota
31.149s
177.983
-0.334s

24
42
John Hunter Nemechek
Pye Barker Fire & Safety Toyota
31.176s
177.829
-0.361s

25
88
Connor Zilisch
Red Bull Chevrolet
31.199s
177.698
-0.384s

26
24
William Byron
HP Chevrolet
31.205s
177.664
-0.390s

27
16
AJ Allmendinger
Campers Inn RV Chevrolet
31.212s
177.624
-0.397s

28
11
Denny Hamlin
Sport Clips Haircuts Toyota
31.258s
177.363
-0.443s

29
35
Riley Herbst
Monster Energy Toyota
31.268s
177.306
-0.453s

30
33
Austin Hill
Bank OZK Chevrolet
31.284s
177.215
-0.469s

31
45
Tyler Reddick
Chumba Casino Toyota
31.306s
177.091
-0.491s

32
20
Christopher Bell
Rheem Toyota
31.319s
177.017
-0.504s

33
41
Cole Custer
Sysco/RaceTrac Chevrolet
31.323s
176.995
-0.508s

34
38
Zane Smith
Aaron’s Rent To Own Ford
31.331s
176.949
-0.516s

35
51
Cody Ware
Rocket Doctor Chevrolet
31.415s
176.476
-0.600s

36
4
Noah Gragson
Long John Silver’s Ford
31.463s
176.207
-0.648s

37
78
BJ McLeod
Pigeon Forge Racing Coaster Chevrolet
31.743s
174.653
-0.928s

38
66
Chad Finchum
Carters Royal Dispos-all Ford
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