BROOKLYN, Mich. – Ross Chastain’s mission to end the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series regular season on a high note continued Saturday morning during qualifying at Michigan Int’l Speedway.

Chastain took the pole for the LTi Printing 250 at the two-mile oval, turning a lap of 39.179 seconds (183.772 mph) with his No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado.

The pole marked the third of Chastain’s Gander Trucks career, his first at Michigan and first since 2013, when the Alva, Fla., native was still with Brad Keselowski Racing.

Chastain will chase his fourth win of the season during the regular-season finale Saturday afternoon.

“I said this morning that I had a lot of confidence, and this team is rolling down the hill like a watermelon rolls down a hill; we’re only gaining momentum,” quipped Chastain. “I’m super proud of all these Niece boys and girls. Al Niece gives us all the tools we need to be successful, even though it’s not always easy. This morning, I was just the guy that got to hold the wheel.

“It scared me a little bit, because I think the throttle did get hung a little bit, but there’s raw speed in the race truck and we got the pole by that much … so that’s all that matters.”

New York teenager Christian Eckes will join Chastain on the front row after touring the two-mile Michigan oval in 39.187 seconds (183.734 mph) with his No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota Tundra.

Playoff driver Tyler Ankrum rolls off third alongside playoff hopeful Todd Gilliland, with a third KBM driver in Harrison Burton following that duo in the fifth position.

Austin Hill, Ben Rhodes, Brett Moffitt, Grant Enfinger and Joe Nemechek completed the top 10.

The LTi Printing 250 takes the green flag at 1 p.m. ET, with live coverage on FOX Sports 1, the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

STARTING LINEUP: NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series; Michigan Int’l Speedway; Aug. 10, 2019

1. #45 – Ross Chastain, 39.179 seconds (183.772 mph)
2. #51 – Christian Eckes, 39.187 seconds (183.734 mph)
3. #17 – Tyler Ankrum, 39.251 seconds (183.435 mph)
4. #4 – Todd Gilliland, 39.287 seconds (183.267 mph)
5. #18 – Harrison Burton, 39.299 seconds (183.211 mph)
6. #16 – Austin Hill, 39.324 seconds (183.094 mph)
7. #99 – Ben Rhodes, 39.332 seconds (183.057 mph)
8. #24 – Brett Moffitt, 39.345 seconds (182.997 mph)
9. #98 – Grant Enfinger, 39.378 seconds (182.843 mph)
10. #8 – Joe Nemechek, 39.380 seconds (182.834 mph)
11. #44 – Bayley Currey, 39.438 seconds (182.565 mph)
12. #88 – Matt Crafton, 39.459 seconds (182.468 mph)
13. #3 – Jordan Anderson, 39.493 seconds (182.311 mph)
14. #13 – Johnny Sauter, 39.523 seconds (182.172 mph)
15. #04 – Cory Roper, 39.558 seconds (182.011 mph)
16. #54 – Natalie Decker, 39.578 seconds (181.919 mph)
17. #02 – Tyler Dippel, 39.597 seconds (181.832 mph)
18. #2 – Sheldon Creed, 39.601 seconds (181.814 mph)
19. #15 – Anthony Alfredo, 39.620 seconds (181.726 mph)
20. #52 – Stewart Friesen, 39.622 seconds (181.717 mph)
21. #9 – Codie Rohrbaugh, 39.706 seconds (181.333 mph)
22. #12 – Gus Dean, 39.754 seconds (181.114 mph)
23. #22 – Austin Wayne Self, 39.801 seconds (180.900 mph)
24. #14 – Trey Hutchens III, 39.947 seconds (180.239 mph)
25. #87 – Camden Murphy, 40.068 seconds (179.695 mph)
26. #38 – T.J. Bell, 40.324 seconds (178.554 mph)
27. #20 – Spencer Boyd, 40.400 seconds (178.218 mph)
28. #34 – Jesse Iwuji, 40.844 seconds (176.280 mph)
29. #33 – Josh Reaume, 40.987 seconds (175.665 mph)
30. #49 – Ray Ciccarelli, 41.163 seconds (174.914 mph)
31. #10 – Jennifer Jo Cobb, 43.238 seconds (166.520 mph)
32. #6 – Norm Benning, NT (0.000 mph)

DNQ: #0 – Daniel Sasnett.

LIVE from the Knoxville Nationals
Presented by Mobil 1 Truck & SUV Oil
Paul McMahan Interview

Veteran sprint car ace Paul McMahan will start his 20th Knoxville Nationals main event tonight. As he prepares for tonight’s big race, he took a few minutes to catch up with Tony Bokhoven.

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This year marks the 59th running of the NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals at Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway. SPEED SPORT, one of the few motorsports properties with a longer history than the Nationals, has covered every one of them.

From Roy Robbins in 1961 to Steve Kinser’s 12 victories, to Donny Schatz’s 10 triumphs and finally to Brad Sweet’s dramatic victory last August, we’ve been there for them all.

As SPEED SPORT celebrates its 85th anniversary, we felt it appropriate to look back at the Knoxville Nationals through the SPEED SPORT archives:

1961: Roy Robbins earned $1,000 for winning the first Super Modified National Championship. Robbins’ car carried an “air scoop,” which was similar to the wings we are familiar with today. The following week, wings were banned.

1962: Jerry Richert romped from 14th on the grid to pocket the $1,200 top prize.

1963: Greg Weld outran his older brother, Jerry, and earned $1,500 for the victory.

1964: Eighteen-year-old Kenny Weld led a one-two finish for the family, as Greg Weld came home second.

1965: Kenny Weld became the first two-time Nationals winner, while his father Taylor Weld was the winning car owner for the third straight year.

1966: Jay Woodside won the rain-plagued event and took home the $2,500 winner’s check.

1967: Thad Dasher held off Bob Williams to win the seventh annual Knoxville Nationals.

1968: Ray Lee Goodwin led every lap to top the first $3,000-to-win Nationals feature.

1969: Kenny Gritz passed Jan Opperman to secure one of the biggest upsets in Nationals history. Gritz was killed two weeks later at the Nebraska State Fairgrounds.

1970: The 10th running of the event saw Joe Saldana lead all 30 laps.

1971: Opperman led every lap to redeem a heartbreaking loss in 1969.

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SPIELBURG, Austria – Marc Marquez rocketed to the pole in MotoGP qualifying on Saturday at the Red Bull Ring.

Marquez had a significant advantage over the field, with his track record lap of 1:23.027 putting him nearly half a second ahead of his closest competition during qualifying.

“It was a really good lap but I was looking for the 1:22,” Marquez said after his 59th MotoGP pole. “But I did a mistake in the last sector and I went too wide in turn 10. Apart from that we did a great job and during FP4 we had a great rhythm, which is the most important thing. Today was a great day, everything and everyone in the team was working so well. We just need to understand the best tyre for tomorrow and let’s do it. We will try to fight until the end and see what happens.”

Petronas Yamaha SRT’s Fabio Quartararo qualified second, .434 seconds behind Marquez at the conclusion of qualifying. Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso qualified third to complete the front row.

Yamaha’s Maverick Vinales will start fourth, followed by Francesco Bagnaia for Pramac Racing and Takaaki Nakagami for LCR Honda. Alex Rins, Jack Miller, Cal Crutchlow and Valentino Rossi completed the top-10.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has said the use of the video assistant referee (VAR) changes the "dynamic" of games after his side's 5-0 victory over West Ham on Saturday, where striker Gabriel Jesus became the first player in Premier League history to have a goal retrospectively disallowed.

Already 2-0 ahead, Jesus thought he'd scored a third for City -- only for Mike Dean to disallow the goal for offside following a consultation with VAR.

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This is the first season the technology has been used in the Premier League and VAR came into play again later on in the match, when Sergio Aguero's saved penalty had to be retaken due to encroachment.

"You have to be mentally strong when VAR is not on our side," Guardiola told BT Sport. "You think at 3-0 the game is almost over but at 2-0, the game is completely different.

"You have to be calm and be strong. It is going to change the dynamic not just for the team but for the spectators. It will be a good lesson for our future."

VAR played a part in City's exit from last season's Champions League, with the decision system disallowing a last-minute Sterling winner in their quarterfinal defeat to Tottenham.

"After what happened against Tottenham in the Champions League -- the passion, now we can control that emotion," Guardiola said. "It's good mentally, you have to be strong, have to learn to control our emotions."

However, despite seeing his side fall to a heavy defeat, West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini said the use of VAR was beneficial to Saturday's game.

"I think it is fair for both teams in the way we use it," he said.

"This was a goal that was offside and for the penalty they decide it must be taken again. It will improve the fairer result of games."

ANN ARBOR -- Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong has no doubt Donny van de Beek is good enough to improve Real Madrid but joked he would prefer his ex-teammate to stay at Ajax.

Van de Beek, 22, has confirmed Madrid are in talks with Ajax as they look to bolster their midfield before the transfer window closes.

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De Jong played alongside Van de Beek last season as the Dutch club won a domestic double and upset Madrid and Juventus on their way to a Champions League semifinal, where they were eventually beaten by Tottenham Hostpur.

"I would prefer him to stay at Ajax because I wouldn't have him as an opponent and Ajax would stay strong," De Jong told ESPN FC when asked if he would like to see Van de Beek join Barca's Clasico rivals.

"But, no, of course, when it's all settled, and if he moves to Madrid, I am really happy for him. I think he deserves it. He's a great player. Then I will go see him in Spain!"

Van de Beek would be competing for a place in Zinedine Zidane's side with Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro, among others.

However, De Jong said he believes his compatriot has the quality to become the latest in a string of young players to leave Ajax and make their name at the very top level.

"I am pretty sure he has the ability," he said. "I think he showed it last season in the Champions League, especially in the knockout rounds.

"I think he has shown to the world and everyone in Europe he has the ability to play at that level."

Van de Beek would become the third big-name player to leave Ajax this summer. De Jong joined Barcelona in a deal worth €75 million and defender Matthijs de Ligt signed for Juventus in a similar deal.

De Jong said it is sad to see such a successful, young team slowly broken up but has no regrets about his move to Camp Nou.

"I am really proud of the season we had and I am proud to see guys making big movements -- I think they all deserve it," he said.

"But of course I feel a bit sad -- not that I regret it because I am really proud and happy to be [at Barcelona] -- but of course it's a bit sad that the team is breaking up.

"But you know that those things are going to happen when you have a season like that at a club like Ajax. It's just the way it is."

Asked if he can envisage a future where Ajax are able to hang on to their best young players and build, he added: "I think it depends a lot on the competition. The competition needs to grow a lot.

"The Eredivisie is, for me, a great competition to play in and it was a great time but the Eredivisie nowadays cannot compare to La Liga, Premier League and all those competitions. It has a lot to do with the competition."

LONDON -- The 59,870 people present at the London Stadium on Saturday for Manchester City's latest demolition of West Ham United will no doubt one day wistfully tell their grandchildren that they were present for a moment of history: yes, they were lucky enough to be there on the day the first Premier League goal was disallowed by the video assistant referee.

VAR has arrived, ruling out a Gabriel Jesus goal in City's 5-0 victory, and while it may well increase the number of correct decisions in the Premier League, it has also clearly changed how the fans who show up to the stadium experience the game. And not for the better, either.

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"What the f--- is going on?" sang the Manchester City supporters at one stage -- and that was for a decision that actually allowed them to score a goal. In the closing stages City were awarded a penalty, and Sergio Aguero's effort was saved by Lukasz Fabianski but there was then a minute or so when referee Mike Dean stood with finger pressed to his ear, while a possible encroachment in the area was checked.

A message announcing a goal was being checked flashed up on the big screen, which was confusing given a goal hadn't actually been scored. That was quickly changed to clarify the penalty was being checked, which for a second was confusing as it might have referred to the awarding of the spot kick. Eventually, encroachment was discovered, Declan Rice having stepped into the area before clearing it. Aguero scored the retake. But the question so forcibly posed by the City fans remained relevant.

Last season the Premier League calculated 82% of decisions were correct. With the introduction of VAR, they hope to get that up to 95%. Whether significantly altering the flow and pace of games -- plus the spectacle and experience of actually going to football -- is worth that 13%... well, that's up to you.

Still, it's going to take more than VAR to stop Manchester City this season. Having watched Liverpool stick four past Norwich on Friday, City echoed last season by going one better on Saturday. It probably could have been more than the eventual margin of victory, as Pep Guardiola's relentless machine showed up and, in the second half at least, battered a perfectly decent West Ham side.

City enjoy playing here. They have now played at the London Stadium five times since West Ham made this their home in 2016, and they've scored 23 goals. In the 19 league games of their first season here, West Ham managed 19.

In terms of the football at least, this was a game in which we essentially learned very little -- or very little new, anyway. Manchester City looked exactly as they always have under Guardiola: rapid, ruthless and imposing.

Even their first goal of the season was a cookie-cutter City effort, as Kyle Walker sped down the right as if on jet-powered roller skates, reached the byline and Gabriel Jesus got there just before Issa Diop to turn the cut-back home.

City looked pretty good to the relatively untrained eye, but of course Guardiola wasn't happy. "In terms of the result, yeah," he said afterwards, when asked if that was the perfect start to the season. And the performance? "Nope."

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He elaborated: "In the first half we were sloppy with our passes, our basics were not good. We were not precise in our game. But that is normal. Our first game, away, 12.30 kick-off, it's hot." Then, almost as if he just remembered his team had scored five goals, he said: "I cannot deny I am so delighted to win 5-0, away in our first game."

So good were they in the second half, even Guardiola admitted they were good. Raheem Sterling scored the first of his hat trick, and then thought he had set up another, squaring for Gabriel Jesus to make it 3-0 -- but wait! The VAR checked, and discovered some infinitesimal part of Sterling's upper body -- a shoulder, his chest, a nipple, nobody really seemed sure - was offside, and after a fairly lengthy delay, the goal was ruled out.

On the big screen, the freeze-frame of the offending moment lingered for a minute or so. So close was the decision that, from a distance, the lines indicating the position of attackers and defenders looked like they were on top of each other. Which didn't help make things clearer to those present.

The City fans were confused, then outraged. The West Ham fans were confused, then jubilant. For them, it was the best moment of the game, and they roused themselves for a couple of minutes as West Ham attacked, briefly looking as if they would get back into the game, forcing Ederson into a couple of fine saves.

That optimism was killed off after a short while, and by Sterling, naturally. But in another indication of how VAR has changed the fan experience, most of the City fans appeared to barely celebrate the goal, anticipating that the check was about to come and their joy could be cut down. Ultimately no offence was found that time. After the game Guardiola made reference to the one-on-one Sterling missed against Liverpool in the Community Shield, suggesting that chance would have popped into his mind as he bore down on goal in this game.

But rather than the failure affecting his confidence, Guardiola said it would have inspired him to "be more aggressive, more clinical." That clarity of thought is just another indication of how Sterling has improved over the last couple of years. After Aguero's twice-taken penalty, Sterling completed his hat trick: you wouldn't bet against him topping last season's total of 31 goals this time.

This was a game which showed us how much things have changed, but at the same time how little things have changed. VAR has altered football forever, creating confusion in the goal of absolute accuracy. Maybe that will be different in time. Then there is City, as relentless as ever, looking exactly like the cold-eyed winners they were last season. You get the feeling that won't be different in the slightest.

Big Picture

The paradox of the Indian ODI team is that they have a top three that are the envy of the world. Conversely, the strength of the top order has meant that opportunities for the middle order are more scarce. Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli have been so successful for so long, that the middle order hasn't been tested. Moreover, the frequent chopping and changing has meant that the No.4 spot, which has been a position yet to be nailed down, has still not gone to a set claimant.

KL Rahul had started at No. 4 in the World Cup before moving up to open in the absence of Dhawan, but didn't find a place in the XI for the first ODI. Rishabh Pant has batted at No. 4 in his last five ODIs, but with Shreyas Iyer also in the mix now, it could be a more natural fit to have him at 4 and Pant at 5.

Iyer had a good showing with the India A side, and apart from him, Manish Pandey is also in the fray. Iyer played the first ODI of the series but the rain didn't allow India to bat as only 13 overs of play was possible in Guyana. But as the caravan moves to Trinidad for the second (and the third) ODI, it will be interesting to see what India's plans are.

West Indies, on the other hand, will be looking to make Chris Gayle's 300th ODI a perfect outing. With the series effectively reduced to two ODIs, whoever wins this game will be assured of not losing the series.

With the inclusion of Roston Chase in the side, West Indies are looking for someone to provide stability amid their big hitters, which was lacking during the World Cup. Their real rebuilding, though, will only start once Gayle says goodbye, and one of John Campbell or Shai Hope partners with Evin Lewis at the top of the order.

Form guide

West Indies WLLLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)

India LWWLW

In the spotlight

Who other than Chris Gayle? After a below-par World Cup, the big Jamaican found some form with scores of 122 not out and 94 in the Global T20 Canada, but struggled on a two-paced pitch in the first ODI. His 4 off 31 in the series opener was his slowest ODI innings when he has faced at least 25 balls.

Sunday will present another opportunity for Shreyas Iyer to push his case forward as a solution to India's No. 4 problem. While he batted at No. 3 - Pandey took the No. 4 spot - in the 'A' team series last month, Iyer scored 187 runs from four innings at an average of 62.33. After not getting a chance in the T20I series and a washout in the first ODI, he will be looking forward to carrying his good form at international level as well.

Team news

With hardly any play possible in the series opener, the teams didn't really get to test their chosen XI. Barring fitness issues, both sides are likely to be unchanged.

West Indies XI: (probable) 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Evin Lewis, 3 Shai Hope (wk), 4 Shimron Hetmyer, 5 Nicholas Pooran, 6 Roston Chase, 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Fabian Allen, 9 Carlos Brathwaite, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Sheldon Cottrell

India XI: (probable) 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 Kedar Jadhav, 6 Rishabh Pant (wk) 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Khaleel Ahmed, 11 Kuldeep Yadav

Pitch and conditions

Since the start of 2010, spinners have fared better at the Queen's Park Oval, averaging 27.40 as compared to the fast bowlers' 31.12.

Four out of the last five ODIs here have been affected by rain but fortunately, the forecast is clear for Sunday. It's likely to be partly cloudy with temperatures hovering around 25-degree centigrade.

Stats and trivia

• Sunday's match will be Gayle's 300th ODI. He will overtake Brian Lara as the most-capped West Indies player in the format.

• Gayle (10,397) is also nine runs away from overtaking Lara's tally of 10,405 ODI runs, the most by a West Indies batsman.

• Kuldeep Yadav has taken 94 wickets in 52 ODIs. He has three more games to break Mohammed Shami's record of being the fastest Indian to reach the 100-wicket mark.

The Detroit Lions have signed veteran quarterback Josh Johnson to compete for the backup quarterback job behind Matthew Stafford.

This is the latest stop for the 33-year-old, who started three games for the Washington Redskins last year, completing 52 of 91 passes for 590 yards, 3 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.

A fifth-round pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2008 draft, he has bounced around from team to team and league to league throughout his pro football career.

The Lions mark the 13th NFL team for Johnson, who also played for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League and was expected to play for the San Diego Fleet of the Alliance of American Football before Washington signed him last year.

He has played in 33 career NFL games -- starting eight -- and has completed 148 of 268 passes for 1,632 yards, 8 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. His most significant action came early in his career in Tampa Bay, when he appeared in 26 games with five starts -- the Bucs didn't win any of the games he started.

Johnson picked up his first NFL win as a starter last season for Washington.

Detroit needed to sign Johnson after Tom Savage suffered an undisclosed injury in the first quarter of Thursday's night's 31-3 loss to New England. Savage had been in line to become Stafford's backup quarterback, but with his injury and it being unclear how long he'll be out, the Lions needed to add another quarterback to the roster besides Stafford and David Fales.

Johnson has familiarity with Lions quarterback coach Sean Ryan from their brief time together in Houston. Johnson was with the Texans for about two months in 2017.

The Lions also made a flurry of other moves Saturday: activating defensive end Trey Flowers from the physically unable to perform list, placing wide receiver Jermaine Kearse and defensive lineman Darius Kilgo on injured reserve, signing running back Justin Stockton and waiving cornerback Tarvarus McFadden from injured reserve.