NASCAR Phoenix 2015 qualifying results: Kevin Harvick continues roll, wins pole

There was no denying Kevin Harvick, who continued his Phoenix dominance by winning the pole for Sunday’s race.

If it's Phoenix International Raceway, that means one thing: Kevin Harvick is the driver to beat. Which is exactly what unfolded during Friday qualifying for Sunday's NASCAR race.

Harvick -- the all-time Phoenix wins leader -- took the pole-position, posting an average speed of 140.751 mph. That topped Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray, Matt Kenseth and Ryan Newman and gave Harvick his first pole at the track, where he owns six victories.

Harvick emphasizes running well on tracks near his hometown of Bakersfield, Calif. Last season he dominated the fall Phoenix race, leading 82 percent of the laps to clinch a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup finale -- a championship Harvick ultimately won. And a week ago he won at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"This is a pretty special place," said Harvick. "All these west coast races are special, but this one in particular."

Harvick's supremacy isn't lost on the competition. During his post-qualifying media session, Logano jokingly asked Harvick to reveal his secret. Come Sunday, Logano is fully aware who the man to beat is.

"I don't know if you noticed his answer, the only was he can get beat is him screwing up," Logano said. "Sounds like it will take a mistake or crash or strategy call. Honestly, we work hard to make our cars faster than his and we have been getting closer."

Brad Keselowski, Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne (making his 400th career start) and Jeff Gordon completed the top-10 qualifiers. Phoenix is Busch's first race of the season after sitting out the first three weeks due to a suspension.

NASCAR banned Busch indefinitely following an incident where he allegedly assaulted a former girlfriend. On March 5, the Delaware Attorney General's office declined to charge Busch, citing lack of evidence. His suspension was lifted last week.

"Overall, it was just a pleasant day with overwhelming support from the team and the garage area," Busch said. "‘Glad you're back' is what I hear a lot of.

"I'm thankful to be back and to have this competitive car that I can put in the top-10 on the first day out."

Tanner Berryhill and Travis Kvapil were the only two entrants who failed to qualify.

CampingWorld.com 500

Position	Driver	Make	Speed
1	Kevin Harvick	Chevrolet	140.751
2	Joey Logano	Ford	140.543
3	Jamie McMurray	Chevrolet	140.422
4	Matt Kenseth	Toyota	140.072
5	Ryan Newman	Chevrolet	139.833
6	Brad Keselowski	Ford	139.817
7	Carl Edwards	Toyota	139.779
8	Kurt Busch	Chevrolet	139.665
9	Kasey Kahne	Chevrolet	139.643
10	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	139.535
11	Austin Dillon	Chevrolet	138.969
12	Kyle Larson	Chevrolet	138.755
13	David Ragan	Toyota	139.157
14	Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.	Ford	139.141
15	Martin Truex, Jr.	Chevrolet	138.884
16	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Chevrolet	138.814
17	Tony Stewart	Chevrolet	138.718
18	Brian Vickers	Toyota	138.654
19	Greg Biffle	Ford	138.515
20	Jimmie Johnson	Chevrolet	138.483
21	Paul Menard	Chevrolet	138.478
22	A.J. Allmendinger	Chevrolet	138.430
23	Danica Patrick	Chevrolet	138.297
24	Casey Mears	Chevrolet	137.862
25	Denny Hamlin	Toyota	137.562
26	Alex Bowman	Chevrolet	137.363
27	Sam Hornish, Jr.	Ford	137.211
28	Justin Allgaier	Chevrolet	136.674
29	David Gilliland	Ford	136.586
30	Clint Bowyer	Toyota	136.550
31	Michael Annett	Chevrolet	136.467
32	Aric Almirola	Ford	136.405
33	Landon Cassill	Chevrolet	136.266
34	Josh Wise	Ford	136.245
35	Matt DiBenedetto	Toyota	135.834
36	Trevor Bayne	Ford	135.675
37	Mike Bliss	Ford	135.110
38	Brett Moffitt	Ford	135.029
39	Cole Whitt	Ford	134.948
40	J.J. Yeley	Toyota	134.625
41	Jeb Burton	Toyota	134.409
42	Brendan Gaughan	Chevrolet	133.417
43	Alex Kennedy	Chevrolet	132.319

Source SBNation.com - All Posts http://ift.tt/1MzL9lt