Chase sets the pace for NASCAR Cup field at Kansas
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Chase Briscoe set the pace again for the NASCAR Cup Series, earning his seventh pole of the 2025 season at Kansas Speedway.
Briscoe and Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin will lead the field to the green flag. All four JGR cars qualified in the top 10 with Christopher Bell and Ty Gibbs in fifth and eighth, respectively.
Some uncertainty remains after New Hampshire when Hamlin spun Gibbs during the race. Gibbs hasn’t commented on it, while Hamlin has called on JGR executives to step in.
Toyota, in general, had a great qualifying session. Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick qualified seventh and 12th, respectively. They’re looking for a big bounce back after finishing outside of the top 20 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
The other playoff drivers starting in the top 12 are Kyle Larson (third), Chase Elliott (fourth), Ross Chastain (ninth) and William Byron (11th). Larson and Byron were second and third in practice and showed good pace on the long run.
Carson Hocevar starts best among the non-playoff drivers. Gibbs (eighth) and Erik Jones (10th, also in a Toyota) are the other non-playoff drivers starting in the top 10.
On the other hand, Saturday wasn’t as good for Team Penske.
Ryan Blaney will start last — 37th — after he blew a tire and crashed in practice — and didn’t get to turn a qualifying lap.
Starting two positions ahead of Blaney is Joey Logano. He also blew a tire in practice and got some damage, which may have factored into his qualifying time being 1.551 seconds off of Briscoe ‘s pole time.
Teammate Austin Cindric wasn’t much better, qualifying 26th — about six tenths off of Briscoe.
Blaney is already locked into the Round of 8 but Logano and Cindric aren’t. Logano is 24 points above the cutline while Cindric is 19 points below it.
NASCAR Cup Series at Kansas Speedway Starting Lineup
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com