Johnny Sauter will kick off the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season by leading the field to green. He won the pole for the NextEra Energy 250 at Daytona International Speedway after setting a qualifying time of 49.733 seconds at 180.966 mph earlier on Friday. It is his ninth career pole in the series and first on a superspeedway.
The pole marks a strong start to 2021 for Sauter and his ThorSport Racing team, who returned to using Toyota trucks after three years with Ford. Toyotas dominated the series’ only practice on Thursday as they occupied all but one of the top ten spots on the chart; Sauter was third quickest. Rookie and practice leader Chandler Smith qualfied sixth.
While it is his first pole at Daytona, it will be his fourth front-row starting position in the track’s races, having started second for three straight seasons from 2016 to 2018. He has also won three times at the track, the first of which in 2013 was with ThorSport. The other two in 2016 and 2018 came with GMS Racing, who enjoyed a solid qualifying effort of their own as reigning champion Sheldon Creed was the second fastest.
Creed was the first to break the 180-mph mark at 180.288 before being surpassed by Sauter. Their team-mates Grant Enfinger—the 2020 Daytona race winner—and rookie Chase Purdy qualified third and fourth, respectively, which provides the front row with immediate drafting partners for the race.
“You just have that feeling sometimes when you can push, when you don’t really have the help behind you that you need but you still can get there. I kinda felt that yesterday,” Sauter told FS1. “We all know qualifying here doesn’t have a lot to do with the driver, so just proud of everybody’s effort.
“It’s cool to start on the pole, I think Grant is third so I got a good pusher there. Hopefully we can set sail and try to stay out of trouble tonight and get a win.”
Forty-six drivers attempted to make the thirty-six-truck field (for races without qualifying, forty drivers will be allowed). The ten who failed to make the lineup were Parker Kligerman, Joe Nemechek, Todd Peck, Spencer Davis, Dawson Cram, Norm Benning, Jesse Iwuji, Ray Ciccarelli, Clay Greenfield, and Tim Viens. Nemechek, Peck, Davis (2019), Benning, Ciccarelli, Greenfield, and Viens (2017) also DNQ’d in their previous attempts at Daytona.
Various drivers suffered misfortunes during the session. After his Thursday practice was plagued by numerous mechanical issues, Greenfield’s woes continued when his truck slowed to a stop in turn four. James Buescher, who returned to NASCAR last season after a five-year hiatus, had his time disallowed after going below the double-yellow line, but the 2012 champion made the field via provisional for former title winners. In an especially bizarre incident, the #83 of Viens lost its driveshaft as crewmen pushed it through pit road. Viens did not practice on Thursday.
Qualifying results
Position | Number | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Best Time | Best Speed (mph) |
1 | 13 | Johnny Sauter | ThorSport Racing | Toyota | 49.733 | 180.966 |
2 | 2 | Sheldon Creed | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 49.920 | 180.288 |
3 | 98 | Grant Enfinger | ThorSport Racing | Toyota | 50.012 | 179.957 |
4 | 23 | Chase Purdy | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 50.015 | 179.946 |
5 | 24 | Raphaël Lessard | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 50.069 | 179.752 |
6 | 18 | Chandler Smith | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Toyota | 50.099 | 179.644 |
7 | 4 | John Hunter Nemechek | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Toyota | 50.183 | 179.344 |
8 | 21 | Zane Smith | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 50.204 | 179.269 |
9 | 1 | Hailie Deegan | David Gilliland Racing | Ford | 50.214 | 179.233 |
10 | 25 | Timothy Peters | Rackley WAR | Chevrolet | 50.296 | 178.941 |
11 | 26 | Tyler Ankrum | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 50.301 | 178.923 |
12 | 42 | Carson Hocevar | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.308 | 178.898 |
13 | 17 | David Gilliland | David Gilliland Racing | Ford | 50.308 | 178.898 |
14 | 88 | Matt Crafton | ThorSport Racing | Toyota | 50.333 | 178.809 |
15 | 45 | Brett Moffitt | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.355 | 178.731 |
16 | 10 | Jennifer Jo Cobb | Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing | Chevrolet | 50.371 | 178.674 |
17 | 51 | Drew Dollar | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Toyota | 50.388 | 178.614 |
18 | 16 | Austin Hill | Hattori Racing Enterprises | Toyota | 50.447 | 178.405 |
19 | 22 | Austin Wayne Self | AM Racing | Chevrolet | 50.491 | 178.250 |
20 | 3 | Jordan Anderson* | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 50.504 | 178.204 |
21 | 38 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 50.536 | 178.091 |
22 | 15 | Tanner Gray | David Gilliland Racing | Ford | 50.536 | 178.091 |
23 | 99 | Ben Rhodes | ThorSport Racing | Toyota | 50.610 | 177.830 |
24 | 20 | Spencer Boyd | Young’s Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.668 | 177.627 |
25 | 40 | Ryan Truex | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.687 | 177.560 |
26 | 9 | Codie Rohrbaugh | CR7 Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.707 | 177.490 |
27 | 02 | Kris Wright | Young’s Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.748 | 177.347 |
28 | 52 | Stewart Friesen | Halmar Friesen Racing | Toyota | 50.794 | 177.186 |
29 | 30 | Danny Bohn | On Point Motorsports | Toyota | 50.881 | 176.883 |
30 | 19 | Derek Kraus | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Toyota | 51.153 | 175.943 |
31 | 56 | Gus Dean | Hill Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.191 | 175.812 |
32 | 28 | Bryan Dauzat | FDNY Racing | Chevrolet | 50.778 | 177.242 |
33 | 12 | Tate Fogleman | Young’s Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.856 | 176.970 |
34 | 04 | Cory Roper | Roper Racing | Ford | 50.864 | 176.942 |
35 | 75 | Parker Kligerman | Henderson Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.932 | 176.706 |
36 | 8 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports | Ford | 51.156 | 175.932 |
37 | 96 | Todd Peck | Peck Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.360 | 175.234 |
38 | 11 | Spencer Davis | Spencer Davis Motorsports | Toyota | 51.397 | 175.107 |
39 | 41 | Dawson Cram | Cram Racing Enterprises | Chevrolet | 51.473 | 174.849 |
40 | 33 | Jason White | Reaume Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | 51.733 | 173.970 |
41 | 6 | Norm Benning | Norm Benning Racing | Chevrolet | 51.948 | 173.250 |
42 | 34 | Jesse Iwuji | Reaume Brothers Racing | Toyota | 52.273 | 172.173 |
43 | 49 | Ray Ciccarelli | CMI Motorsports | Chevrolet | 52.284 | 172.137 |
44 | 68 | Clay Greenfield | Clay Greenfield Motorsports | Toyota | No Time | No Time |
45 | 83 | Tim Viens | CMI Motorsports | Chevrolet | No Time | No Time |
46 | 44 | James Buescher | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | Time Disallowed | Time Disallowed |
* – Ineligible for Truck points
Starting lineup
Start | Number | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
1 | 13 | Johnny Sauter | ThorSport Racing | Toyota |
2 | 2 | Sheldon Creed | GMS Racing | Chevrolet |
3 | 98 | Grant Enfinger | ThorSport Racing | Toyota |
4 | 23 | Chase Purdy | GMS Racing | Chevrolet |
5 | 24 | Raphaël Lessard | GMS Racing | Chevrolet |
6 | 18 | Chandler Smith | GMS Racing | Chevrolet |
7 | 4 | John Hunter Nemechek | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Toyota |
8 | 21 | Zane Smith | GMS Racing | Chevrolet |
9 | 1 | Hailie Deegan | David Gilliland Racing | Ford |
10 | 25 | Timothy Peters | Rackley WAR | Chevrolet |
11 | 26 | Tyler Ankrum | GMS Racing | Chevrolet |
12 | 42 | Carson Hocevar | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet |
13 | 17 | David Gilliland | David Gilliland Racing | Ford |
14 | 88 | Matt Crafton | ThorSport Racing | Toyota |
15 | 45 | Brett Moffitt | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet |
16 | 10 | Jennifer Jo Cobb | Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing | Chevrolet |
17 | 51 | Drew Dollar | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Toyota |
18 | 16 | Austin Hill | Hattori Racing Enterprises | Toyota |
19 | 22 | Austin Wayne Self | AM Racing | Chevrolet |
20 | 3 | Jordan Anderson* | Jordan Anderson Racing | Chevrolet |
21 | 38 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
22 | 15 | Tanner Gray | David Gilliland Racing | Ford |
23 | 99 | Ben Rhodes | ThorSport Racing | Toyota |
24 | 20 | Spencer Boyd | Young’s Motorsports | Chevrolet |
25 | 40 | Ryan Truex | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet |
26 | 9 | Codie Rohrbaugh | CR7 Motorsports | Chevrolet |
27 | 02 | Kris Wright | Young’s Motorsports | Chevrolet |
28 | 28 | Bryan Dauzat | FDNY Racing | Chevrolet |
29 | 52 | Stewart Friesen | Halmar Friesen Racing | Toyota |
30 | 12 | Tate Fogleman | Young’s Motorsports | Chevrolet |
31 | 04 | Cory Roper | Roper Racing | Ford |
32 | 30 | Danny Bohn | On Point Motorsports | Toyota |
33 | 19 | Derek Kraus | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Toyota |
34 | 56 | Gus Dean | Hill Motorsports | Chevrolet |
35 | 33 | Jason White | Reaume Brothers Racing | Chevrolet |
36 | 44 | James Buescher | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet |
DNQ | 75 | Parker Kligerman | Henderson Motorsports | Chevrolet |
DNQ | 8 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports | Ford |
DNQ | 96 | Todd Peck | Peck Motorsports | Chevrolet |
DNQ | 11 | Spencer Davis | Spencer Davis Motorsports | Toyota |
DNQ | 41 | Dawson Cram | Cram Racing Enterprises | Chevrolet |
DNQ | 6 | Norm Benning | Norm Benning Racing | Chevrolet |
DNQ | 34 | Jesse Iwuji | Reaume Brothers Racing | Toyota |
DNQ | 49 | Ray Ciccarelli | CMI Motorsports | Chevrolet |
DNQ | 68 | Clay Greenfield | Clay Greenfield Motorsports | Toyota |
DNQ | 83 | Tim Viens | CMI Motorsports | Chevrolet |
* – Ineligible for Truck points