Bell Rings Up the Pole at Las Vegas

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LAS VEGAS, NV – RIS – Christopher Bell nudged Kyle Larson to win the pole position at the NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  With an average speed of 186.335 mph, Bell captured his sixth pole of the 2023 Cup season, the most of any driver. He will have the best view as the Round of 8 begins on Sunday (Oct. 15). Larson will start alongside him in second, while fellow playoff drivers William Byron, Martin Truex, Jr. and Chris Buescher completed the top five.

Larson, who had a near-miss in qualifying with a blistering tire, was just one-hundredth of a second slower than Bell in the second round of qualifying, which will earn him a spot on the outside of the front row, placing him just ahead of William Byron.

Kyle Busch was the highest non-playoff driver in sixth, followed by Bubba Wallace in seventh. Tyler Reddick, Joey Lagano and Ross Chastain rounded out the top ten.

Only two of the eight playoff drivers will start outside the top ten: Ryan Blaney in 12th and Denny Hamlin in 15th. Chase Elliott and Daniel Suarez both wrecked in practice and will go to backup cars. As such, they will start shotgun on the field after failing to post a qualifying lap.

The top two in points from last year, Joey Logano and Ross Chastain completed the top-10 in time trials and will start from ninth and 10th-place, chasing a victory after both being bounced from the post-season. Ryan Blaney (12th) and Denny Hamlin (15th) were the only two drivers still eligible for the NASCAR Cup Series championship who failed to advance into the final round of qualifying on Saturday.