MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- In the first race of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Round of 8, three Hendrick Motorsports drivers will start inside the top 10.
Jimmie Johnson, driving the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet, will lead his teammates to the green flag at Martinsville Speedway and roll off the grid third.
Chase Elliott will join him inside the top five, qualifying his No. 24 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet SS fifth while Jeff Gordon, who is filling in for Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the final time this season in the No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet SS, mustered a 10th-place starting spot.
Kasey Kahne advanced to the second round in Friday's qualifying session and secured the 22nd-place starting position in his No. 5 UniFirst Chevrolet SS.
Martin Truex Jr. earned the pole position.
Sunday's 500-lap race is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.