Texas Motor Speedway is a speedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas – the portion located in Denton County, Texas. The track measures 1.5 miles (2.4 km) around and is banked 24 degrees in the turns. It is of the oval design, where the front straightaway juts outward slightly. The track layout is similar to Atlanta Motor Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway (formerly Lowe's Motor Speedway). The track is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., the same company that owns Atlanta and Charlotte Motor Speedway, as well as the short-track Bristol Motor Speedway.
Originally, four practice sessions were scheduled to be held, with two on Friday and two on Saturday. However, due to rain, the second practice session on Saturday was cancelled.[3]
First practice
The first practice session was held on Friday, March 26, at 11:00 AM CST. The session would last for one hour and 15 minutes.[3]Mark Martin, driving for Roush Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.402 and an average speed of 190.127 mph (305.980 km/h).[4]
The second practice session was held on Friday, March 26, at 1:05 PM CST. The session would last for one hour and 20 minutes.[3]Geoff Bodine, driving for Joe Bessey Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.402 and an average speed of 190.127 mph (305.980 km/h).[5]
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, March 27, at 9:00 AM CST. The session would last for one hour. Geoff Bodine, driving for Joe Bessey Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.347 and an average speed of 190.496 mph (306.574 km/h).[3]
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, March 26, at 3:30 PM CST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Saturday, March 27, at 10:45 AM CST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time.[3] Positions 26-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[6]
Kenny Irwin Jr., driving for Robert Yates Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 28.398 and an average speed of 190.154 miles per hour (306.023 km/h).[7]
