Kyle Larson wins pole position at NASCAR Cup Series street race in downtown Chicago

CHICAGO – Kyle Larson won the pole for the NASCAR Cup Series street race in downtown Chicago, beating Ty Gibbs by a hundredth of a second.

Larson posted a fast lap of 87.836 seconds and a top speed of 90.168 mph during Saturday’s second qualifying round on the 2.2-mile, 12-turn track. Gibbs was next at 87.846 seconds and 90.158 mph.

Larson is seeking his fourth win of the season and will be making his 350th Cup Series start. The Hendrick Motorsports driver has five pole positions this year and 21 in his career.

“This year, qualifying, I mean racing, has been a strength, but we’ve been able to execute qualifying successfully and get five poles so far,” said Larson, who leads the Cup Series drivers’ standings ahead of Sunday’s Grant Park 165. “That’s something special. So, yeah, hopefully we can keep that up and keep our pace in the races as well.”

Michael McDowell (90.141 mph) qualified third, followed by Tyler Reddick (89.923) in fourth. Shane van Gisbergen (89.813) completed the top five after winning the race last year.

“We have a tough battle ahead of us tomorrow,” said McDowell. “We have a fast car and a good chance to improve our performance and put ourselves in a position to win.”

Larson also had the fastest car in training. He finished fourth in the opening race a year ago.

To learn more about a difficult, unfamiliar track, he also took part in the Xfinity Series on Saturday.

“I definitely feel like I’m in better rhythm in the Cup car,” he said. “I think it’s just more balanced in most corners. The Xfinity car just has smaller tires and stuff, it just has less grip. So a little bit more bite.”

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