The NASCAR Sprint Cup series stops in Las Vegas this weekend for the Kobalt Tools 400. The green flag drops at 3pm eastern on FOX. Matt Kenseth sits on the pole after setting a track record in qualifying turning in a 188.88 mph hour lap. It was the first pole Kenseth has won since 2009 and only the fifth of his 12 year career.
Five in 12 years? That's a little better than I thought," Kenseth said. "Qualifying is not my strong suit but I knew we had a really fast car. Honestly this is the most nervous I have been before qualifying in probably five years because I knew we had a shot at the pole. I didn't want to mess up a fast car."
Kenseth is one of the four Fords that make up the top four qualifying slots. Mark Martin, who won the Nationwide race yesterday starts in the 10th position. The Las Vegas Motorspeedway has always been a strong track for Jeff Gordon, who snapped his 66 race winless streak last week. Gordon has finished 6th or better in five of his last 6 races in Vegas.
As with anything in Vegas, betting is sure to be heavy on the Spring Cup series this week. Reigning 5 time NASCAR champ Jimmie Johnson comes in as the favorite at 9-2 followed by Carl Edwards (who qualified 3rd) at 5-1, Kyle Busch 6-1, Denny Hamlin 8-1 & Jeff Gordon at 10-1.
Here's the full starting lineup for the Kobalt Tools 400