Chase Briscoe secured the pole position for the NASCAR Cup Series season finale, putting Joe Gibbs Racing ahead before the green flag drops on Sunday. The No. 19 Toyota driver posted a lap of 166.687 mph to edge his teammate Denny Hamlin by a razor-thin 0.017 seconds, per Motorsport.com NASCAR Cup. The result follows a year in which the team often struggled in qualifying, and Briscoe secured the win at a crucial moment. The 267-lap race at Homestead-Miami Speedway will decide the 2026 champion, and starting from the front row is the best possible spot to control the pace.
A Tight Pack for the Title
Three drivers remain in the championship battle, and their starting spots are closely grouped. According to Motorsport.com NASCAR Cup, Kyle Larson, who leads the points, will start fourth and requires only eight stage points to secure his third title. His closest rival, Christopher Bell, qualified sixth and trails by 67 points. Denny Hamlin is second on the front row but faces a steep climb, 70 points behind Larson with 76 points available in the race. Briscoe, who is out of title contention, stated “Yeah, our car was really good yesterday in practice too,” when discussing the speed his team found on Friday. Hamlin admitted he lost the pole by “trying to save the tires a little bit too much coming to the green,” which cost him the top spot by a fraction of a second.
Brad Keselowski’s Final Bow
The starting grid also marks a sad end for Brad Keselowski in his final race as a driver and co-owner for RFK Racing. Keselowski lost control of his car at the exit of Turn 4 during qualifying and spun into the inside wall, leaving him starting in the 40th and final position. “The track’s really, really slick,” said Keselowski afterward, explaining the difficult conditions that led to his crash. He added that he “Was trying to find a place that had some grip” but simply could not find it, noting, “Wish i could have that one back, but just trying to find something to be as fast as i could be.” His misfortune highlights the unforgiving nature of the 1.5-mile oval where grip is scarce.
Sunday, Nov. 8, at 3 p.m. is the scheduled time for the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series championship race.
