Alex Bowman earns Daytona 500 pole, teammate Kyle Larson on front row

Last updated: 2023/02/16 at 4:28 PM

BigP Published February 16, 2023

Bob Pockrass

FOX NASCAR Insider

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Alex Bowman continued his record streak in Daytona 500 qualifying as he earned his sixth consecutive front-row starting spot for NASCAR’s biggest race.

Bowman won the 2023 Daytona 500 pole Wednesday night for his third career pole in the race, as Hendrick Motorsports swept the front row with Bowman teammate Kyle Larson qualifying second. Last year, Larson won the pole and Bowman was second.

The remainder of the Daytona 500 will be set by the 150-mile qualifying races — “the duels” — Thursday night.

Single-car speed at Daytona is typically attributed to car setup with driver having limited impact, mainly on getting the launch off pit road prior to the lap and hitting the shifts at the optimal time.

“I’d love to sit here and take a little bit of credit, … but it’s really all on the team guys,” Bowman said. “They get the job done.”

Hendrick Motorsports announced a contract extension for Bowman earlier Wednesday, who is in his sixth full Cup season with the team and now has a seat there through 2026.

One of the reasons he has the extension is his ability to go fast — something he’s proven at Daytona with his consistency in qualifying.

But there was a difference this year as he has a new crew chief in Blake Harris, who replaced Greg Ives as Ives opted for a new job at Hendrick Motorsports that required less travel.

“There’s a long season to go and I’m really looking forward to it,” Bowman said.

Bowman was fastest in both the first round of qualifying and the second round, which featured the fastest 10 cars from the first round to determine the Daytona 500 front row. His pole speed in the final round was 181.686 mph while Larson posted a lap of 181.057 mph.

Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including the past 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass, and sign up for the FOX Sports NASCAR Newsletter with Bob Pockrass.

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