LAS VEGAS – Brad Keselowski will start on the pole after heavy rain forced NASCAR to cancel qualifying for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The track got steady rain all morning Friday and again in the early afternoon after a brief break, forcing NASCAR to scrap practice and qualifying in Las Vegas for the first time. The speedway urged fans to take cover from rain, high wind and lightning when the afternoon storm broke over the desert north of the Strip.

“I was just thinking when I walked in, with this being Vegas and all, what the odds would be of a rainout in Vegas,” Keselowski said. “I bet that was pretty high.”