Brandon Jones Earns 5th Career Pole For Xfinity Race At Darlington

Brandon Jones won the pole for the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Darlington Raceway Saturday (Sept. 3), posting a fast lap of 165.453 mph.

Jones earned his fifth career pole and second of the season.

Noah Gragson just missed the top spot and will slot in second next to Jones on the front row. Richard Childress Racing teammates Sheldon Creed and Austin Hill make up the second row, while Jones’ Joe Gibbs Racing cohort Ty Gibbs rounds out the top five.

Justin Allgaier, who was quickest in practice, starts sixth, and Kyle Larson is seventh. Riley Herbst begins eighth, with Kaulig Racing colleagues Landon Cassill and Daniel Hemric completing the top-10 starting positions.

At least three drivers didn’t make a lap in qualifying: Christopher Bell, Anthony Alfredo and Chad Finchum. Bell’s engine over-revved when he went from third gear to second in practice, so the team changed engines. Denny Hamlin was originally slated to compete in this race but had some lingering soreness from a Daytona International Speedway crash and opted to sit out.

Finchum had a bent upper control arm after he made contact with the wall in the 20-minute practice session. As a result, Finchum did not qualify for the race.

The Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 airs at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network, the NBC Sports App, Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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