In a surprising turn of events at the Phoenix Raceway, William Byron emerged as the hero of the day, securing the pole for the NASCAR Cup Series race. The final driver to make a qualifying effort, Byron thrilled spectators with a scorching lap of 133.680mph (26.930s), breaking a pole drought that stretched back to the spring of 2024 at the Circuit of The Americas.
In what marked his 14th career pole, it was a first for Byron at the Phoenix Raceway. Despite the win, he admitted to missing his marks, attributing his victory to a fast car and a committed team. “I was sideways. I just carried a ton of entry speed. I missed the middle of the corner, and just coming off the dogleg, I was so loose. But I was going to commit to the (corner) exits and see how much I could get out of them, even though I missed the center,” Byron shared with Prime.
Byron’s run kicked Joey Logano from the pole position. Logano clocked in at 133.195mph (27.028s), and will now share the front row with Byron. The top 10 was completed by Carson Hocevar, Josh Berry, Erik Jones, Chase Elliott, Michael McDowell, Justin Haley, Tyler Reddick, and Denny Hamlin.
The event proved a triumph for Spire Motorsports, with all three of their drivers – Hocevar, McDowell, and Haley – qualifying in the top 10. This success follows Hocevar and McDowell’s impressive performance in practice.
Christopher Bell, aiming for his third consecutive Cup Series victory, will start from the 11th position. Other qualifiers include Ryan Blaney at 12th, Chris Buescher at 13th, Austin Cindric 14th, and Kyle Busch at 15th. Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, and Brad Keselowski qualified 17th, 19th, and 20th respectively, while Ross Chastain managed 24th, Todd Gilliland 27th, Shane van Gisbergen 29th, and Chase Briscoe 30th.
Daniel Suarez, Alex Bowman, Ty Gibbs, and Katherine Legge, who is making her Cup Series debut, were among the late qualifiers. Fans can look forward to the Shriners Children’s 500 at 3:30 p.m. ET Sunday, where these drivers will compete for glory.
