Kyle Busch wins third pole of 2018, will start first for Coca-Cola 600

Nick Bromberg
·College football and motorsports writer
Kyle Busch (18) drives his car during practice for the NASCAR Cup series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, N.C., Thursday, May 24, 2018. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)
Kyle Busch (18) drives his car during practice for the NASCAR Cup series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, N.C., Thursday, May 24, 2018. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Kyle Busch has a good starting spot as he chases his first Cup Series points win at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Busch posted the fastest lap in the second and third rounds of qualifying to get his third pole of the season on Thursday. He’ll start first ahead of Joey Logano, who beat Denny Hamlin for the second spot.

Busch’s third pole of the season ties him for the series lead with defending Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr. He joked after his qualifying run that it was credit to “pure talent” on his part and the part of the team, a reference to his comments after finishing second in last week’s Truck Series race.

Kevin Harvick, who leads the series with five wins, didn’t get to make a qualifying attempt. His car didn’t pass technical inspection and Harvick will start at the back of the pack for Sunday’s race. Harvick won the last points race (at Kansas) and won Saturday’s All-Star Race at Charlotte.

Busch won last season’s All-Star Race for his first Cup Series win at Charlotte. The 1.5-mile track is the only track Busch hasn’t won a points race at. If he wins Sunday night he’ll have Cup points victories at 23 different tracks.

Here’s the full starting lineup for Sunday night’s race:

1. Kyle Busch
2. Joey Logano
3. Denny Hamlin
4. Erik Jones
5. Brad Keselowski
6. Ryan Newman
7. Jamie McMurray
8. Ryan Blaney
9. Aric Almirola
10. Daniel Suarez
11. Kyle Larson
12. Austin Dillon
13. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
14. Paul Menard
15. Martin Truex Jr.
16. Kurt Busch
17. Matt Kenseth
18. Chris Buescher
19. David Ragan
20. Ty Dillon
21. William Byron
22. Chase Elliott
23. Jimmie Johnson
24. Darrell Wallace Jr.
25. Ross Chastain
26. Kasey Kahne
27. Alex Bowman
28. Clint Bowyer
29. Michael McDowell
30. AJ Allmendinger
31. Matt DiBenedetto
32. Parker Kligerman
33. Corey LaJoie
34. Gray Gaulding
35. Landon Cassill
36. Timmy Hill
37. Jeffrey Earnhardt
38. BJ McLeod
39. Kevin Harvick
40. JJ Yeley

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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.

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