INDIANAPOLIS – For the first time since 2020, Hendrick Motorsports returned to the oval configuration of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. For the hour-long session, all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers clocked laps inside the top-12 on speed.
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Setting the fastest lap of the four Hendrick Motorsports drivers was Alex Bowman with a speed of 180.93 mph. The run was the fifth-fastest time of the session. The result continues a positive run of form for Bowman and the No. 48 Ally Racing team within the past few weeks. His win at the Chicago Street Course locked the group into the playoffs and a third-place run at another long, flat, racetrack (Pocono Raceway) showed the gains made by the team on the whole.
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Following the No. 48 entry was Kyle Larson in sixth. The No. 5 team's HendrickCars.com Fan Appreciation Chevy posted a speed of 180.774 mph on the day. Having already conquered Darlington Raceway's Southern 500 and the Coca-Cola 600, the 31-year-old driver will aim to win the third different crown jewel race of his career this weekend.
William Byron clocked the ninth-fastest time of the session. The Charlotte, North Carolina, native is the only active driver from Hendrick Motorsports to hold a NASCAR sanctioned victory at Indianapolis, having won the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series main event. The No. 24 Valvoline Chevy was also the quickest on five-lap average speed of the entire field.
Rounding out the Hendrick Motorsports quartet was Chase Elliott in the 12th position. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native enters the weekend as the regular season points leader and will have his sights set on Indianapolis to grow this advantage over the field.
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Indianapolis' nickname of "The Brickyard" comes from the original racing surface of track. When construction first began in 1909, the entire racing surface was composed of brick. While the facility opted for asphalt as racing grew and progressed, a single strip of bricks still lies just past the start/finish line as a tribute to the speedway's past. As for the design of the track, four low-banked corners (roughly nine degree) make up the 2.5-mile circuit and will provide quite the challenge for drivers looking to claim a crown jewel victory on Sunday afternoon.
In total, Rick Hendrick's team has collected a record 10 victories on the oval layout of Indianapolis. Currently, vice chairman Jeff Gordon's five wins are the most by any driver in Cup Series history while Jimmie Johnson's four victories are the second most. Kasey Kahne is the most recent winner of the event for Hendrick Motorsports having won the race in 2017.
Tune in at 2:30 p.m. ET to catch the Hendrick Motorsports quartet take on Indianapolis with coverage on NBC, IMS Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)