Qualifying report
NASCAR Cup Darlington II
Denny Hamlin earns Southern 500 pole as playoff drivers dominate
Hamlin led a dozen Playoff drivers at the front of the field for Sunday's crown jewel event at Darlington
Nick DeGroot
Edited: Aug 31, 2025, 4:04 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
In his 19th playoff appearance, Denny Hamlin earned pole position with a speedy 28.694s lap. He will share the front row with Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe, who was attempting’ to sweep qualifying at all four crown jewel races this year. He ended up 0.021s shy of accomplishing that feat, telling truTV: "that one will sting for a while" after just missing out.
"It turned," smiled Hamlin after qualifying. "We struggled with the balance all through race practice, so we made some good adjustments there to go one lap. I felt like it was really good. This Toyota did everything I needed it to do. It's awesome to come here and get a pole."
He went on to admit that the No. 11 team will have to "work on it" if he wants to convert this qualifying effort to a race win on Sunday. "Starting up front is certainly a big advantage. We'll go back, reset tonight, and we'll be stronger tomorrow."
Playoff underdog Josh Berry impressed, putting the No. 21 Wood Brothers Ford third on the grid. Tyler Reddick was fourth and Kyle Larson led the way for Hendrick Motorsports in fifth.
Ross Chastain qualified sixth, Christopher Bell seventh, Bubba Wallace eighth, Austin Dillon ninth, and Austin Cindric tenth.
Outside the top ten, William Byron timed in 11th, Ryan Blaney 12th, Joey Logano 14th, and Shane van Gisbergen 20th.
But the two slowest playoff drivers both came from HMS with Chase Elliott 21st and Alex Bowman 29th -- who is last in the standings -- 29th.
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Photo by: Logan Riely / Getty Images
Halfway through qualifying, it was Justin Haley who set the pace for Spire Motorsports with a 29.060s lap. One week ago, he earned his best finish of the year at Daytona, placing a close third in a last-ditch effort to win his way into the Playoffs. He ended up being the 'best of the rest' in 13th, leading the non-playoff drivers.
All of the title contenders go out at the end of qualifying during the final ten races of the year. Cindric was the first of those 16 drivers out on track, and he went to the top of the charts. Wallace was the first driver to break into the 28s, but he was knocked off the provisional pole soon after by his 23XI Racing teammate, Reddick.
Then came Briscoe, who went P1 with a blisteringly fast lap. But despite winning pole position for this year's Daytona 500, Coca Cola 600, and Brickyard 400, he was not going to be able to add the Southern 500 for a complete sweep. Close, but…
The veteran Hamlin used a fantastic run out of Turn 4 to snatch the top spot away, meaning for the first time since 2018, he’ll lead the field to green with pole position in the 2025 Southern 500.
Photos from Darlington - Practice & Qualifying
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
Darlington - Saturday, in photos
NASCAR Cup
46
Read Also:
NASCAR CupClose call for William Byron in Darlington Cup practice: "Wake up"
NASCAR CupWhich four drivers will be eliminated in the first round of NASCAR Playoffs?
NASCAR CupNASCAR, 23XI and Front Row reveal 'smoking gun' documents in explosive hearing
Cla Driver # Manufacturer Laps Time Interval Mph 1 D. HamlinJoe Gibbs Racing 11 Toyota 1
28.694
171.381 2 C. BriscoeJoe Gibbs Racing 19 Toyota 1
+0.021
28.715
0.021 171.255 3
J. BerryWood Brothers Racing
21 Ford 1
+0.135
28.829
0.114 170.578 4 T. Reddick23XI Racing 45 Toyota 1
+0.154
28.848
0.019 170.466 5 K. LarsonHendrick Motorsports 5 Chevrolet 1
+0.231
28.925
0.077 170.012 6 R. ChastainTrackHouse Racing 1 Chevrolet 1
+0.239
28.933
0.008 169.965 7 C. BellJoe Gibbs Racing 20 Toyota 1
+0.268
28.962
0.029 169.795 8 B. Wallace23XI Racing 23 Toyota 1
+0.291
28.985
0.023 169.660 9 A. DillonRichard Childress Racing 3 Chevrolet 1
+0.310
29.004
0.019 169.549 10 A. CindricTeam Penske 2 Ford 1
+0.329
29.023
0.019 169.438 11 W. ByronHendrick Motorsports 24 Chevrolet 1
+0.331
29.025
0.002 169.426 12 R. BlaneyTeam Penske 12 Ford 1
+0.338
29.032
0.007 169.386 13 J. HaleySpire Motorsports 7 Chevrolet 1
+0.366
29.060
0.028 169.222 14 J. LoganoTeam Penske 22 Ford 1
+0.386
29.080
0.020 169.106 15 C. BuescherRFK Racing 17 Ford 1
+0.388
29.082
0.002 169.094 16 T. GibbsJoe Gibbs Racing 54 Toyota 1
+0.433
29.127
0.045 168.833 17 D. SuarezTrackHouse Racing 99 Chevrolet 1
+0.478
29.172
0.045 168.573 18 C. CusterHaas Factory Team 41 Ford 1
+0.502
29.196
0.024 168.434 19 E. JonesLegacy Motor Club 43 Toyota 1
+0.522
29.216
0.020 168.319 20 S. van GisbergenTrackHouse Racing 88 Chevrolet 1
+0.529
29.223
0.007 168.278 21 C. ElliottHendrick Motorsports 9 Chevrolet 1
+0.532
29.226
0.003 168.261 22 A. AllmendingerKaulig Racing 16 Chevrolet 1
+0.540
29.234
0.008 168.215 23 K. BuschRichard Childress Racing 8 Chevrolet 1
+0.541
29.235
0.001 168.209 24 Z. SmithFront Row Motorsports 38 Ford 1
+0.551
29.245
0.010 168.152 25 C. HocevarSpire Motorsports 77 Chevrolet 1
+0.555
29.249
0.004 168.129 26 M. McDowellSpire Motorsports 71 Chevrolet 1
+0.555
29.249
0.000 168.129 27 R. PreeceRFK Racing 60 Ford 1
+0.560
29.254
0.005 168.100 28 T. GillilandFront Row Motorsports 34 Ford 1
+0.569
29.263
0.009 168.048 29 A. BowmanHendrick Motorsports 48 Chevrolet 1
+0.575
29.269
0.006 168.014 30 J. NemechekLegacy Motor Club 42 Toyota 1
+0.633
29.327
0.058 167.682 31 T. DillonKaulig Racing 10 Chevrolet 1
+0.644
29.338
0.011 167.619 32 B. KeselowskiRFK Racing 6 Ford 1
+0.707
29.401
0.063 167.260 33 R. Herbst23XI Racing 35 Toyota 1
+0.751
29.445
0.044 167.010 34 N. GragsonFront Row Motorsports 4 Ford 1
+0.817
29.511
0.066 166.636 35 R. Stenhouse JrHyak Motorsports 47 Chevrolet 1
+0.969
29.663
0.152 165.782 36 C. WareRick Ware Racing 51 Ford 1
+1.303
29.997
0.334 163.936 37 D. KrausNY Racing Team 44 Chevrolet 1
+1.757
30.451
0.454 161.492 38 T. HillGarage 66 66 Ford 1
+2.331
31.025
0.574 158.504
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Close call for William Byron in Darlington Cup practice: "Wake up"
Next article The official 2025 NASCAR Cup playoff grid after points reset
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Nick DeGroot
Nick Sanchez will compete for 2027 NASCAR Truck title with McAnally-Hilgemann
NASCAR Truck
NASCAR Truck
Homestead
17 h
Nick Sanchez will compete for 2027 NASCAR Truck title with McAnally-Hilgemann
Austin Cindric wins Ford Veterans Day Classic at Daytona
General
General 1 d
Austin Cindric wins Ford Veterans Day Classic at Daytona
9/11 after 25 years: How NASCAR went back racing following September 11 attacks
Feature
NASCAR Cup
Feature
NASCAR Cup 2 mo
9/11 after 25 years: How NASCAR went back racing following September 11 attacks
More from
Denny Hamlin
Hendrick Motorsports pokes fun at Denny Hamlin with Snickers photo: "That was all Rick"
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
2 d
Hendrick Motorsports pokes fun at Denny Hamlin with Snickers photo: "That was all Rick"
Winners and losers from a different NASCAR Cup finale at Homestead
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
3 d
Winners and losers from a different NASCAR Cup finale at Homestead
How Kyle Larson can lose the NASCAR Cup championship at Homestead
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Martinsville II
5 d
How Kyle Larson can lose the NASCAR Cup championship at Homestead
More from
Joe Gibbs Racing
Who won the teammate battles of NASCAR Cup 2026?
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
2 d
Who won the teammate battles of NASCAR Cup 2026?
NASCAR Cup Homestead starting lineup: Chase Briscoe snags pole over Hamlin
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
5 d
NASCAR Cup Homestead starting lineup: Chase Briscoe snags pole over Hamlin
Hamlin and Bell left with what could have been in NASCAR Chase
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
6 d
Hamlin and Bell left with what could have been in NASCAR Chase
Latest news
The Kimi Antonelli you don't know: Inside the Mercedes garage with F1's new world champion
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
35 min
The Kimi Antonelli you don't know: Inside the Mercedes garage with F1's new world champion
F1 driver contracts: How long is each driver tied down for?
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1 1 h
F1 driver contracts: How long is each driver tied down for?
IndyCar 2026 season review: ECR
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 16 h
IndyCar 2026 season review: ECR
Toto Wolff reflects on Mercedes’ non-title years: ‘We weren’t complete losers’
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
17 h
Toto Wolff reflects on Mercedes’ non-title years: ‘We weren’t complete losers’
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe