NASCAR 2022 at Atlanta: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. tops lone practice session for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway

The NASCAR Cup Series drivers got their first experience of the renovated Atlanta Motor Speedway during Saturday’s practice session.

JTG Daugherty Racing team driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. secured the top spot with a fastest lap speed of 186.616 mph in 29.708 seconds. He was just a hair quicker than Kyle Busch, who clocked in at 186.391 mph.

Meanwhile, Stenhouse and Busch were followed by Christopher Bell, Harrison Burton, Joey Logano, Michael McDowell, Justin Haley, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr. and Cody Ware in the top 10.

The Cup drivers had their qualifying session washed out due to inclement weather. So, last weekend’s Ruoff Mortgage 500 winner Chase Briscoe will start on the front row for Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. Stenhouse, who was fastest in race practice, stands 28th on the starting grid.

According to Speedsport, speaking about the expectation for Sunday’s race, Stenhouse said:

"It's going to be a battle; I think the speeds for me. I didn't think they were going to be as fast as what they were as far as single speed there in the draft.... When you get out in front, you're going to be able to control the lanes a little bit easier than like a Daytona or Talladega. Because Daytona is easier to control lanes than Talladega because it's so much more narrow and then you take it another step further here on how long the racetrack is compared to Daytona."

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2022 NASCAR Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 practice result list

Here is the practice result for the 37 cars that will take part in the NASCAR Cup series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

1. #47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - 29.708
2. #18 Kyle Bush - 29.744
3. #20 Christopher Bell - 29.755
4. #21 Harrison Burton - 29.787
5. #22 Joey Logano - 29.823
6. #34 Michael McDowell - 29.828
7. #31 Justin Haley - 29.830
8. #11 Denny Hamlin - 29.836
9. #19 Martin Truex Jr. - 29.873
10. #51 Cody Ware - 29.878
11. #9 Chase Elliott - 29.882
12. #8 Tyler Reddick - 29.885
13. #99 Daniel Suarez - 29.910
14. #43 Erik Jones - 29.919
15. #15 David Ragan 29.926
16. #2 Austin Cindric - 29.946
17. #42 Ty Dillon - 29.976
18. #41 Cole Custer - 30.005
19. #1 Ross Chastain - 30.008
20. #23 Bubba Wallace - 30.019
21. #7 Corey Lajoie - 30.029
22. #10 Aric Almirola - 30.030
23. #5 Kyle Larson - 30.036
24. #77 Josh Bilicki - 30.040
25. #12 Ryan Blaney - 30.058
26. #14 Chase Briscoe - 30.076
27. #24 William Byron - 30.143
28. #17 Chris Buescher - 30.154
29. #38 Todd Gilliland - 30.161
30. #4 Kevin Harvick - 30.192
31. #3 Austin Dillon - 30.194
32. #45 Kurt Busch - 30.195
33. #16 Noah Gragson - 30.199
34. #6 Brad Keselowski - 30.222
35. #48 Alex Bowman - 30.242
36. #44 Greg Biffle - 30.804
37. #78 B.J. McLeod - 31.805

NASCAR coverage will be live on FOX and MRN at 3 pm EST on Sunday, March 20.