Kyle Busch led the way with a lap of 30.371 seconds in the first practice for the Quaker State 400 from Kentucky. Rounding out the top five was Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, and Martin Truex, Jr.
| Pos | Car | Driver | Team | Time | Behind |
| 1 | 18 | Kyle Busch | M&M’s Red-White-Blue Toyota | 30.371 | Leader |
| 2 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Diet Mnt.Dew/National Guard Chevrolet | 30.540 | -0.169 |
| 3 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Lowe’s Dover White Chevrolet | 30.588 | -0.217 |
| 4 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | 5-hour Energy Toyota | 30.597 | -0.226 |
| 5 | 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | NAPA Auto Parts Toyota | 30.625 | -0.254 |
| 6 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Eckrich Ford | 30.693 | -0.322 |
| 7 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Express Toyota | 30.696 | -0.325 |
| 8 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevrolet | 30.700 | -0.329 |
| 9 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | McDonald’s Chevrolet | 30.701 | -0.330 |
| 10 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Mac Tools Ford | 30.707 | -0.336 |
| 11 | 22 | AJ Allmendinger | Shell Pennzoil Dodge | 30.727 | -0.356 |
| 12 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Miller Lite Dodge | 30.750 | -0.379 |
| 13 | 27 | Paul Menard | Menards/Sylvania Chevrolet | 30.765 | -0.394 |
| 14 | 39 | Ryan Newman | Tornados Chevrolet | 30.777 | -0.406 |
| 15 | 51 | Kurt Busch | Phoenix Construction Services, Inc. Chevrolet | 30.791 | -0.420 |
| 16 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet | 30.805 | -0.434 |
| 17 | 20 | Joey Logano | Dollar General Toyota | 30.822 | -0.451 |
| 18 | 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Chevrolet | 30.830 | -0.459 |
| 19 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Fifth Third Bank Ford | 30.852 | -0.481 |
| 20 | 16 | Greg Biffle | American Red Cross Ford | 30.907 | -0.536 |
| 21 | 13 | Casey Mears | Valvoline NextGen Ford | 30.920 | -0.549 |
| 22 | 83 | Landon Cassill | Burger King Toyota | 30.970 | -0.599 |
| 23 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Quaker State Chevrolet | 30.989 | -0.618 |
| 24 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet | 31.084 | -0.713 |
| 25 | 99 | Carl Edwards | UPS Ford | 31.090 | -0.719 |
| 26 | 26 | Josh Wise | MDS Transport Ford | 31.106 | -0.735 |
| 27 | 55 | Michael Waltrip | Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota | 31.138 | -0.767 |
| 28 | 95 | Scott Speed | Leavine Family Racing Ford | 31.141 | -0.770 |
| 29 | 23 | Scott Riggs | North TX Pipe Chevrolet | 31.142 | -0.771 |
| 30 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Target Chevrolet | 31.173 | -0.802 |
| 31 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | AM/FMEnergyWood&PelletStoves Toyota | 31.201 | -0.830 |
| 32 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Caterpillar Chevrolet | 31.204 | -0.833 |
| 33 | 93 | Travis Kvapil | Burger King Toyota | 31.331 | -0.960 |
| 34 | 19 | Mike Bliss | Humphrey Smith Racing, LLC Toyota | 31.342 | -0.971 |
| 35 | 49 | JJ Yeley | America Israel Racing/JPO Absorbents Toyota | 31.460 | -1.089 |
| 36 | 10 | David Reutimann | Outsourcing in the USA@TMone Chevrolet | 31.475 | -1.104 |
| 37 | 47 | Bobby Labonte | Scott Products Toyota | 31.477 | -1.106 |
| 38 | 30 | David Stremme | Inception Motorsports Toyota | 31.511 | -1.140 |
| 39 | 33 | Stephen Leicht | LittleJoesAuto.com Chevrolet | 31.542 | -1.171 |
| 40 | 52 | Mike Skinner | CrusaderStaffing.com Toyota | 31.651 | -1.280 |
| 41 | 34 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports Ford | 31.668 | -1.297 |
| 42 | 36 | Dave Blaney | SealWrap Chevrolet | 31.673 | -1.302 |
| 43 | 38 | David Gilliland | Taco Bell Ford | 31.745 | -1.374 |
| 44 | 98 | Michael McDowell | Presbyterian Health Care Ford | 31.756 | -1.385 |
| 45 | 32 | Ken Schrader | Federated Auto Parts Ford | 31.873 | -1.502 |
