First career pole for Hamlin
Nextel Cup rookie Denny Hamlin took a surprise first pole postion at Phoenix International Raceway today, in his only sixth NASCAR event
The 25-year-old rookie put in a lap of 134.173mph to beat veteran contenders and Chase rivals Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle, who will line up second, third and fourth respectively.
"It's happened so fast for me, it's definitely tough to have it all sink in," Hamlin said after the session. "But I'm just getting great cars every week. Hopefully, we'll ride this wave right into next year."
Points leader Tony Stewart - Hamlin's teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing - qualified ninth for Sunday's Checker Auto Parts 500. Stewart leads Johnson by 38 points, with only two races left in the Chase for the Cup.
And Johnson warned his rival that the heat is now on. "It's go time," Johnson said. "There's no more relaxing. I'm just hoping I'm relaxing after the trophy is raised after the last race.
"If we win and Tony's seventh Sunday, I think that will cover it. That's not unrealistic. It's hard to finish in the top 10 in our sport. But I really predict a dogfight to the end."
Pos Driver Make Speed 1. Denny Hamlin Chevrolet 134.173 2. Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 133.506 Chase 3. Carl Edwards Ford 133.457 Chase 4. Greg Biffle Ford 133.432 Chase 5. Bobby Labonte Chevrolet 133.235 6. Brian Vickers Chevrolet 132.934 7. Bobby Hamilton Jr. Chevrolet 132.846 8. Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 132.817 9. Tony Stewart Chevrolet 132.768 Chase 10. Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 132.763 11. Ryan Newman Dodge 132.758 Chase 12. Robby Gordon Chevrolet 132.714 13. Dave Blaney Chevrolet 132.665 14. Jeff Green Dodge 132.621 15. Kyle Busch Chevrolet 132.597 16. Matt Kenseth Ford 132.548 Chase 17. Kurt Busch Ford 132.543 Chase 18. Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 132.460 19. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 132.426 20. Ricky Rudd Ford 132.100 21. Dale Jarrett Ford 132.042 22. Kasey Kahne Dodge 132.008 23. Jimmy Spencer Dodge 131.965 24. Elliott Sadler Ford 131.883 25. Jeff Burton Chevrolet 131.859 26. Rusty Wallace Dodge 131.762 Chase 27. Mike Skinner Dodge 131.743 28. Jamie McMurray Dodge 131.738 29. Mark Martin Ford 131.690 Chase 30. Travis Kvapil Dodge 131.603 31. Scott Riggs Chevrolet 131.589 32. Mike Bliss Chevrolet 131.262 33. Ken Schrader Dodge 131.157 34. Casey Mears Dodge 131.148 35. Chad Chaffin Chevrolet 130.962 36. Stanton Barrett Chevrolet 130.909 37. Johnny Sauter Dodge 130.900 38. Kyle Petty Dodge 130.824 39. Jeremy Mayfield Dodge 130.667 CHase 40. Scott Wimmer Dodge 130.567 41. Sterling Marlin Dodge 130.378 42. Michael Waltrip Chevrolet 130.322 43. Jerry Robertson Chevrolet 130.795
Share Or Save This Story
Payback, fistfights and wall-rides: NASCAR's most shocking playoff moments
NASCAR hands Hamlin points penalties for engine violation
Bubba Wallace: Richmond NASCAR chaos is "the system’s fault"
McLaren junior leads the way in British F4 as BTCC support series begin at Donington Park
How the BTCC opener provided a throwback and a new headache
Why the WEC's BoP blackout is a bad call for all parties
Are F1's technical changes for Miami enough to ease 2026 concerns?
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments