Joey Logano tops first Cup practice; Elliott changes engines
Joey Logano topped an eventful first NASCAR Cup Series practice at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.
Logano bolted to the top of the leaderboard late in the session with an average lap speed of 96.657 mph. Martin Truex Jr. was second (96.176 mph) and last weekend’s race winner, Denny Hamlin, ended up third (95.966 mph).
Clint Bowyer was fourth and Kyle Busch completed the top-five.
Rounding out the top-10 speeds were Chris Buescher, Ryan Blaney, Aric Almirola, Daniel Suarez and Jimmie Johnson.
Prior to the start of the first practice, Matt Tifft, driver of the No. 36 Ford, was transported to a local hospital for evaluation.
Truck series driver Matt Crafton practiced Titt’s car and posted the 31st-fastest speed.
Less than five minutes into the session, flames and smoke began pouring out of the back of Chase Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet. He immediately brought the car to a stop on the track and got out.
Elliott’s car was diagnosed with an engine failure and his team will have to change engines which means he will start Sunday’s race from the rear of the field regardless of where he qualifies on Saturday afternoon.
Truex had to sit out the final 15 minutes of first practice for failing pre-race inspection twice last weekend at Kansas.
Kevin Harvick had to sit out the final 30 minutes of practice for failing inspection three times last weekend.
| Cla | # | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Time | Gap | Interval | Mph | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 |  Joey Logano | Ford | 34 | 19.591 | 96.657 | |||
| 2 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Toyota | 27 | 19.689 | 00.098 | 00.098 | 96.176 | |
| 3 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | 38 | 19.732 | 00.141 | 00.043 | 95.966 | |
| 4 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Ford | 45 | 19.755 | 00.164 | 00.023 | 95.854 | |
| 5 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | 41 | 19.785 | 00.194 | 00.030 | 95.709 | |
| 6 | 37 | Chris Buescher | Chevrolet | 35 | 19.811 | 00.220 | 00.026 | 95.583 | |
| 7 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Ford | 36 | 19.853 | 00.262 | 00.042 | 95.381 | |
| 8 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Ford | 35 | 19.854 | 00.263 | 00.001 | 95.376 | |
| 9 | 41 |  Daniel Suarez | Ford | 42 | 19.881 | 00.290 | 00.027 | 95.247 | |
| 10 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | 24 | 19.884 | 00.293 | 00.003 | 95.232 | |
| 11 | 20 | Erik Jones | Toyota | 38 | 19.900 | 00.309 | 00.016 | 95.156 | |
| 12 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Ford | 25 | 19.901 | 00.310 | 00.001 | 95.151 | |
| 13 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chevrolet | 27 | 19.908 | 00.317 | 00.007 | 95.118 | |
| 14 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Chevrolet | 5 | 19.913 | 00.322 | 00.005 | 95.094 | |
| 15 | 8 | Daniel Hemric | Chevrolet | 40 | 19.914 | 00.323 | 00.001 | 95.089 | |
| 16 | 88 | Alex Bowman | Chevrolet | 50 | 19.929 | 00.338 | 00.015 | 95.017 | |
| 17 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Chevrolet | 31 | 19.947 | 00.356 | 00.018 | 94.932 | |
| 18 | 95 | Matt DiBenedetto | Toyota | 58 | 19.956 | 00.365 | 00.009 | 94.889 | |
| 19 | 38 | David Ragan | Ford | 42 | 19.957 | 00.366 | 00.001 | 94.884 | |
| 20 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chevrolet | 51 | 19.957 | 00.366 | 00.000 | 94.884 | |
| 21 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | 25 | 19.961 | 00.370 | 00.004 | 94.865 | |
| 22 | 21 | Paul Menard | Ford | 33 | 19.973 | 00.382 | 00.012 | 94.808 | |
| 23 | 24 | William Byron | Chevrolet | 49 | 19.974 | 00.383 | 00.001 | 94.803 | |
| 24 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Ford | 35 | 19.993 | 00.402 | 00.019 | 94.713 | |
| 25 | 43 | Darrell Wallace Jr. | Chevrolet | 20 | 20.004 | 00.413 | 00.011 | 94.661 | |
| 26 | 47 | Ryan Preece | Chevrolet | 35 | 20.013 | 00.422 | 00.009 | 94.618 | |
| 27 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Ford | 39 | 20.028 | 00.437 | 00.015 | 94.548 | |
| 28 | 13 | Ty Dillon | Chevrolet | 38 | 20.040 | 00.449 | 00.012 | 94.491 | |
| 29 | 32 | Corey Lajoie | Ford | 28 | 20.042 | 00.451 | 00.002 | 94.482 | |
| 30 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Ford | 39 | 20.075 | 00.484 | 00.033 | 94.326 | |
| 31 | 36 | Matt Crafton | Ford | 31 | 20.247 | 00.656 | 00.172 | 93.525 | |
| 32 | 15 | Ross Chastain | Chevrolet | 29 | 20.384 | 00.793 | 00.137 | 92.896 | |
| 33 | 27 | Reed Sorenson | Chevrolet | 28 | 20.651 | 01.060 | 00.267 | 91.695 | |
| 34 | 77 | Timmy Hill | Chevrolet | 19 | 20.702 | 01.111 | 00.051 | 91.469 | |
| 35 | 00 | Landon Cassill | Chevrolet | 33 | 20.716 | 01.125 | 00.014 | 91.408 | |
| 36 | 51 | B.J. McLeod | Chevrolet | 11 | 20.936 | 01.345 | 00.220 | 90.447 | |
| 37 | 52 | Garrett Smithley | Chevrolet | 18 | 21.027 | 01.436 | 00.091 | 90.056 | |
| 38 | 53 | J.J. Yeley | Chevrolet | 15 | 21.042 | 01.451 | 00.015 | 89.991 |
Tifft hospitalized prior to first Martinsville practice
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