William Byron earns the Busch Pole Award for the Daytona 500; Hendrick sweeps front row

At 21 years old, William Byron became the second-youngest driver to win the pole for the Daytona 500, his No. 24 Chevrolet skyrocketing to the top of the speed charts with a blistering 194.305 mph in Sunday’s Busch Pole Qualifying at Daytona International Speedway.

“The Axalta Chevy was really fast,” Byron said. “Credit to (crew chief) Chad (Knaus) and all the guys. It’s been a great offseason. We’re prepared. We’re ready. This is kind of the first step of our process together, so hopefully it goes well next Sunday. We can kind of chill out throughout the Duel races and learn a little bit.

“I’m looking forward to it. This is awesome.”

The 2018 Sunoco Rookie of the Year, who will team with veteran crew chief Chad Knaus beginning this season, will start on the front row beside his teammate (and 2018 Daytona 500 pole-sitter) Alex Bowman, marking a sweep for Hendrick Motorsports and the youngest front row in Daytona 500 history with a combined age of 46. It also signified the fifth straight Daytona 500 Busch Pole for Hendrick Motorsports, which has won a historic 13 Daytona 500 poles, the most among teams.

Hendrick Motorsports’ other drivers Jimmie Johnson and Chase Elliott brought plenty of qualifying speed as well, posting the third- and fourth-fastest in the final round of qualifying. Johnson, Elliott and the rest of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series field will set their Daytona 500 spots in Thursday’s Gander RV Duels at Daytona (7 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The Duels will also determine which drivers go home.

MORE: Daytona 500 qualifying results

Several veteran drivers missed the final round of qualifying and did not have the opportunity to run for the Busch Pole, including Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch.

The top two fastest Open teams — Tyler Reddick’s No. 31 Chevrolet and Casey Mears’ No. 27 Chevrolet — locked into the Daytona 500 field via Sunday’s qualifying session. They can improve their starting position with a strong Duels performance, but have the option to fall back on their qualifying times should they experience a wreck or issues during the Duels.

The Monster Energy Series is back on track later today for the Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), its field consisting of 20 eligible drivers. Paul Menard, whose crew chief drew the top starting position on Saturday night, will lead the field to green.

The post William Byron earns the Busch Pole Award for the Daytona 500; Hendrick sweeps front row appeared first on Official Site Of NASCAR.