RIDING WITH … Dave Blaney

Qualifying: The Hartford native qualified in 24th position in the Toyota Caterpillar at Michigan International Speedway Friday. Blaney turned a fast lap of 184.639 mph, traversing the 2-mile speedway in 38.995 seconds. He’ll start on the outside of row 12 Sunday.

Sunday: NASCAR’s top series stays in the north, for the 3M Performance 400 presented by Bondo in Brooklyn, Mich. Television coverage on ESPN begins at 1 p.m. with the green flag scheduled to drop just after 2.

Season to date: Blaney fell two spots in the Sprint Cup standings, to 31st, after last weekend’s race in Watkins Glen, N.Y., getting overtaken by Robby Gordon and Reed Sorensen.

The Vindicator, NASCAR.com