Chase Elliott fastest in Clash at the Coliseum opening practice; Kevin Harvick second

Chase Elliott led the first NASCAR Cup Series practice Saturday for the Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Coliseum, turning a 13.455-second, 66.890-mph lap in the No. 9 Chevrolet.

Kevin Harvick was second (13.457), followed by Chase Briscoe (13.470), Justin Haley and Kyle Busch.

“First off just props to NASCAR and everybody involved, all the men and women that put a lot of the effort into making it happen,” Elliott told Fox Sports’ Jamie Little.

SPEED CHART: Click here for the lap times from practice

VIEWER’S GUIDE: What to watch in Sunday’s Clash at the Coliseum

“Building a racetrack, paving it and all the logistics that have gone into this. Props to everyone for making it happen. They did a really good job with it. The workmanship and logistics of how this has worked has really impressed me. Happy to be here.

“It’s been a really busy winter and hasn’t felt like much offseason for any of us but super excited to be back. I feel we have a pretty good NAPA Chevy, and at this point, we’re just trying to make the right decisions and not let me mess it up too bad.”

Tyler Reddick, Kyle Larson, Landon Cassill (who is making the first of at least a dozen starts in the No. 77 Chevy this season), Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top 10 in the lone session for Sunday’s Clash at the Coliseum, the first time in the 43-year history of NASCAR’s preseason exhibition that it’s being held outside the 2.5-mile oval at Daytona International Speedway.

The Coliseum short track will offer a vastly different experience.

All but three cars in Saturday’s practice were in the 13-second bracket, turning laps in the mid-60 mph range around the 0.25-mile temporary asphalt surface that was built on top of the famous field normally used