Kyle Larson fastest, Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s engine fails in Pocono opening practice
There was just one 85-minute practice session Friday for the Pocono 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway, but it was a significant one. Call it “The Kyle & Kyle Show.”
On top of the board at the end of session was Kyle Larson’s No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet, which had a fast lap of 177.312 miles per hour. Larson time, turned late in the session, was tops among the 39 cars entered in the race.
Second fast was 2015 Cup champion Kyle Busch, who had a best lap of 177.235 mph in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Although he has yet to win in 2017, Busch looked pretty racy at Pocono.
Third was Busch’s JGR teammate Matt Kenseth, followed by the Fords of Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano.
The big news during practice was that Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has been red-hot at Pocono in recent years, suffered an uncharacteristic engine failure in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. That means he’ll start from the back of the grid on Sunday.
https://twitter.com/NASCARONFOX/status/873202328836349952
https://twitter.com/DaleJr/status/873217573848068096
The other big news was the Cup debut of Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr., who will drive the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford until Aric Almirola is fully recovered from the broken back he suffered in a crash last month at Kansas Speedway.
In his first Cup practice, Wallace was 19th on the charts, a good result for his first practice.
Last but not least, the Furniture Row Racing team had to change out the power steering pump on Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 78 Toyota, which spent a significant portion of the practice in the garage.
See below for full results from Friday's session.
