With Austin Dillon behind the wheel, the No. 3 Chevrolet made a triumphant return to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing during Sunday's time trials for the 56th Daytona 500.
Shrugging off the pressure of driving a car he knew could be a Coors Light Pole winner, Dillon toured 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway in 45.914 seconds (196.019 mph), locking the No. 3 into the top starting spot in the number's first appearance in the Cup series since Dale Earnhardt died after a last-lap crash in the 2001 Daytona 500.
The Coors Light Pole Award was Dillon's first in 14 attempts and proved the ideal kickoff to his first full-time season in Sprint Cup racing.
Dillon, 23, edged second-place qualifier Martin Truex Jr. (195.852 mph) for the top starting spot, but both drivers are locked into the front row for the Great American Race and will lead their respective fields to green in Thursday night's Budweiser Duel at Daytona 150-lap qualifying races.
Both Dillon's No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet and Truex's No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevy featured Earnhardt Childress Racing power under the hood. The front-row sweep was the perfect present for chief engine builder Danny Lawrence, who celebrated a birthday Sunday.
"We got him a 1-2 start at Daytona, so this is pretty awesome," Dillon said after clinching the pole. "You just try and stay focused, because everyone wants to see this number perform well. That's what my goals are -- to stay focused.
Qualifying results
1 Austin Dillon 45.9142 Martin Truex Jr.45.9533 Greg Biffle 45.9614 Carl Edwards 45.9865 Ryan Newman 45.9876 Brad Keselowski 46.0847 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 46.1048 Jeff Gordon 46.1449 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 46.15310 Paul Menard 46.17311 Marcos Ambrose 46.17912 Brian Scott 46.20713 Aric Almirola 46.23514 Jimmie Johnson 46.24015 Joey Logano 46.25316 Casey Mears 46.25317 Matt Kenseth 46.25518 Michael Annett 46.25519 Kasey Kahne 46.26220 Clint Bowyer 46.26721 Kyle Busch 46.27222 Denny Hamlin 46.27823 Kevin Harvick 46.29124 Kyle Larson 46.29425 Danica Patrick 46.30126 Trevor Bayne 46.31227 AJ Allmendinger 46.36628 Kurt Busch 46.37329 Reed Sorenson 46.37630 Justin Allgaier 46.43631 David Gilliland 46.45532 Landon Cassill 46.45633 Parker Kligerman 46.48934 Michael Waltrip 46.52935 Tony Stewart 46.54436 Eric McClure 46.65537 Brian Vickers 46.68138 Jamie McMurray 46.70639 Cole Whitt 46.74440 David Ragan 46.79541 Michael McDowell 46.80442 Terry Labonte 46.84243 Josh Wise 46.86044 Bobby Labonte 46.99945 Joe Nemechek 47.24946 Ryan Truex 47.28247 Alex Bowman 47.44748 Morgan Shepherd 47.48349 Dave Blaney (Did not start) ---
