Shane van Gisbergen earns pole position for NASCAR All-Star Open

Qualifying on All-Star Race weekend is unique within NASCAR. Drivers will complete a full lap at speed before diving onto pit road for a four-tire pit stop in the middle of the second lap. At the end of that lap, the entire time it took from start to finish of the run is each driver’s qualifying time — and yes, there are penalties for things such as loose wheels and speeding in the pit lane.

The first drivers on track were the 18 selected for the All-Star Open, which is the race to make the main event. The top-two finishers will advance into the All-Star Race with a third joining them as the Fan Vote recipient.

Well, one of the drivers currently ranked in the top five for the Fan Vote — Shane van Gisbergen — went out and put his No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet on pole position. SVG appeared to gain most of his time while braking into the pit lane, but having a fast pit crew helped as well.

“Yeah, I think we finally got all the things right,” said van Gisbergen, who had never even seen this track before today. “Qualifying has been a weakness. My lap was pretty good, coming in was good, pit stop guys were insane so really good for them. Thanks to WeatherTech, thanks to the Trackhouse pit crew, and we’re up front for tomorrow.

“I’ve never started at the front for an oval so I don’t know what to do there. I have to learn the rules and see how we go.”

In the Cup Series, the New Zealander’s best start on an oval is 17th, which came at Talladega Superspeedway last year. He will be joined on the front row by Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar, who is also one of the top five drivers in the Fan Vote right now.

Noah Gragson qualified third, Michael McDowell fourth, and Ryan Preece fifth. Zane Smith, Justin Haley, John Hunter Nemechek, Ty Gibbs, and Ty Dillon filled out the remainder of the top ten.

Later on, Brad Keselowski earned pole position for the All-Star Race while McDowell’s pit crew won the Pit Crew Challenge. 

Photos from All-Star Race – Practice