Jarrett takes another Atlanta pole

It was Jarrett's second-straight pole for this event at the 1.54-mile oval and the 27th of his career. Jeff Gordon, the winner last weekend in Las Vegas, was the second-fastest qualifier on Friday with a lap at 192.413 mph in a Chevrolet. Todd Bodine was third quickest in a Ford at 192.320mph, followed by Mark Martin's 191.887mph in a Ford and rookie Kevin Harvick's 191.781mph in a Chevrolet.

"It's just a good race car," said Jarrett of his RYR Ford. "I'd like to say it was something special that I did but other than get it in the right places, that was it. It was a brand new race car that has never seen a race track until today. Our engine department is doing an incredible job right now with our engines. It is making my job a lot easier.

"One lap doesn't mean we'll be the best on Sunday, but we are certainly going to try."



The speeds these race cars reach at Atlanta are faster than for either the Daytona 500 or at Talladega superspeedway - the two longest tracks where speeds are slowed because of restrictor plates on the carburetors.

But Atlanta Motor Speedway is unrestricted, which means the race cars are approaching, and even surpassing, 200 miles an hour entering the first and third turns. And with NASCAR being scrutinised for its safety record after Dale Earnhardt's death in the final lap of the Daytona 500, the drivers do feel a bit anxious entering Sunday's race.

"The track is basically built for those kinds of speeds with the banking you have here," Jarrett said. "It's just a matter that right now we've got more downforce and more horsepower, so that's why the speeds are up like they are. But I think that we're very capable of racing the cars with the speeds that we have right now.

"I think safety-wise, we feel very good about the tyre that Goodyear has brought here, so looking at all things I think we're very comfortable with all of this."



Jarrett is one of several drivers who have switched to the Head and Neck Support (HANS) device, which keeps the driver's head in place during a hard frontal impact to prevent severe head injuries.

"I'm really comfortable with it," Jarrett said. "Everyone that's associated with the HANS device has been really helpful. I came back to Atlanta before Daytona and we did some work with it. They helped me fit it and we've really worked hard with our cars in situating everything and I'm really pleased. "

Another driver who has worn the HANS device is Jeff Gordon, who became the first NASCAR driver to win a race while using the system last week at Las Vegas.

"After the situation with Dale Earnhardt, everybody pointed to the HANS device, asking why these drivers weren't wearing these things," Gordon said. "I have been working since last year trying to get that device in my car to work. I know we ought to get it in there right away, but it takes time. There is a lot of work that needs to be done for us to feel comfortable. It was only a matter of time before somebody was going to win a race with the HANS device.

"I wore it last week and I'm still sore. The next day after I won at Las Vegas, I was in a lot of pain. I believe in what it does, but I also know that we need to work on it to make it more perfect."



Gordon said the speeds at Atlanta are so fast, it makes qualifications at this race track very demanding.

"Qualifying is definitely the hairiest part of it," Gordon said. "It's extremely fast. There's no other place where you can carry that kind of speed in the corer and the car stick like it does here. It just has a lot to do with how well these teams are building the bodies on these cars and the horsepower that is underneath the hood.

"I look forward to getting into race conditions because the speeds will slow down a little bit and it gets a little more in control."

Click here for Atlanta qualifying results.