The stage is set for the Great American Race, and history has already been made before the green flag drops. Chase Briscoe and Austin Cindric locked down the Daytona 500 front row, with Briscoe snatching his first career Daytona 500 pole—and delivering Toyota’s first-ever pole at the event.
🔥 Briscoe’s Flying Lap: 182.745 mph (49.249 sec)
🚀 Cindric’s Speed: 182.463 mph
Briscoe, now driving for Joe Gibbs Racing in the No. 19 Toyota, couldn’t contain his excitement after securing his third career Cup Series pole and his first in the season opener.
Briscoe Reacts to Pole-Winning Moment
“A great way to start our season,” Briscoe said. “Unbelievable way to start off the year. Unbelievable way to start off with Toyota. To be able to be the guy to deliver them the first anything when they’ve already accomplished so much is pretty cool.”
Briscoe’s superspeedway struggles in the past made this accomplishment even sweeter.
“The whole off-season, everybody kept telling me the focus was trying to qualify better at superspeedways. That’s something I really struggled at last year. For our 19 group to come here and sit on the pole at the biggest race of the year is pretty special.”
For Austin Cindric, securing a front-row starting position for Team Penske is a crucial step toward his bid for a second Daytona 500 victory.
“It’s pretty good to start on the front row with one of my good friends,” Cindric said. “Every single part of this weekend is important to setting up with an opportunity to win this race on Sunday.”
TOP 10 Qualifiers for the Daytona 500
1️⃣ Chase Briscoe (Toyota) – 182.745 mph
2️⃣ Austin Cindric (Ford) – 182.463 mph
3️⃣ Ryan Preece (Ford)
4️⃣ Joey Logano (Ford)
5️⃣ Josh Berry (Ford)
6️⃣ Denny Hamlin (Toyota)
7️⃣ Austin Dillon (Chevy)
8️⃣ Christopher Bell (Toyota)
9️⃣ Ty Dillon (Chevy)
🔟 Kyle Larson (Chevy)
Briscoe and Cindric are locked into row one, while the rest of the field will determine their starting positions in Thursday night’s Twin Duels.
Who’s Locked In? Truex Jr. & Jimmie Johnson Secure Open Spots
Two non-chartered “Open” drivers have officially earned their way into the Daytona 500 field based on qualifying speed:
✅ Martin Truex Jr. (22nd fastest overall)
✅ Jimmie Johnson (29th fastest overall)
Meanwhile, Helio Castroneves, despite struggling to 39th in qualifying, has the Open Exemption Provisional in his back pocket and will make the race regardless of his Duel result.
What’s Next? Twin Duel Races Set for Thursday Night
🔥 Thursday Night Duel Races at 7 p.m. ET 🔥
- The two Duel races will finalize the full starting lineup for Sunday’s Daytona 500.
- Briscoe & Cindric are locked into the front row, but everyone else’s starting spot is on the line.
- Open drivers Ty Dillon, JJ Yeley, and Chandler Smith must race their way into the field or risk going home.
