Nemechek takes pole in first qualifying round

'I just got a good draft and on one lap I was fastest,' said the Florida native.

Then Nemechek went out early during the night-time qualifying, 8th of the 48 cars trying to make the race, and nailed a 46.187-second lap.

Veteran Ricky Rudd took the track 37 cars later and gave Nemechek a scare.

He shocked himself with a 46.255-second lap, which was good enough for starting outside front row.

'I'm tickled to death,' said Rudd. 'I can't believe it. It was 1983 when I sat on the pole at Daytona, so I'm glad to be on the front row once again.'

Rounding out the top 10 were Mark Martin, Chad Little, Rusty Wallace, Tony Stewart, Sterling Marlin, Mike Skinner, Bobby Labonte and Dale Earnhardt.

'We need to go back and tweak a few things,' said Earnhardt.

Rookie Tony Stewart took the track and sneaked into sixth, right behind Wallace - who's still looking for a super speedway win.

Rusty Wallace was happy with his time and glad to be done with five miles of rough driving.

'The cars ride so rough,' said the Ford driver. 'You get into a corner at 200mph, hit a bump and the car changes lanes on you.'

Jeff Burton suffered heartache when the engine in his car - troublesome in practice - let go as he took the green flag for the first of two hot laps around this 2.5-mile, high-banked oval.

He Burton nursed the Exide Ford around the track to ensure he'll get the first provisional 37th starting spot, if he can't make a good second round qualifying lap tomorrow.

'Going into Turn 3 it shook real bad like something came loose in the motor,' he said. 'We didn't have a car for the pole, but we ran about sixth in practice.'

Rain threatened the after-dark qualifying, but the clouds hung back long enough for all cars to take a lap.

Rain could wipe out the second round, where few drivers expect to advance in daytime temperatures.