Tyler Reddick landed the 21 Means 21 Pole Award in a frantic NASCAR Camping World Truck Series qualifying session Friday afternoon at Talladega Superspeedway, using an aerodynamic boost to clock a fast lap of 186.827 mph. The pole was Reddick’s first of his career in just his 13th truck series appearance. The 18-year-old Californian will start first in Saturday’s Fred’s 250 Powered by Coca-Cola (1 p.m. ET, FOX), the 18th of 22 races this season. Starting Lineup Tayler Malsam will start on the front row in second place after a lap of 186.714 mph, marking his best qualifying position in his 49th truck series race. Points leader and defending series champion Matt Crafton, driving the ThorSport Racing No. 88 Toyota, will start third with teammate Johnny Sauter fourth and Ryan Blaney completing the top five. Friday’s qualifying was the first for a NASCAR national series using a new condensed format at restrictor-plate tracks, with no elimination round lasting more than five minutes. The format was intended to curb the tactic of drivers on the track at widely varying speeds, jockeying for an aerodynamic advantage. Two drivers with high-ranking spots in the standings did not emerge from the first qualifying round, but the potential for widespread change in position during the 94-lap race offers hope. Timothy Peters will start 26th with Darrell Wallace Jr. 27th — the worst starting position of his career. A pair of drivers attempting to make their first truck series start had differing fortunes in qualifying on the 2.66-mile track. Daniel Suarez advanced to the second round of qualifying and will start 17th in Saturday’s race. Milka Duno failed to make a qualifying lap after her engine failed in Friday practice. The first session was divided into two groups, each one allowed five minutes to make qualifying laps. Reddick, in the Brad Keselowski Racing No. 19 Ford, was fastest in the first group but was fifth overall in the first elimination stage; Mason Mingus, driving the Billy Boat-owned No. 15 Chevrolet, topped the second group and the first session overall. Erik Jones topped the second session, leading the 12 drivers to advance to the final five-minute segment by registering the fastest qualifying lap in series history — 191.161 mph. Ben Kennedy, fastest in final practice, just missed making the cut and will start 13th. source – NASCAR Wire Service
