The 2017 Pocono Green 250 was the 12th stock car race of the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series season and the second iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, June 10, 2017, Long Pond, Pennsylvania, at Pocono Raceway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) triangular permanent course. The race took the scheduled 100 laps to complete. At race's end, Brad Keselowski driving for Team Penske, would make a last lap pass on the final lap to win his 35th career NASCAR Xfinity Series win and his first win of the season.[1] To fill out the podium, Justin Allgaier of JR Motorsports and Kyle Larson of Chip Ganassi Racing would finish second and third, respectively.
Background
The race was held at Pocono Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Until 2019, the track also hosted an IndyCar Series race.
Pocono Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.
Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
Practice
First practice
The first practice session was held on Friday, July 7, at 1:00 PM EST. The session would last for 55 minutes.[2] Brad Keselowski of Team Penske would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.806 and an average speed of 132.222 mph (212.791 km/h).[3]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | 53.210 | 169.141 |
| 2 | 20 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 53.327 | 168.770 |
| 3 | 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 53.449 | 168.385 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Second and final practice
The second and final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Friday, July 7, at 3:00 PM EST. The session would last for 55 minutes.[2] Kyle Benjamin of Joe Gibbs Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 52.722 and an average speed of 170.707 mph (274.726 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 52.722 | 170.707 |
| 2 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 52.995 | 169.827 |
| 3 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | 53.179 | 169.240 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Qualifying was held on Saturday, June 10, at 9:35 AM EST.[2] Since Pocono Raceway is at least 2 miles (3.2 km) in length, the qualifying system was a single car, single lap, two round system where in the first round, everyone would set a time to determine positions 13–40. Then, the fastest 12 qualifiers would move on to the second round to determine positions 1–12.[5]
Kyle Benjamin of Joe Gibbs Racing would win the pole, setting a time of 52.070 and an average speed of 172.844 miles per hour (278.165 km/h) in the second round.[6]
No drivers would fail to qualify.
Full qualifying results
Race results
Stage 1 Laps: 25
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | 0 |
| 2 | 20 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 4 | 2 | Paul Menard (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 5 | 18 | Daniel Suárez (i) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 0 |
| 6 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 9 | William Byron (R) | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 21 | Daniel Hemric (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 3 | Ty Dillon (i) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 10 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
Stage 2 Laps: 25
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Brad Keselowski (i) | Team Penske | Ford | 0 |
| 2 | 20 | Kyle Benjamin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 00 | Cole Custer (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 42 | Kyle Larson (i) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 5 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | JR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 48 | Brennan Poole | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 6 | Bubba Wallace | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 16 | Ryan Reed | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 19 | Matt Tifft (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 62 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
Stage 3 Laps: 50
Standings after the race
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References
- ^ "Brad Keselowski ends drought for No. 22 Ford with last-lap pass". ESPN.com. 2017-06-10. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
- ^ a b c "2017 NASCAR XFINITY Pocono Race Info". ESPN.com. 2017-04-30. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
- ^ Long, Dustin (2017-06-09). "Brad Keselowski puts Team Penske ride atop Xfinity speed chart at Pocono". NASCAR Talk | NBC Sports. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
- ^ Bonkowski, Jerry (2017-06-09). "Kyle Benjamin is fastest in final Xfinity practice at Pocono". NASCAR Talk | NBC Sports. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
- ^ "NASCAR Qualifying Rules". ESPN.com. 2018-02-07. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
- ^ McFadin, Daniel (2017-06-10). "Kyle Benjamin wins first Xfinity pole for Pocono Green 250". NASCAR Talk | NBC Sports. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
- ^ "2017 Pocono Green 250 - The Third Turn". www.thethirdturn.com. Retrieved 2022-05-14.