“First time ever,” Truex told FS1 after qualifying. “It’s definitely really cool, just proud of everybody.”
Kyle Busch qualified second as he will pursue his fourth victory in Fontana while Kyle Larson was third. Kevin Harvick, who will go for his fourth straight win to start the year managed to break the course record in the first round with a time of 38.147 seconds, but will start 10th after he struggled on his final qualifying lap.
Chase Elliott was not so lucky. As good as he was last week finishing third in Phoenix, the 22-year-old failed to pass tech and was unable to put out a time on the track. He is one of the favorites to win the race, but if he does so it will have to be a come-from-behind effort.
Failing inspection was a theme of the day though as 13 drivers failed to record a time. Jimmie Johnson, who is the all-time win leader in Fontana, did not record a time. In fact, all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers failed to pass inspection.
The Auto Club 400 starts at 3:30 p.m. (ET) Sunday, on Fox.
Starting lineup for the Auto Club 400
- Martin Truex Jr.2. Kyle Busch3. Kyle Larson4. Erik Jones5. Austin Dillon6. Joey Logano7. Kurt Busch8. Ryan Blaney9. Ryan Newman10. Kevin Harvick11. Brad Keselowski12. Chris Buescher13. Trevor Bayne14. Paul Menard15. Jamie McMurray16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.17. Ty Dillon18. Matt DiBenedetto19. Darrell Wallace Jr.20. Gray Gaulding21. David Ragan22. Michael McDowell23. Jeffrey Earnhardt24. Reed Sorenson25. Denny Hamlin26. Clint Bowyer27. Aric Almirola28. Alex Bowman29. William Byron30. Daniel Suarez31. Chase Elliott32. AJ Allmendinger33. Jimmie Johnson34. Kasey Kahne35. Timmy Hill36. Ross Chastain37. Cole Whitt
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