Mark Martin takes third NASCAR Sprint Cup pole of 2012 at Dover
Veteran Mark Martin claimed his third NASCAR Sprint Cup pole position of the season in qualifying for Sunday's race at Dover
The Michael Waltrip Racing driver, fastest in opening practice on Friday, went out last on track and beat the benchmark set by six-time Dover winner Jimmie Johnson by just five thousandths of a second.
Martin not only set the pace in practice and then in qualifying, but also looked one of the most consistent drivers on long runs during the final practice on Friday afternoon, as MWR still seeks its first victory of 2012.
Johnson kept the momentum rolling for Hendrick Motorsports by matching his best qualifying effort of the season in second, followed by Stewart-Haas' Ryan Newman and Martin's team-mate Clint Bowyer on the second row.
Roush Fenway's Matt Kenseth rounded out the top five as the top Ford while his team-mate and points leader Greg Biffle was seventh ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing's Kyle Busch and Phoenix Racing's Kurt Busch, the most recent winner at the 'Monster Mile'.
Reigning champion Tony Stewart continued to struggle at the one-mile concrete track, finishing the session in 29th despite his team-mate Newman enjoying a good qualifying run.
Scott Speed was the best of the non-guaranteed qualifiers, while Josh Wise and Cole Whitt failed to make the field.
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap
1. Mark Martin Waltrip Toyota 22.742s
2. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet 22.747s + 0.005s
3. Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Chevrolet 22.751s + 0.009s
4. Clint Bowyer Waltrip Toyota 22.778s + 0.036s
5. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford 22.787s + 0.045s
6. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet 22.804s + 0.062s
7. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford 22.808s + 0.066s
8. Kyle Busch Gibbs Toyota 22.808s + 0.066s
9. Kurt Busch Phoenix Chevrolet 22.841s + 0.099s
10. Denny Hamlin Gibbs Toyota 22.850s + 0.108s
11. Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota 22.851s + 0.109s
12. Aric Almirola Petty Ford 22.858s + 0.116s
13. Kasey Kahne Hendrick Chevrolet 22.869s + 0.127s
14. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet 22.871s + 0.129s
15. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet 22.877s + 0.135s
16. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge 22.880s + 0.138s
17. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet 22.882s + 0.140s
18. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota 22.904s + 0.162s
19. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford 22.921s + 0.179s
20. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet 22.956s + 0.214s
21. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford 22.956s + 0.214s
22. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota 22.962s + 0.220s
23. AJ Allmendinger Penske Dodge 22.983s + 0.241s
24. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 22.994s + 0.252s
25. Scott Speed Go Green Ford 23.005s + 0.263s
26. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet 23.009s + 0.267s
27. Landon Cassill BK Toyota 23.037s + 0.295s
28. David Ragan Front Row Ford 23.045s + 0.303s
29. Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Chevrolet 23.059s + 0.317s
30. David Gilliland Front Row Ford 23.118s + 0.376s
31. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 23.125s + 0.383s
32. David Stremme Inception Toyota 23.186s + 0.444s
33. Michael McDowell Parsons Ford 23.239s + 0.497s
34. JJ Yeley Robinson-Blakeney Toyota 23.275s + 0.533s
35. Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 23.292s + 0.550s
36. Mike Bliss Humphrey Smith Toyota 23.292s + 0.550s
37. Stephen Leicht Circle Sport Chevrolet 23.304s + 0.562s
38. Reed Sorenson FAS Lane Ford 23.362s + 0.620s
39. David Reutimann Baldwin Chevrolet 23.373s + 0.631s
40. Casey Mears Germain Ford 23.397s + 0.655s
41. Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet 23.422s + 0.680s
42. Travis Kvapil BK Toyota 23.440s + 0.698s
43. Scott Riggs R3 Chevrolet 23.304s + 0.562s
Did not qualify:
Josh Wise Front Row Ford 23.333s + 0.591s
Cole Whitt Turn One Chevrolet 23.340s + 0.598s
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