Chase drivers occupied four of the top 10 spots in Saturday’s final NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice session at Martinsville, with Kevin Harvick topping the speed chart at 97.322. Brad Keselowski was third fastest, with Jeff Gordon fifth and Joey Logano ninth.
Gordon paced the field in average speed over 10 consecutive laps, running 96.550 mph to edge Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson.
After Happy Hour, championship contender Carl Edwards has cause for concern. Edwards’ No. 99 Roush Fenway Racing Ford was 33rd fastest in single-lap speed and 32nd quickest in 10-lap average, neither a good omen for the first race in the Eliminator Round of the Chase on Sunday.
Edwards will start 11th in the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500, but he’ll need to find more speed to hold that position at a track that hasn’t been particularly kind to him in the past.
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