Matt Kenseth has continued the strong qualifying form of Joe Gibbs Racing with pole position for the Pure Michigan 400.

Kenseth, the winner at Pocono two weeks ago, took the pole with a lap of 317.826 km/h (197.488 miles per hour).

It’s another good sign for the team as it has won five of the last seven races contested.

That was enough to eclipse teammate Denny Hamlin with another Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of Carl Edwards in third.

With a new, high-drag aerodynamic package similar to what was last month at Indianapolis, NASCAR opted for two rounds of single-car qualifying, rather than the typical group qualifying.

The new package had the desired effect of reducing speeds compared to last year’s qualifying record of 332.423 km/h (206.558 mph) set by Jeff Gordon.

Among the drivers who failed to advance to Round 2 were 2012 Cup champ Brad Keselowski (14th), June Michigan winner Kurt Busch (16th), defending race winner Jeff Gordon (21st) and Danica Patrick (23rd).

Aric Almirola was 30th-fastest in qualifying after sickness left him with only limited participation in Friday’s only practice session. Two-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton provided relief driving duties in the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Ford, but a rested Almirola suited up for time trials.

The only driver who didn’t qualify was Reed Sorenson.

QUALIFYING: Pure Michigan 400 – Michigan International Speedway

POS.	CAR #	DRIVER	MANUFACTURER	SPONSOR	MPH	TIME	BEHIND
1	20	Matt Kenseth		Dollar General	197.488	36.458	Leader
2	11	Denny Hamlin		FedEx Freight	196.990	36.550	–0.092
3	19	Carl Edwards		Arris	196.276	36.683	–0.225
4	3	Austin Dillon		Dow	195.918	36.750	–0.292
5	14	Tony Stewart		Mobil 1 / Bass Pro Shops	195.477	36.833	–0.375
6	18	Kyle Busch		Interstate Batteries	195.450	36.838	–0.380
7	4	Kevin Harvick		Jimmy John’s/ Budweiser	195.249	36.876	–0.418
8	48	Jimmie Johnson		LOWES	195.228	36.880	–0.422
9	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr		Microsoft	194.884	36.945	–0.487
10	22	Joey Logano		Shell Pennzoil	194.405	37.036	–0.578
11	5	Kasey Kahne		Farmers Insurance	194.133	37.088	–0.630
12	15	Clint Bowyer		5-Hour Energy	193.606	37.189	–0.731
13	55	David Ragan		Aaron’s Dream Machine Online Version	193.632	37.184	–0.726
14	2	Brad Keselowski		Miller Lite	193.554	37.199	–0.741
15	9	Sam Hornish Jr		Transportation Impact	193.476	37.214	–0.756
16	41	Kurt Busch		Haas Automation	193.309	37.246	–0.788
17	31	Ryan Newman		Caterpillar	193.309	37.246	–0.788
18	1	Jamie McMurray		Cessna/McDonald’s	193.149	37.277	–0.819
19	21	Ryan Blaney		Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center	193.128	37.281	–0.823
20	16	Greg Biffle		Ortho Ford Fusion	193.029	37.300	–0.842
21	24	Jeff Gordon		Pepsi	193.009	37.304	–0.846
22	78	Martin Truex Jr		Furniture Row/Visser Precision	192.921	37.321	–0.863
23	10	Danica Patrick		GoDaddy	192.771	37.350	–0.892
24	27	Paul Menard		Richmond/Menards	192.622	37.379	–0.921
25	6	Trevor Bayne		Advocare Ford Fusion	192.005	37.499	–1.041
26	47	AJ Allmendinger		Kroger/Scott’Products	191.826	37.534	–1.076
27	17	Ricky Stenhouse Jr		Zest Ford Fusion	191.586	37.581	–1.123
28	51	Justin Allgaier		Brandt	191.367	37.624	–1.166
29	26	Jeb Burton		Maxim/Estes	190.713	37.753	–1.295
30	43	Aric Almirola		Armour	190.527	37.790	–1.332
31	40	Landon Cassill		Snap Fitness	190.049	37.885	–1.427
32	83	Matt DiBenedetto		Cosmo Motors	190.049	37.885	–1.427
33	7	Alex Bowman		Advanced Patient Care	189.384	38.018	–1.560
34	42	Kyle Larson		Target	189.230	38.049	–1.591
35	35	Cole Whitt		Dockside Logistics LLC	189.091	38.077	–1.619
36	38	David Gilliland		MDS Transportation	188.927	38.110	–1.652
37	23	J.J. Yeley		Dr. Pepper	188.753	38.145	–1.687
38	34	Brett Moffitt		CSX Play It Safe	188.516	38.193	–1.735
39	46	Michael Annett		Pilot Flying J	187.980	38.302	–1.844
40	13	Casey Mears		No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet SS	186.533	38.599	–2.141
41	32	Josh Wise		SKUTTLE TIGHT	186.022	38.705	–2.247
42	33	Travis Kvapil		TBA	183.673	39.200	–2.742
43	98	Timmy Hill		Premium Motorsports	183.043	39.335	–2.877

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