The driver of the No. 22 car secured a victory on the egg-shaped track back in May, showcasing a bit of bravado — sprinkled with a dash of pettiness — to outlast William Byron and the rest of the field.

Logano started on the pole in the spring race back, taking advantage of a big run in qualifying for the Goodyear 400.

Four months later, not much has changed for Logano, at least not at Darlington. The Team Penske star snagged his second pole of the season Saturday.

This time around, the stakes are just a little bit higher; Sunday’s Southern 500 is the first race of the Cup Series playoffs. Championship glory is on the line.

And for Logano, a past champion in his own right, Saturday’s impressive showing was a good start, at least.

“It’s nice to get that,” Logano said. “But it’s just a start. Five hundred miles to go.”

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The Sporting News fills you in on the details of Saturday’s qualifying, including the lineup and starting order for Sunday’s Southern 500.

Southern 500 qualifying results

Final group results

Full results here.

Who won the pole for the NASCAR race at Darlington?

Team Penske’s Joey Logano took the first pole of this year’s NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, posting an impressive 29.181-second lap to outpace Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell by nine one-thousandths of a second.

Logano’s pole was his second of the season, and both have come at Darlington. He claimed the pole for the Goodyear 400 in May. With his pole win Saturday, Logano became the first driver to sweep Darlington’s poles since Sterling Marlin accomplished the feat in 1992. 

Starting lineup for Darlington race

Given how solid Logano is at Darlington — he has five top-five finishes in his career there — Saturday’s results should buoy him.

But it’s an open field, especially with fellow playoff drivers Bell, Byron and Reddick starting right next to or behind him.

And you can’t ever rule out wily veteran Kevin Harvick. His average finish at Darlington since 2012 is fifth. That’s better than any other driver in that span.

Here is the complete starting lineup for Sunday’s Southern 500:

P-Playoff driver.