Menard to start on Shootout pole

The Yates Ford driver will start alongside Richard Petty Motorsports' Elliott Sadler, with Reed Sorenson (Petty) and Scott Speed (Red Bull) sharing row two once the random draw for starting positions was completed last night.

"That's pretty cool," said Menard, who also started from pole at Daytona in the championship round last summer.

"By the time I drew there were about four numbers at the front and three back near 17th and 18th so I felt like I had a pretty good shot at getting a good starting position."

Former champion Tony Stewart ended up sixth in the starting order for his first race with his new Stewart Haas team, while last year's Shootout winner Dale Earnhardt Jr took ninth.

Reigning Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson drew 21st place, while his Hendrick teammate Jeff Gordon will start at the back of the 28-car field.

This year each manufacturer's top six cars in 2008 owner points, plus one wild-card from each make, were eligible for the Shootout, which takes place on Saturday night.

Starting order:

Pos  Driver             Car
 1.  Paul Menard        Ford
 2.  Elliott Sadler     Dodge
 3.  Reed Sorenson      Dodge
 4.  Scott Speed        Toyota
 5.  Denny Hamlin       Toyota
 6.  Tony Stewart       Chevrolet
 7.  Brian Vickers      Toyota
 8.  Bobby Labonte      Ford
 9.  Dale Earnhardt Jr  Chevrolet
10.  Kyle Busch         Toyota
11.  Carl Edwards       Ford
12.  Kurt Busch         Dodge
13.  Robby Gordon       Dodge
14.  Kasey Kahne        Dodge
15.  Jamie McMurray     Ford
16.  David Ragan        Ford
17.  Michael Waltrip    Toyota
18.  AJ Allmendinger    Dodge
19.  Joey Logano        Toyota
20.  David Stremme      Dodge
21.  Jimmie Johnson     Chevrolet
22.  David Reutimann    Toyota
23.  Jeff Burton        Chevrolet
24.  Casey Mears        Chevrolet
25.  Matt Kenseth       Ford
26.  Greg Biffle        Ford
27.  Kevin Harvick      Chevrolet
28.  Jeff Gordon        Chevrolet