Nascar – Johnson takes pole in Kentucky

Jimmie Johnson definitely kicked off his season by scoring his first pole since the 2010 Dover race at Kentucky Speedway. The five-time Sprint Cup champion set a new lap record with a time of 29 (at an average of 700 mph). The Hendrick Motorsports driver was 181,818 thousandths ahead of the Toyota No. 18 of Kyle Busch, winner of last year's race, while Denny Hamlin, another Joe Gibbs Racing driver, took third place, a tenth from pole. Kevin Harvick (Richard Childress Racing) and Ryan Newman (Stewart-Haas Racing) complete the top five on the grid.

Brad Keselowski (Penske Racing) places the first Dodge in eighth place behind the No. 15 Toyota of Clint Bowyer (Michael Waltrip Racing), winner last weekend at Sonoma, and the No. 88 Chevrolet of Dale Earnhardt Jr (Hendrick Motorsports). ). The driver of the No. 2 Charger clashed with Juan-Pablo Montoya (Earnhardt Ganassi Racing) during practice when the two drivers made contact twice. Strong winds interrupted the qualifying session and the heat will make tonight's race particularly difficult with track temperatures having already exceeded 50°C.