Rookie Kyle Larson will start off pole at Richmond after rain swept the 0.75-mile oval just prior to qualifying.
A heavy shower and severe thunderstorm warning meant the grandstands were emptied and all personnel took cover. Larsen awarded the pole after setting the fastest time in the two practice sessions held earlier in the day.
A strong band of storms hit the track around 4pm local time, just over an hour before Coors Light qualifying. Rain has been following NASCAR in 2014 with Texas postponed a day and delays at Daytona and Bristol for the Sprint Cup, plus the Truck Series was postponed a day last week at Martinsville.
Rounding out the top-10 for the Toyota Owners 400 is Brad Kesleowski, Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick, Brian Vickers, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Truex, Paul Menard and Jimmie Johnson.
Australia's Marcos Ambrose will start 11th for the Saturday night race which is expected to run without delays as the weather forecast is for mild weather and only a five percent chance of rain.
STARTING LINE-UP: Toyota Owners 400 – Richmond International Raceway
POS | Car # | Driver | Make | Sponsor |
1 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chevrolet | AXE PEACE |
2 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | Detroit Genuine Parts |
3 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Toyota | AAA Insurance |
4 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Chevrolet | Farmers Insurance |
5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet | Outback Steak House |
6 | 55 | Brian Vickers | Toyota | Aaron's Dream Machine |
7 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chevrolet | McDonald's |
8 | 83 | Ryan Truex | Toyota | VooDoo BBQ & Grill Toyota Camry |
9 | 27 | Paul Menard | Chevrolet | Certain Teed / Menards |
10 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | Kobalt Tools |
11 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Ford | STANLEY/ ACE/ CMN |
12 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Toyota | Home Depot Husky |
13 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr | Chevrolet | National Guard |
14 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger | Chevrolet | Bush's Grillin Beans |
15 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Ford | Smithfield Foods |
16 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Ford | FordAlwaysRacing.com |
17 | 22 | Joey Logano | Ford | Shell Pennzoil |
18 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Chevrolet | Quicken Loans |
19 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | M&M's |
20 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 |
21 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Chevrolet | Haas Automation |
22 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr | Chevrolet | Furniture Row |
23 | 7 | Michael Annett | Chevrolet | Pilot / Flying J Chevrolet |
24 | 23 | Alex Bowman | Toyota | Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry |
25 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | Drive to End Hunger |
26 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Ford | Scotch |
27 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Chevrolet | Dow |
28 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | FedEx Ground |
29 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr | Ford | Nationwide |
30 | 35 | David Reutimann | Ford | MDS Transport |
31 | 51 | Justin Allgaier | Chevrolet | BRANDT Professional Agriculture |
32 | 32 | Travis Kvapil | Ford | Keen Parts |
33 | 38 | David Gilliland | Ford | LONG JOHN SILVERS |
34 | 13 | Casey Mears | Chevrolet | No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet SS |
35 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Chevrolet | GoDaddy |
36 | 36 | Reed Sorenson | Chevrolet | TBA |
37 | 34 | David Ragan | Ford | Taco Bell |
38 | 33 | David Stremme | Chevrolet | Newtown Building Supplies |
39 | 98 | Josh Wise | Chevrolet | Phil Parsons Racing |
40 | 26 | Cole Whitt | Toyota | Scorpyd |
41 | 66 | Joe Nemechek | Toyota | Virginia Farm Bureau |
42 | 30 | J.J. Yeley | Chevrolet | Phoenix Warehouse |
43 | 40 | Landon Cassill | Chevrolet | Atlantic Plumbing & Utilities |