Briscoe Gives Toyota First Daytona 500 Pole, Truex and Johnson Lock In

Chase Briscoe, driver of the #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota drives during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

In his first race with Joe Gibbs Racing since coming over from Stewart-Haas Racing, Chase Briscoe will start from the pole in Sunday’s Daytona 500. His lap of 182.745 mph was good enough to take the number one starting position away from the Ford of Team Penske’s Austin Cindric, giving Toyota its first pole position in NASCAR’s biggest race of the season.

“Yeah, they’ve done so much, it’s hard to do anything for the first time with Toyota,” said Briscoe.

“To be able to do it in my first race is super cool, super special. It means a lot to Toyota. Tyler Gibbs and everybody that came up to me after, you could see in their eyes how much it meant to them. Even for Coach (team owner Joe Gibbs), second-ever Daytona 500 pole. To be able to do that is really cool and really special.

“Yeah, it is the pole. We’d much rather win the race, but it’s neat regardless. Even this whole off-season, a lot of the emphasis at JGR has been to qualify better at superspeedways. They felt like that was the biggest area where they lacked.

“For them to be able to come here after qualifying 25th average last year, to come here and have three cars in the top 10, to have one on the pole, is just a testament to everybody there, just the amount of effort and prep work they put in.

“Yeah, I’m truthfully the lucky one that got to drive it tonight. It’s super special, for sure, for the first race to be on the pole.”

Austin Cindric, driver of the #2 Discount Tire Ford poses on track during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

For Cindric, the 2022 Daytona 500 winner, there is strength in numbers as his Penske teammate Joey Logano as well as Penske affiliated Wood Brothers Racing team Josh Berry also qualified in the top five.

“It’s huge,” said Cindric. “The consistency in the shop is something we’re super proud of. It would be different if there was one car in the front row and the rest of them didn’t make the top 10 into the second round. I think it says a ton about our race team. I think the transparency between teams, it’s something I feel like our company does really better than anybody else. We continue to show it at these types of racetracks.

“Certainly a level of pride that I feel like everybody that works hard together is able to look at.”

The only other drivers to lock themselves into the starting field for Sunday’s race based on speed were former Cup Series champions Martin Truex Jr. and Jimmie Johnson. Truex, who retired from full-time racing at the end of last season said it was a relief to not have to race his way into the 500 in Thursday night’s Duels.

“It’s huge. I think it’s speedway racing, so a lot can happen. You can have a great car, a great plan, execute a great race, and something can take you out of it. We can just go concentrate on working on our car for Sunday now, be smart about it tomorrow (Thursday) night if we need to be.

“A lot of people put a lot of effort and hard work into doing this,” added Truex. “You always like to see them enjoy the fruits of their labor.

“Get everybody at TRICON coming together with Toyota and JGR support, good collaboration. A lot of fun guys on our team that have been around a while. It’s going to be a fun week racing with them. Hopefully we can have a good week and be prepared for a great Sunday.”

For Johnson, now the majority team owner at Legacy Motor Club, it was a great weight lifted off his shoulders after the difficulties he faced in last year’s Duels.

“Yeah, it’s a big weight lifted off to say the least,” the 7-time series champ explained. “The experience I had last year, it’s been ringing through my brain at night. I’ve jumped out of bed a few times with some nightmares as this day got closer.

“We’re doing so much to turn Legacy Motor Club around, have it point in the right direction. The partnership with Carvana and bringing Shaquille O’Neal in, what’s in the days ahead, what we have planned, man, it would have really been a bummer to miss the race.

“Obviously there’s still a chance to race in tomorrow (Thursday), but so happy to have this behind us and not have to worry about it.”

Thursday night’s Duels will set starting positions 3-40. If 4-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves does not race his race into the field in his Duel, he will be granted a “world class driver” provisional and start 41st, a new and somewhat controversial rule inserted into the new charter agreement teams signed last September.