NASCAR at Bristol 2016 Qualifying Results: Race Order, Final Times and Reaction

NASCAR's Sprint Cup Serieswill race under the lights Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, but the weekend started with Friday's qualifying session, highlighted by Carl Edwardstaking the pole position.Edwards is no stranger to starting from the lead position at Bristol, as this is the fourth time in his career he's taken the pole at the track. After his most recent pole win at Bristol, Edwards also took the checkered flag at the Food City 500 in April.Here are the full results from NASCAR's qualifying session for the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race in Bristol, Tennessee:The competition for the pole was close, with Edwards not moving into the top spot until there were about two minutes left in the final round of qualifying.NASCAR provided the video evidence of Edwards' move to the top of the standings:Per Lee Spencer of Motorsport.com, Edwards is not lacking for confidence after winning the pole:Edwards will be facing stiff competition behind him. Denny Hamlin took second in qualifying, with his best lap speed coming in at 131.2 mph. The No. 11 car is starting to build momentum with the Chase on the horizon.Hamlin won on the road course at Watkins Glen two weeks ago, his second victory of the season and fourth straight top-10 finish.Even though Edwards will be starting in the top spot, Hamlin was setting new track records during qualifying, per Joe Gibbs Racing:Hamlin's track-record time was 14.573 seconds. He didn't keep up that pace throughout qualifying, but it's in his pocket in case he needs to make a major move late in the race Saturday night.Another driver who's feeling confident after qualifying is Kyle Busch, who is tied for the Sprint Cup Serieslead with four victories this season. He finished right behind Edwards and Hamlin but was impressive during practices earlier in the day.Per NASCAR's official website, Busch led both practice sessions with speeds of128.969 mph and129.684 mph. He's had everything working at Bristol so far this weekend and is showing no signs of slowing down.Further down the board, Jeff Gordon had his best qualifying run in four races while filling in for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is out with a concussion. The No. 88 car will start from the 11th position. Gordon has fared well as a replacement, earning two top-15 finishes.Saturday's race will cover 500 laps. Hamlin and Busch should be the favorites based on their results Friday and momentum, but Edwards' success on the track makes him hard to overlook as the pole-sitter.
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