By David Morgan, Associate Editor
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Scott McLaughlin is a man on a mission.
Coming into the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park, the driver of the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet has nowhere to go but up, with only five points to his name after a disqualification in St. Petersburg and a mechanical issue in Long Beach that has him all the way down at the bottom of the cellar in the point standings in 29th — last among any driver that has started a race in 2024.
With all of the noise surrounding the penalties from the season opener, McLaughlin wanted nothing more than to put all of that behind him and climb behind the wheel of his race car and get down to business.
“The best part for me is getting back in a race car and driving that thing as fast as I can. So, I’m very excited to get back in that car,” McLaughlin said on Friday before on-track action began.
Since the first laps have been turned, the defending winner at Barber has picked right back up where he left off a year ago, finishing first practice in ninth and second practice in third before it was go fast time in qualifying.
McLaughlin was fastest in his group in the first round and third quick in the Fast 12 to move to the final round with a shot at the pole.
The master of qualifying, fellow Team Penske driver Will Power, held the top spot with less than a minute left in the qualifying when McLaughlin started his flyer.
Flirting with the pole for the majority of his lap, McLaughlin went full send through the last complex of corners on the 17 turn, 2.3-mile road course, moving into the green at the last moment, eclipsing Power for the top spot to secure his first pole of the season and first since Nashville last August.
“The Good Ranchers Chevy has been so good today. I just wanted to give these guys and girls on the team an opportunity to be back on the front row and be back on pole,” McLaughlin said. “It’s been tough the last couple of races. We just haven’t hit it in qualifying. I’m super proud of that and super proud of the execution today.
“Obviously, this means a lot, but we’ve just got to keep focusing like this for the rest of the season and keep working hard.
“I sent it pretty hard through the last couple of corners. Anytime you get a chance to get a Team Penske front row, that’s the main thing and a great objective for the team. I’m really proud of everyone.”
Meanwhile, Power would have to settle for…
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