Kahne on pole; Lester makes history
Kasey Kahne put a stop to Ryan Newman's succession of six pole positions at Atlanta Motor Speedway, taking first spot on the grid for the Golden Corral 500 by a mere two thousandths of a second ahead of Newman
Kahne lapped the 1.5-mile oval in 28.792 seconds (192.553mph), while Newman set a time of 28.794 (192.540mph).
But the frontrunning duo where outshadowed by Bill Lester, who became the first black driver to qualifying for a NASCAR Cup race in twenty years.
Lester, who is a regular in NASCAR's truck series, ran a lap of 29.102 seconds (190.502mph) to qualify 19th - ahead of Cup regulars such as Jeremy Mayfield and Tony Stewart.
"I'm just glad I was able to realize my dream and get this opportunity," said Lester. "It's overwhelming. This is the culmination of a very long dream that I've had to race at the top level of motorsports.
"This is quite a feat at my age, but I hope I'm still on the rise. I'm hoping that this is the beginning - that it will open a few more eyes and get the attention of corporate America."
The last black man to qualify for a Cup race was Willy T. Ribbs, who took part in three events in 1986.
Lester lines up on the grid alongside Carl Edwards, in 18th, who won both Atlanta Cup races last season.
Championship points leader Jimmie Johnson will start Sunday's race from 14th.
Pos Driver Make Speed Time 1. Kasey Kahne Dodge 192.553 28.792 2. Ryan Newman Dodge 192.540 28.794 + 0.002 3. Jeff Burton Chevrolet 191.973 28.879 + 0.087 4. Bobby Labonte Dodge 191.914 28.888 + 0.096 5. J.J. Yeley Chevrolet 191.854 28.897 + 0.105 6. Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 191.794 28.906 + 0.114 7. Denny Hamlin Chevrolet 191.695 28.921 + 0.129 8. Greg Biffle Ford 191.496 28.951 + 0.159 9. Kurt Busch Dodge 191.357 28.972 + 0.180 10. Casey Mears Dodge 191.245 28.989 + 0.197 11. Mark Martin Ford 190.968 29.031 + 0.239 12. Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 190.962 29.032 + 0.240 13. Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 190.922 29.038 + 0.246 14. Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 190.817 29.054 + 0.262 15. Reed Sorenson Dodge 190.804 29.056 + 0.264 16. Clint Bowyer Chevrolet 190.765 29.062 + 0.270 17. Kyle Busch Chevrolet 190.633 29.082 + 0.290 18. Carl Edwards Ford 190.568 29.092 + 0.300 19. Bill Lester Dodge 190.502 29.102 + 0.310 20. Jeremy Mayfield Dodge 189.928 29.190 + 0.398 21. Tony Stewart Chevrolet 189.895 29.195 + 0.403 22. Paul Menard Chevrolet 189.785 29.212 + 0.420 23. Kevin Lepage Ford 189.720 29.222 + 0.430 24. Michael Waltrip Dodge 189.649 29.233 + 0.441 25. Ken Schrader Ford 189.441 29.265 + 0.473 26. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 189.396 29.272 + 0.480 27. Matt Kenseth Ford 189.357 29.278 + 0.486 28. Elliott Sadler Ford 189.286 29.289 + 0.497 29. Scott Riggs Dodge 189.131 29.313 + 0.521 30. Dave Blaney Dodge 189.092 29.319 + 0.527 31. Dale Jarrett Ford 188.552 29.403 + 0.611 32. Kyle Petty Dodge 188.398 29.427 + 0.635 33. Sterling Marlin Chevrolet 188.398 29.427 + 0.635 34. Jamie McMurray Ford 188.341 29.436 + 0.644 35. Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet 188.264 29.448 + 0.656 36. Robby Gordon Chevrolet 188.162 29.464 + 0.672 37. Brian Vickers Chevrolet 188.041 29.483 + 0.691 38. David Stremme Dodge 187.970 29.494 + 0.702 39. Jeff Green Chevrolet 187.843 29.514 + 0.722 40. Brent Sherman Dodge 187.614 29.550 + 0.758 41. Hermie Sadler Ford 187.304 29.599 + 0.807 42. Scott Wimmer Chevrolet 187.139 29.625 + 0.833 43. Terry Labonte Chevrolet (Champion's Provisional)
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