RELATED: Practice results
Erik Jones led an 85-minute opening practice session Thursday at Charlotte Motor Speedway, turning a lap at 192.713 mph in his No. 77 Furniture Row Racing Toyota.
Jimmie Johnson was right behind him in his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at 192.472 mph.
Kyle Larson was third-fastest in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing at 192.465 mph. That speedy lap came before he smacked into the outside wall, causing damage to the right side of his car with less than 10 minutes left in the session.
Rounding out the top five were Denny Hamlin in the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota at 192.465 mph and Kevin Harvick in the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford at 192.150 mph.
Two cars suffered damage to the right side as they scraped the outside wall during practice: The No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford of Clint Bowyer and the No. 42 Chevrolet of Larson. Bowyer’s crew worked to repair the car so he could return to it, but Larson told FS1 he was unsure if he would have to go to a back-up car.
Monster Energy Series drivers will have two more practice opportunities before Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600, both sessions coming on Saturday.
The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series returns to the track this evening for Coors Light Qualifying at 7:15 p.m. ET on FS1.
