Bubba Wallace wins pole for Firekeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway

CAMBRIDGE TWP. – If anybody was surprised at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday afternoon, it certainly wasn’t Bubba Wallace.

“A lot of people are coming up like, ‘man, you guys have been running good lately,’” he said. “We’ve been running good all year. This is the same speed that we’ve had since I would say the (fifth or sixth race) in.”

Wallace took advantage of MIS’ smooth surface and sweeping layout with a blazing 37.755 qualifying run on Saturday for top positioning in Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400.

Admitting earlier in the day he felt a win was around the corner, Wallace’s confidence got a significant boost after cracking 190.703 miles per hour during the qualifying round.

“With the speed that we have, there’s no reason that we can’t go out and win…it’s not a guarantee, no doubt about it,” he said. “But we’ve shown up ready to hunt, ready to battle (and) ready to win. We gotta do it.”

Wallace is joined at the top by Christopher Bell and Kyle Busch, two fellow Toyota drivers. Busch, mired in an uncertain part of his career with Joe Gibbs Racing, said he’s looking to shake the “dark cloud” that’s accumulated around him this season with strong finishes in the final four events of the Cup Series calendar.

Even though it might not always be in his hands.

“It’s a matter of luck,” he said. “And there is absolutely none following the 18 car right now.”

With the pole, Wallace has the inside track for a win to lock up a Cup Series playoff berth. But with the Michigan Heritage Trophy, awarded to the winning car’s manufacturer, also at stake, he’s at the forefront of another push to break Ford’s recent run of dominance in MIS events.

“Toyota’s always been family to me, even when I was at sleeping over at the other houses,” he said. “They always welcomed me back in with open arms and that’s very important to me, (with) how the family aspect ties into motorsports.”

As Ford weathers a disappointing season, their drivers gave a range of answers regarding a course that’s been good to them in the past. Chase Elliott, the leader in the Cup Standings and Row 7 leader in Sunday’s race, said he knows it’ll end up being a “track-position” race with little movement.

For his part, Joey Logano, the second fastest Ford driver fourth-fastest qualifier overall on Saturday, believes a track that’s suited them previously will only continue to do so after finishing fourth in the qualifying round.

“Michigan is still Michigan,” he said. “I don’t see that being very different than what it’s been in the past. How we get to those points is different but I think our goal of the car is still the same.”

Austin Cindric, last weekend’s winner Tyler Reddick, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin and Erik Jones will follow Logano in the starting order to round out the top 10.

Reigning MIS winner Ryan Blaney is set to start 24th while Rochester native and crowd favorite Brad Keselowski will run from the 33rd position in one of his last remaining chances to qualify for the playoffs.  No drivers failed to qualify for today’s race.

The Firekeepers Casino 400 will kick off at 3 p.m. The race can be viewed on USA Network.