Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang Dark Horse are set to start 34thin Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Burton took that spot with a lap at 123.277 miles per hour during qualifying on Friday afternoon.
In practice earlier in the day he was 21st on the speed chart with a best lap at 122.961 mph, which he turned on the third of 83 laps he ran in the session.
Burton’s time in a 10 consecutive green flag run was much more impressive as he was fifth fastest, averaging 122.405 mph from the second through the 11th lap he ran.
Burton enters Saturday’s 500-lap race 16th in the standings, 20 points below the cutoff for advancement to the next round. After Saturday night’s race on the high-banked half-mile, the bottom four drivers in the Playoff standings will be eliminated from championship contention.
The 266.5-mile race is scheduled to get the green flag just after 7:30 p.m. with TV coverage on USA Network.
Stage breaks are planned for Laps 125 and 250.