Kentucky Speedway is a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) tri-oval speedway in Sparta, Kentucky, which has hosted ARCA, NASCAR and Indy Racing League racing annually since it opened in 2000. The track is currently owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports, Inc. and Jerry Carroll, who, along with four other investors, owned Kentucky Speedway until 2008. The speedway has a grandstand capacity of 117,000. Construction of the speedway began in 1998 and was completed in mid-2000. The speedway has hosted the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, Xfinity Series, IndyCar Series, Indy Lights, and most recently, the NASCAR Cup Series beginning in 2011.
Entry list
(R) denotes rookie driver.
(i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
The first practice session was held on Friday, September 22, at 4:00 PM EST. The session would last for 55 minutes.[2]Matt Tifft, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.929 and an average speed of 180.427 mph (290.369 km/h).[3]
The final practice session, sometimes known as Happy Hour, was held on Friday, September 22, at 6:30 PM EST. The session would last for 55 minutes.[2]Ryan Preece, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.731 and an average speed of 181.629 mph (292.304 km/h).[4]
Qualifying was held on Saturday, September 23, at 5:35 PM EST.[2] Since Kentucky Speedway is under 2 miles (3.2 km) in length, the qualifying system was a multi-car system that included three rounds. The first round was 15 minutes, where every driver would be able to set a lap within the 15 minutes. Then, the second round would consist of the fastest 24 cars in Round 1, and drivers would have 10 minutes to set a lap. Round 3 consisted of the fastest 12 drivers from Round 2, and the drivers would have 5 minutes to set a time. Whoever was fastest in Round 3 would win the pole.[5]
Kyle Benjamin, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would win the pole after setting a time of 29.633 and an average speed of 182.229 mph (293.269 km/h) in the third round.[6]