Hendrick drivers lead Cup practice at Nashville
Even though the NASCAR Cup Series races at a new track this weekend, Hendrick Motorsports drivers still look like the ones to beat.
Teammates William Byron and Kyle Larson actually posted the same best average lap speed during Saturday’s 50-minute practice session at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway (161.081 mph).
Fellow Hendrick driver Chase Elliott ended up third (161.022 mph), while Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (159.600 mph) and Tyler Reddick (159.568 mph) rounded out the top-five.
Counting last weekend’s non-points All-Star Race, HMS drivers have won the past five races in the Cup series, with Larson leading the way during the stretch with three.
NASCAR is making its first return to this track in 10 years but the Cup series has never conducted a race on the 1.33-mile concrete oval.
Completing the top-10 in single-car speeds were Kurt Busch, Ross Chastain, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Newman and HMS driver Alex Bowman.
Among those drivers who ran at least 10 consecutive laps, Larson had the best average speed (157.488 mph). He was followed by Chastain and Kevin Harvick in that category.
| Cla | # | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Time | Gap | Interval | Mph |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 |  William Byron |
Chevrolet | 29 | 29.724 | 161.082 | ||
| 2 | 5 | Kyle Larson |
Chevrolet | 37 | 29.724 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 161.082 |
| 3 | 9 | Chase Elliott |
Chevrolet | 39 | 29.735 | 0.011 | 0.011 | 161.022 |
| 4 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
Chevrolet | 36 | 30.000 | 0.276 | 0.265 | 159.600 |
| 5 | 8 | Tyler Reddick |
Chevrolet | 36 | 30.006 | 0.282 | 0.006 | 159.568 |
| 6 | 1 | Kurt Busch |
Chevrolet | 24 | 30.033 | 0.309 | 0.027 | 159.425 |
| 7 | 42 | Ross Chastain |
Chevrolet | 34 | 30.035 | 0.311 | 0.002 | 159.414 |
| 8 | 11 | Denny Hamlin |
Toyota | 33 | 30.037 | 0.313 | 0.002 | 159.403 |
| 9 | 6 | Ryan Newman |
Ford | 24 | 30.066 | 0.342 | 0.029 | 159.250 |
| 10 | 48 | Alex Bowman |
Chevrolet | 27 | 30.102 | 0.378 | 0.036 | 159.059 |
| 11 | 14 | Chase Briscoe |
Ford | 19 | 30.105 | 0.381 | 0.003 | 159.043 |
| 12 | 10 | Aric Almirola |
Ford | 37 | 30.232 | 0.508 | 0.127 | 158.375 |
| 13 | 12 | Ryan Blaney |
Ford | 39 | 30.276 | 0.552 | 0.044 | 158.145 |
| 14 | 43 | Erik Jones |
Chevrolet | 15 | 30.301 | 0.577 | 0.025 | 158.015 |
| 15 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto |
Ford | 33 | 30.325 | 0.601 | 0.024 | 157.890 |
| 16 | 17 | Chris Buescher |
Ford | 34 | 30.401 | 0.677 | 0.076 | 157.495 |
| 17 | 22 | Joey Logano |
Ford | 37 | 30.421 | 0.697 | 0.020 | 157.391 |
| 18 | 37 | Ryan Preece |
Chevrolet | 25 | 30.447 | 0.723 | 0.026 | 157.257 |
| 19 | 7 | Corey Lajoie |
Chevrolet | 32 | 30.448 | 0.724 | 0.001 | 157.252 |
| 20 | 20 | Christopher Bell |
Toyota | 27 | 30.459 | 0.735 | 0.011 | 157.195 |
| 21 | 18 | Kyle Busch |
Toyota | 37 | 30.463 | 0.739 | 0.004 | 157.174 |
| 22 | 4 | Kevin Harvick |
Ford | 41 | 30.486 | 0.762 | 0.023 | 157.056 |
| 23 | 3 | Austin Dillon |
Chevrolet | 35 | 30.486 | 0.762 | 0.000 | 157.056 |
| 24 | 99 |  Daniel Suarez |
Chevrolet | 37 | 30.502 | 0.778 | 0.016 | 156.973 |
| 25 | 34 | Michael McDowell |
Ford | 37 | 30.513 | 0.789 | 0.011 | 156.917 |
| 26 | 2 | Brad Keselowski |
Ford | 20 | 30.569 | 0.845 | 0.056 | 156.629 |
| 27 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo | Ford | 37 | 30.610 | 0.886 | 0.041 | 156.419 |
| 28 | 23 | Bubba Wallace |
Toyota | 31 | 30.624 | 0.900 | 0.014 | 156.348 |
| 29 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. |
Toyota | 35 | 30.624 | 0.900 | 0.000 | 156.348 |
| 30 | 41 | Cole Custer |
Ford | 26 | 30.628 | 0.904 | 0.004 | 156.328 |
| 31 | 51 | J.J. Yeley |
Chevrolet | 22 | 30.858 | 1.134 | 0.230 | 155.162 |
| 32 | 53 | Garrett Smithley |
Chevrolet | 17 | 31.127 | 1.403 | 0.269 | 153.821 |
| 33 | 77 | Justin Haley |
Chevrolet | 32 | 31.151 | 1.427 | 0.024 | 153.703 |
| 34 | 78 | B.J. McLeod |
Ford | 16 | 31.538 | 1.814 | 0.387 | 151.817 |
| 35 | 52 | Josh Bilicki |
Ford | 16 | 31.545 | 1.821 | 0.007 | 151.783 |
| 36 | 00 | Quin Houff |
Chevrolet | 26 | 31.670 | 1.946 | 0.125 | 151.184 |
| 37 | 66 | Chad Finchum |
Toyota | 13 | 31.731 | 2.007 | 0.061 | 150.893 |
| 38 | 13 | David Starr |
Toyota | 18 | 32.165 | 2.441 | 0.434 | 148.857 |
| 39 | 15 | Joey Gase |
Chevrolet | 24 | 32.174 | 2.450 | 0.009 | 148.816 |
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