McMurray wins Martinsville pole; five Chase drivers in top 10

Diposkan oleh silent aja 6:05 AM Post a Comment

MARTINSVILLE, Va. - Jamie McMurray stole a little thunder from NASCAR's playoff drivers Friday, winning the pole for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway.

McMurray had a new qualifying record (99.905 mph), edging Chase for the Sprint Cup drivers Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth.

Tony Stewart - another non-Chaser - was fourth, followed by title contenders Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski.

Among the other Chase drivers in the top 12: Ryan Newman qualified ninth and Carl Edwards was 11th.

The biggest surprise of qualifying was certainly Kevin Harvick, who qualified 33rd after scraping the wall during both of his attempts. Harvick, one of the favorites for the championship, will now start toward the back of the field at a venue where track position is crucial.

Aside from restrictor-plate tracks Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway, Sunday's starting spot will be the worst of the year for Harvick.

'We just missed it today,' Harvick said in a statement distributed by his team. 'We were way too loose. ... We have to get better (Saturday in practice) and be ready to go on Sunday.'

Jeff Gordon also had a disappointing qualifying result after leading Friday's only practice session; he will start 13th.

Only 43 cars attempted to qualify, meaning all entrants made the field.

Follow Gluck on Twitter @jeff_gluck