NASCAR at Kansas 2019 Qualifying Results: Daniel Hemric Wins 1st Pole of Career

Daniel Hemric secured the first NASCAR Cup Series pole of his career Saturday for Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas.

Hemric beat out another surprising front-row starter in David Ragan to earn the honor. Here's a look at the full qualifying order, courtesy of NASCAR.com (time in seconds):

1. Daniel Hemric: 30.329

2. David Ragan: 30.364

3. Ryan Blaney: 30.379

4. Brad Keselowski: 30.394

5. Kyle Larson: 30.399

6. Michael McDowell: 30.408

7. Ryan Newman: 30.423

8. Daniel Suarez: 30.446

9. Austin Dillon: 30.448

10. Bubba Wallace: 30.452

11. Martin Truex Jr.: 30.464

12. Jimmie Johnson: 30.465

13. Aric Almirola: 30.476

14. Chase Elliott: 30.497

15. Kurt Busch: 30.518

16. Alex Bowman: 30.520

17. Matt Tifft: 30.544

18. Kyle Busch: 30.548

19. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: 30.573

20. Erik Jones: 30.575

21. Clint Bowyer: 30.605

22. Paul Menard: 30.612

23. Denny Hamlin: 30.631

24. Ty Dillon: 30.634

25. William Byron: 30.742

26. Chris Buescher: 30.803

27. Matt DiBenedetto: 30.879

28. Ryan Preece: 30.880

29. Joey Logano: 30.912

30. Landon Cassill: 31.004

31. Corey LaJoie: 31.086

32. Parker Kligerman: 31.277

33. Ross Chastain: 31.365

34. Reed Sorenson: 31.378

35. Garrett Smithley: 31.386

36. J.J. Yeley: 31.494

37. Josh Bilicki: 31.787

38. Timmy Hill: 32.079

39. Joey Gase: 33.190

40. Kevin Harvick: 0.000             

NASCAR on NBC provided a look at Hemric's winning qualifying run, which took place early in the session and required him to wait as several other top contenders had their shots:

Daniel McFadin of NASCAR on NBC noted that few could have predicted Hemric and Ragan would have fared so well:

Perhaps it shouldn't have come as a big surprise, though, considering Hemric had the fastest car in the final practice.

After nabbing the pole, Hemric discussed how much the accomplishment meant to him:

In his first full-time season as a Cup Series driver, Hemric has shown the potential to be a major player in the future. He is 25th in the points standings and has two top-10 finishes to his credit, including a fifth-place result at Talladega in April.

Saturday's qualifying session was a big one for those who aren't in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Among the top-10 qualifiers, only Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson are in the postseason.

This week marks an elimination race with a cutdown from 12 to eight. Currently, Alex Bowman, Chase Elliott, Clint Bowyer and William Byron are on the outside looking in.

Kevin Harvick is in sixth place and in line to advance, but he may have a tough road Sunday after an issue with the car prevented him from attempting to qualify:

Joey Logano, eighth in the standings and the champion last year, struggled to a 29th-place qualifying run, which could put him in jeopardy as well. Although he holds an 18-point lead over Bowman in ninth, there are now some concerns regarding how fast his car is.

With so many drivers outside of the playoff picture qualifying well, including Hemric, Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 could shake up the playoffs significantly.