JOLIET, Ill. – The opener of NASCAR’s Chase for the Sprint Cup got a wet welcome Friday at Chicagoland Speedway.

Persistent afternoon rain forced cancellation of Friday’s qualifying session for Sunday’s MyAFibStory.com 400, and the 43-car field was set based on Friday practice speeds.

Chase driver Kyle Busch led the practice at 191.442 miles per hour and will start on the pole Sunday. Chase participants will be in four of the first five spots.

The weather led to a tinge of uncertainty, however, as teams approached the day’s only practice from different viewpoints, some testing qualifying setups while others practiced in standard race trim.

“It looked like some guys were really fast in race trim, and I didn’t run a lap in race trim,” said Carl Edwards, who will start third. “This track will change a lot during the race. The hope for me is that the track [Friday] will represent the race conditions, but you never know.”

Two Cup practice sessions are scheduled Saturday – at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. (ET). Saturday and Sunday forecasts call for little chance of rain.

The starting spots for the 16-driver Chase field: 1. Kyle Busch, 2. Ryan Newman, 3. Carl Edwards, 5. Matt Kenseth, 7. Jimmie Johnson, 8. Jeff Gordon, 12. Kevin Harvick, 13. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 14. Kurt Busch, 17. AJ Allmendinger, 19. Kasey Kahne, 20. Greg Biffle, 23. Aric Almirola, 24. Denny Hamlin, 25. Brad Keselowski and 28. Joey Logano.

The Team Penske entries of Keselowski and Logano have been at or near the front of most qualifying sessions this season, so the rainout was a downer for them.

For Kyle Busch, it’s a good start to the first Chase weekend.

“Having a good time in practice means a lot, but there obviously are a lot of things that need to happen in the race to get off to a good start and be able to carry that for the next 10 weeks,” he said. “It’s a good representation for where we feel like we want to be and where we should be, but, again, it’s early – first practice.”

Friday qualifying. Lap length: 1.5 miles (car number in parentheses). Lineup based on Friday practice times.

1. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota.

2. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet.

3. (99) Carl Edwards, Ford.

4. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford.

5. (20) Matt Kenseth, Toyota.

6. (15) Clint Bowyer, Toyota.

7. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet.

8. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet.

9. (27) Paul Menard, Chevrolet.

10. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet.

11. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet.

12. (4) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet.

13. (88) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet.

14. (41) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet.

15. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet.

16. (55) Brian Vickers, Toyota.

17. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet.

18. (10) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet.

19. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet.

20. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford.

21. (9) Marcos Ambrose, Ford.

22. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet.

23. (43) Aric Almirola, Ford.

24. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota.

25. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford.

26. (51) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet.

27. (78) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet.

28. (22) Joey Logano, Ford.

29. (13) Casey Mears, Chevrolet.

30. (38) David Gilliland, Ford.

31. (83) Ryan Truex, Toyota.

32. (95) Michael McDowell, Ford.

33. (26) Cole Whitt, Toyota.

34. (98) Josh Wise, Chevrolet.

35. (7) Michael Annett, Chevrolet.

36. (36) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet.

37. (23) Alex Bowman, Toyota.

38. (40) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet.

39. (34) David Ragan, Ford.

40. (37) Mike Bliss, Chevrolet.

41. (66) Joe Nemechek, Toyota.

42. (33) Travis Kvapil, Chevrolet.

43. (32) Joey Gase, Ford.