NASCAR at Pocono 2014: Race Order, Final Times and Twitter Reaction

Kyle Larson set a qualifying speed record at Pocono Raceway to take pole position in Friday's qualifying for the Sprint Cup Series GoBowling.com 400.

As always, it takes some deft maneuvering to handle the Tricky Triangle in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Nobody did that better than Larson, who paced the field at an astounding 183.438 miles per hour, narrowly edging out Joey Logano by .008 seconds.

Larson, a very promising rookie, is currently 12th in the Sprint Cup Series standings; he can make huge gains at Pocono on Sunday if he can handle the track like he did in qualifying.

Here is the race order and final times from Friday's qualifying session.

Position	Car	Driver	Best Time
1	42	Kyle Larson	49.063
2	22	Joey Logano	49.071
3	2	Brad Keselowski	49.261
4	41	Kurt Busch	49.272
5	24	Jeff Gordon	49.285
6	4	Kevin Harvick	49.426
7	18	Kyle Busch	49.445
8	1	Jaime McMurray	49.446
9	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	49.521
10	10	Danica Patrick	49.547
11	3	Austin Dillon	49.558
12	5	Kasey Kahne	49.647
13	11	Denny Hamlin	49.680
14	15	Clint Bowyer	49.681
15	55	Brian Vickers	49.765
16	14	Tony Stewart	49.802
17	48	Jimmie Johnson	49.861
18	20	Matt Kenseth	49.924
19	78	Martin Truex Jr.	49.963
20	47	AJ Allmendinger	50.004

Full list of race times and results can be found at NASCAR.com.

Reaction  

Larson's blistering time not only set a course record, but it proved to be a personal triumph in another way via the Pocono Raceway Twitter account:

Fox Sports' NASCAR account showed Larson's wry smile after taking pole position with his fantastic time:

Larson was definitely proud of coming through with an excellent time on Friday.

"To get a pole here, my first ‘real’ pole feels great,” Larson said, via Jim Utter of The Charlotte Observer. “To come to the ‘Tricky Triangle’ like this, there is no other race track like it. It’s fun because you get to shift and hit your marks."

As noted, Logano was just barely edged out by Larson's miraculous time. However, he was very consistent on the track, and writer Seth Livingstone noted that he had the fastest time over the first two rounds:

Jeff Gordon finished fifth in qualifying, but he noted during interviews on the day that his back was still causing him pain. Via ESPN's Marty Smith:

NASCAR Stats noted that Dale Earnhardt Jr. briefly held the fastest lap in qualifying:

Earnhardt Jr. will be looking for a sweep of sorts at the Pocono Raceway, having won at this track earlier in the season. If he can complete the feat, he will be the first driver to win both Pocono races since Denny Hamlin in 2006, per The Associated Press.

Larson's start should have the rest of the field on notice. The Tricky Triangle, with its differing banking angles on the turns and unique course design, is always an intriguing race in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

However, racers like Gordon, Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski—who are ahead of Larson in the standings—also fared well in qualifying and should make things difficult for him on Sunday.

Still, taking the pole and then a first win at Pocono would be an excellent early boost for the young Larson's career.