Martin Truex Jr Takes Dover Pole as Joe Gibbs Racing Takes Over the Front Row

Published 05/12/2021, 4:10 PM EDT

This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series drivers visit the Dover International Speedway. Based on last weekend’s race results at Darlington, Martin Truex Jr starts on pole position, owing to his win. Alongside him, on the front row, is title rival and Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Denny Hamlin.

William Byron and Kyle Larson make up an all-Hendrick M0torsports second row. Meanwhile, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch start from 5th and 6th respectively. Completing the Top-10 are Ryan Blaney, defending champion Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and Chris Buescher.

All-JGR front row Sunday at Dover with Truex on the pole and Hamlin beside him. @NASCARONFOX pic.twitter.com/WhU0y6WCzl
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 12, 2021

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Next on the grid is Christopher Bell, followed by Tyler Reddick in 11th and 12th, respectively. Behind them are Ryan Newman, Austin Dillon, Brad Keselowski, and Alex Bowman. Finally, the rest of the Top-20 comprise Chase Briscoe, Matt DiBenedetto, Ross Chastain, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

How does everyone else line up behind Martin Truex Jr?

Michael McDowell and Bubba Wallace line up in 21st and 22nd place. Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez, Ryan Preece, and Corey LaJoie are next on the grid.

Finally, Anthony Alfredo, Kurt Busch, Justin Haley, and Cole Custer complete the Top-30. Rounding out the rest of the grid are BJ McLeod, Aric Almirola, James Davison, Cody Ware, Quin Houff, Garrett Smithley, and Josh Bilicki.

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With 3 wins under his belt, Martin Truex Jr will definitely be eager to get a rhythm going. However, Hamlin will be right up there to try to stop him and bag his first win of the season in the process.

There are also a number of other contenders who are itching to reach Victory Lane for the first time. Among them is Kevin Harvick, who enjoyed a 9-win season last year, though it did not yield a Cup Series title.

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Additionally, Chase Elliott will be hoping to bag a win to try to establish his bid for a title defense. It is quite unheard of for a champion to not win a race in the following season, not to mention a little embarrassing.

Martin Truex Jr Was Surprised on ‘How Long He Could Hold Off Denny Hamlin’ in a Loose Car at Dover

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Dhruv George is a senior Formula One and NASCAR analyst for EssentiallySports, having authored nearly 12000 articles spanning different sports like F1, NASCAR, Tennis, NFL, and eSports. He graduated with a PG Diploma in Journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications. Dhruv has also conducted interviews with F1 driver Pierre Gasly and Moto2 rider Tony Arbolino.