Photo Credit: Mike Mercurio
In the first practice for the FedEx 400, it’d be Jimmie Johnson topping the practice charts with a lap of 21.969 seconds.
Johnson is hoping to bounce back following a disappointing run at Charlotte Motor Speedway that saw him make contact with the wall and fall out of contention early in the event. Johnson leads active drivers with nine wins at Dover International Speedway.
Denny Hamlin, who salvaged a top-10 finish despite feeling ill in the late stages of the race at Charlotte, was second quickest. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver attributed dehydration and an exhaust leak to his sickness at Dover.
2001 Dover winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. was third quickest as he comes off of a third place finish at Charlotte, followed by David Ragan and Kyle Busch. This marks Busch’s third race back since breaking his leg in a wreck during the XFINITY season opener. He finished 11th last week at Charlotte.
Clint Bowyer was sixth quickest, followed by Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch and Martin Truex Jr.
2015 NSCS FedEx 400 First Practice Session Speeds
| Pos | Car | Driver | Team | Time | Speed | Lap # | # Laps | -Fastest | -Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Lowe’s Pro Services Chevrolet | 21.969 | 163.867 | 12 | 13 | —.— | —.— |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Cares Toyota | 22.014 | 163.532 | 14 | 14 | -0.045 | -0.045 |
| 3 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Nationwide Chevrolet | 22.022 | 163.473 | 12 | 17 | -0.053 | -0.008 |
| 4 | 55 | David Ragan | Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota | 22.04 | 163.339 | 21 | 21 | -0.071 | -0.018 |
| 5 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Skittles Toyota | 22.112 | 162.808 | 34 | 37 | -0.143 | -0.072 |
| 6 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | AAA Insurance Toyota | 22.123 | 162.727 | 23 | 23 | -0.154 | -0.011 |
| 7 | 19 | Carl Edwards | Stanley Toyota | 22.137 | 162.624 | 17 | 19 | -0.168 | -0.014 |
| 8 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | ditech Chevrolet | 22.142 | 162.587 | 7 | 10 | -0.173 | -0.005 |
| 9 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Haas Automation Chevrolet | 22.149 | 162.536 | 15 | 17 | -0.18 | -0.007 |
| 10 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row/Visser Precision Chevrolet | 22.174 | 162.352 | 10 | 13 | -0.205 | -0.025 |
| 11 | 33 | Brian Scott(i) | ACME Chevrolet | 22.174 | 162.352 | 13 | 14 | -0.205 | 0 |
| 12 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Safety-Kleen Ford | 22.177 | 162.33 | 23 | 25 | -0.208 | -0.003 |
| 13 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Target Chevrolet | 22.193 | 162.213 | 14 | 22 | -0.224 | -0.016 |
| 14 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Ford EcoBoost Ford | 22.208 | 162.104 | 22 | 22 | -0.239 | -0.015 |
| 15 | 3 | Austin Dillon | DOW Chevrolet | 22.223 | 161.994 | 5 | 15 | -0.254 | -0.015 |
| 16 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Farmers Insurance Chevrolet | 22.225 | 161.98 | 22 | 26 | -0.256 | -0.002 |
| 17 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | 3M Chevrolet | 22.243 | 161.849 | 21 | 21 | -0.274 | -0.018 |
| 18 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Smithfield Ford | 22.248 | 161.812 | 11 | 11 | -0.279 | -0.005 |
| 19 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | McDonald’s/Cessna Chevrolet | 22.28 | 161.58 | 27 | 29 | -0.311 | -0.032 |
| 20 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Dollar General Toyota | 22.295 | 161.471 | 5 | 10 | -0.326 | -0.015 |
| 21 | 9 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Twisted Tea Ford | 22.3 | 161.435 | 11 | 11 | -0.331 | -0.005 |
| 22 | 22 | Joey Logano | Shell Pennzoil Ford | 22.329 | 161.225 | 22 | 23 | -0.36 | -0.029 |
| 23 | 13 | Casey Mears | GEICO Chevrolet | 22.334 | 161.189 | 1 | 29 | -0.365 | -0.005 |
| 24 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Code 3 Associates/Mobil 1 Chevrolet | 22.334 | 161.189 | 27 | 28 | -0.365 | 0 |
| 25 | 47 | AJ Allmendinger | Scott Products Chevrolet | 22.354 | 161.045 | 21 | 21 | -0.385 | -0.02 |
| 26 | 27 | Paul Menard | Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Chevrolet | 22.358 | 161.016 | 20 | 21 | -0.389 | -0.004 |
| 27 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Miller Lite Ford | 22.417 | 160.592 | 20 | 20 | -0.448 | -0.059 |
| 28 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Caterpillar Chevrolet | 22.428 | 160.514 | 21 | 25 | -0.459 | -0.011 |
| 29 | 7 | Alex Bowman | Chevrolet | 22.464 | 160.256 | 9 | 9 | -0.495 | -0.036 |
| 30 | 51 | Justin Allgaier | AccuDoc Solutions/FOE Chevrolet | 22.465 | 160.249 | 24 | 25 | -0.496 | -0.001 |
| 31 | 10 | Danica Patrick | GoDaddy Chevrolet | 22.551 | 159.638 | 25 | 28 | -0.582 | -0.086 |
| 32 | 26 | Jeb Burton # | Maxim Fantasy Sports Toyota | 22.604 | 159.264 | 12 | 16 | -0.635 | -0.053 |
| 33 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | AdvoCare Ford | 22.616 | 159.179 | 15 | 18 | -0.647 | -0.012 |
| 34 | 35 | Cole Whitt | Ford | 22.629 | 159.088 | 17 | 19 | -0.66 | -0.013 |
| 35 | 46 | Michael Annett | Pilot Flying J Chevrolet | 22.648 | 158.954 | 25 | 29 | -0.679 | -0.019 |
| 36 | 83 | Matt DiBenedetto # | Burger King Toyota | 22.715 | 158.486 | 8 | 8 | -0.746 | -0.067 |
| 37 | 98 | Josh Wise | Ford | 22.736 | 158.339 | 8 | 8 | -0.767 | -0.021 |
| 38 | 38 | David Gilliland | The Pete Store Ford | 22.739 | 158.318 | 14 | 14 | -0.77 | -0.003 |
| 39 | 34 | Brett Moffitt # | Dockside Logistics Ford | 22.772 | 158.089 | 18 | 20 | -0.803 | -0.033 |
| 40 | 40 | Landon Cassill(i) | CRC Brakleen Chevrolet | 22.779 | 158.04 | 22 | 22 | -0.81 | -0.007 |
| 41 | 39 | Travis Kvapil(i) | Chevrolet | 22.802 | 157.881 | 19 | 23 | -0.833 | -0.023 |
| 42 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan(i) | Chevrolet | 22.925 | 157.034 | 14 | 15 | -0.956 | -0.123 |
| 43 | 23 | JJ Yeley(i) | Dr Pepper Toyota | 22.953 | 156.842 | 1 | 11 | -0.984 | -0.028 |
| 44 | 30 | Jeff Green(i) | Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet | 23.107 | 155.797 | 1 | 12 | -1.138 | -0.154 |
| 45 | 32 | Mike Bliss(i) | CorvetteParts.net Ford | 23.113 | 155.757 | 11 | 13 | -1.144 | -0.006 |
(i) Ineligible for Driver Points in this Series,
# Denotes Rookie
