NASCAR at Watkins Glen 2017 Qualifying Results: Kyle Busch Wins Pole Position

A day after winning the Xfinity Series Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen International, Kyle Busch won the pole for Sunday's I Love New York 355 in the Monster Energy Cup Series.

He posted a top time of 69.490 seconds and a top speed of 126.925 mph during qualifying, per NASCAR.com. It is Busch's third consecutive pole.

"That was pretty good," he said after qualifying, per the Associated Press (h/t USA Today). "We'll see how it goes if we can keep it up front."

"This car is fast," he added, per Jim Utter of Motorsport.com. "Starting up front is one thing, maintain is another. We saw that yesterday [in the Xfinity race]. All things considered, having the speed is good and sitting on the pole again is great for us."

You can see the rest of the field below:

• 2. Kyle Larson (126.249 mph)
• 3. Martin Truex Jr. (125.763 mph)
• 4. Chase Elliott (125.584 mph)
• 5. Daniel Suarez (125.453 mph)
• 6. Erik Jones (125.437 mph)
• 7. AJ Allmendinger (125.368 mph)
• 8. Brad Keselowski (125.334 mph)
• 9. Jamie McMurray (124.988 mph)
• 10. Jimmie Johnson (124.026 mph)
• 11. Denny Hamlin (125.227 mph)
• 12. Clint Bowyer (125.099 mph)
• 13. Joey Logano (124.897 mph)
• 14. Michael McDowell (124.876 mph)
• 15. Matt Kenseth (124.814 mph)
• 16. Ryan Blaney (124.775 mph)
• 17. Chris Buescher (124.707 mph)
• 18. Kurt Busch (124.700 mph)
• 19. Kasey Kahne (124.691 mph)
• 20. Kevin Harvick (124.682 mph)
• 21. Paul Menard (124.566 mph)
• 22. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (124.471 mph)
• 23. Ryan Newman (124.336 mph)
• 24. Ty Dillon (124.012 mph)
• 25. Danica Patrick (123.943 mph)
• 26. Cole Whitt (123.943 mph)
• 27. Austin Dillon (123.647 mph)
• 28. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (123.457 mph)
• 29. Aric Almirola (123.260 mph)
• 30. Trevor Bayne (122.995 mph)
• 31. David Ragan (122.127 mph)
• 32. Landon Cassill (121.628 mph)
• 33. Brett Moffitt (120.395 mph)
• 34. Gary Klutt (120.391 mph)
• 35. Boris Said (119.130 mph)
• 36. Corey Lajoie (118.749 mph)
• 37. Matt DiBenedetto (117.930 mph)

Despite his qualifying speed, however, Hamlin might start toward the back due to some issues with his car, per NASCAR: 

Of course, Hamlin might not even run the race, as his girlfriend could give birth to his second child on Sunday. Hamlin has already said he would leave the track were he to get word that she went into labor, per Nate Ryan of NBC Sports.

Earnhardt, meanwhile, was upfront about the struggles he's faced over the weekend: 

As for how qualifying could affect the playoff picture, Kenseth finds himself three places behind Bowyer on Sunday. Kenseth currently holds a 17-point lead over Bowyer for the final postseason berth, making for a fascinating subplot between the two and the other drivers trying to close the gap on Kenseth.

Everyone will be chasing Busch, however, as he looks to build on last week's win at Pocono and his triumph on Saturday.