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Mark Martin takes Phoenix NASCAR Sprint Cup pole

NASCAR veteran Mark Martin claimed pole position for Sunday's Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix

The Michael Waltrip Racing driver, who is running a partial schedule this season, set the pace in qualifying with a lap of 26.313 seconds at an average speed of 136.815 mph. The 53-year-old, driving the #55 Toyota, was the penultimate driver in the order on a hot, slick track, beating the previous benchmark set by Furniture Row's Regan Smith.

"This is a great addition to my resume," said Martin after claiming his 52nd career pole, his first since Talladega's autumn race in 2011.

"Michael Waltrip gets the last bit of credit for that pole. Having a driver for an owner, someone that I respect and look up to, whose words before qualifying probably made the difference in making the pole... It's just incredible the opportunity they're giving me."

Reigning Cup champion Tony Stewart, who ran last in the order after being quickest in Friday's opening practice, ultimately came closest to beating Martin, trailing the pole position time by 0.133s.

Five-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson impressed by saving a massive sideways moment on his way to provisional pole, finishing fourth in the end behind Smith.

Earnhardt Ganassi's Juan Pablo Montoya bounced back from his fiery crash at Daytona with good pace in both practice and qualifying, finishing fifth on the grid for Sunday's 312-lap event. Stewart-Haas' Ryan Newman, who was forced to a back-up car following a crash during a qualifying simulation on Friday, was sixth fastest behind the Colombian.

Roush Fenway's Greg Biffle was the best Ford in seventh, followed by Richard Childress Racing's Kevin Harvick, Joe Gibbs Racing's Joey Logano and Hendrick new boy and the most recent Phoenix winner Kasey Kahne, who rounded out the top 10. Daytona 500 winner Matt Kenseth was only 26th fastest for Roush Fenway.

Mike Bliss spun during his qualifying run but made the field thanks to his guaranteed status, following a points swap with Roush Fenway's #6 car, which is not entered for this race. Timmy Hill was the only non-qualifier.

Pos  Driver              Team/Car                     Time     Gap
 1.  Mark Martin         Waltrip Toyota               26.313s
 2.  Tony Stewart        Stewart-Haas Chevrolet       26.446s  + 0.133s
 3.  Regan Smith         Furniture Row Chevrolet      26.471s  + 0.158s
 4.  Jimmie Johnson      Hendrick Chevrolet           26.552s  + 0.239s
 5.  Juan Pablo Montoya  Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet  26.559s  + 0.246s
 6.  Ryan Newman         Stewart-Haas Chevrolet       26.570s  + 0.257s
 7.  Greg Biffle         Roush Fenway Ford            26.652s  + 0.339s
 8.  Kevin Harvick       Childress Chevrolet          26.664s  + 0.351s
 9.  Joey Logano         Gibbs Toyota                 26.667s  + 0.354s
10.  Kasey Kahne         Hendrick Chevrolet           26.712s  + 0.399s
11.  Jeff Burton         Childress Chevrolet          26.743s  + 0.430s
12.  Kyle Busch          Gibbs Toyota                 26.753s  + 0.440s
13.  Denny Hamlin        Gibbs Toyota                 26.766s  + 0.453s
14.  Marcos Ambrose      Petty Ford                   26.776s  + 0.463s
15.  AJ Allmendinger     Penske Dodge                 26.810s  + 0.497s
16.  Clint Bowyer        Waltrip Toyota               26.812s  + 0.499s
17.  Bobby Labonte       JTG Daugherty Toyota         26.854s  + 0.541s
18.  Aric Almirola       Petty Ford                   26.856s  + 0.543s
19.  Kurt Busch          Phoenix Chevrolet            26.878s  + 0.565s
20.  Paul Menard         Childress Chevrolet          26.903s  + 0.590s
21.  Jamie McMurray      Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet  26.913s  + 0.600s
22.  Landon Cassill      BK Toyota                    26.933s  + 0.620s
23.  Dave Blaney         Baldwin Chevrolet            26.940s  + 0.627s
24.  Carl Edwards        Roush Fenway Ford            26.943s  + 0.630s
25.  Martin Truex Jr     Waltrip Toyota               26.983s  + 0.670s
26.  Matt Kenseth        Roush Fenway Ford            27.094s  + 0.781s
27.  Scott Riggs         R3 Chevrolet                 27.120s  + 0.807s
28.  Brad Keselowski     Penske Dodge                 27.127s  + 0.814s
29.  Dale Earnhardt Jr   Hendrick Chevrolet           27.150s  + 0.837s
30.  Jeff Gordon         Hendrick Chevrolet           27.182s  + 0.869s
31.  Casey Mears         Germain Ford                 27.221s  + 0.908s
32.  David Reutimann     Baldwin Chevrolet            27.225s  + 0.912s
33.  Josh Wise           Front Row Ford               27.256s  + 0.943s
34.  David Ragan         Front Row Ford               27.261s  + 0.948s
35.  JJ Yeley            Robinson-Blakeney Toyota     27.338s  + 1.025s
36.  David Gilliland     Front Row Ford               27.373s  + 1.060s
37.  Michael McDowell    Parsons Ford                 27.376s  + 1.063s
38.  Joe Nemechek        NEMCO Toyota                 27.566s  + 1.253s
39.  Robby Gordon        Gordon Dodge                 27.615s  + 1.302s
40.  Brendan Gaughan     Childress Chevrolet          27.945s  + 1.632s
41.  Travis Kvapil       BK Toyota                    28.159s  + 1.846s
42.  Mike Bliss          FAS Lane Ford                30.493s  + 4.180s
43.  David Stremme       Inception Toyota             27.887s  + 1.574s

Did not qualify:

     Timmy Hill          Max Q/RWR Ford               27.914s  + 1.601s

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