Newman secures Loudon pole
Ryan Newman will start from pole position for Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup round at New Hampshire
Conditions seemed more favourable for drivers running early in the qualifying order, as both Newman and front row partner Jeff Burton were amongst the first ten cars to take to the 1.058-mile oval. They would prove unbeatable.
"We made the car better the entire day, to the point where our fastest lap of the day was in qualifying, when the track was hotter," said Newman.
"This is the one of the first race tracks where we have to talk about track position. Staying out front is the big thing, but starting up front is the best way to start that process."
Brian Vickers, Kyle Busch and Tony Stewart complete the top five, ahead of points leader Jimmie Johnson in sixth.
"Our race pace is really good - we spent a lot of time on race practice," Johnson said. "I feel our car is really strong and consistent."
Jeff Gordon, the winner at Chicagoland a week ago, looked like he would struggle at Loudon after languishing outside the top 20 in morning practice. But he rebounded strongly to take seventh in qualifying.
"It's a big pick up from practice," said Gordon. "We made gains and the car felt great. Everybody's got their cars working real good these days, but my pit crew has been so amazing and I have a lot of faith in what they can do for me on pit road."
Qualifying times:
Pos Driver Make Speed Time 1. Ryan Newman Dodge 129.683 29.370 2. Jeff Burton Chevrolet 129.652 29.377 + 0.007 3. Brian Vickers Chevrolet 129.626 29.383 + 0.013 4. Kyle Busch Chevrolet 129.485 29.415 + 0.045 5. Tony Stewart Chevrolet 129.024 29.520 + 0.150 6. Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 128.994 29.527 + 0.157 7. Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 128.976 29.531 + 0.161 8. Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet 128.828 29.565 + 0.195 9. Reed Sorenson Dodge 128.767 29.579 + 0.209 10. Kurt Busch Dodge 128.693 29.596 + 0.226 11. Kasey Kahne Dodge 128.689 29.597 + 0.227 12. Denny Hamlin Chevrolet 128.650 29.606 + 0.236 13. Mark Martin Ford 128.454 29.651 + 0.281 14. Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 128.433 29.656 + 0.286 15. Tony Raines Chevrolet 128.402 29.663 + 0.293 16. Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 128.389 29.666 + 0.296 17. Carl Edwards Ford 128.281 29.691 + 0.321 18. Elliott Sadler Ford 128.268 29.694 + 0.324 19. Kenny Wallace Chevrolet 128.204 29.709 + 0.339 20. J.J. Yeley Chevrolet 128.173 29.716 + 0.346 21. Ken Schrader Ford 128.092 29.735 + 0.365 22. David Stremme Dodge 128.083 29.737 + 0.367 23. Sterling Marlin Chevrolet 128.023 29.751 + 0.381 24. Matt Kenseth Ford 127.967 29.764 + 0.394 25. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 127.821 29.798 + 0.428 26. Greg Biffle Ford 127.782 29.807 + 0.437 27. Bobby Labonte Dodge 127.735 29.818 + 0.448 28. Dave Blaney Dodge 127.722 29.821 + 0.451 29. Casey Mears Dodge 127.714 29.823 + 0.453 30. Travis Kvapil Chevrolet 127.705 29.825 + 0.455 31. Clint Bowyer Chevrolet 127.615 29.846 + 0.476 32. Dale Jarrett Ford 127.551 29.861 + 0.491 33. Jamie McMurray Ford 127.525 29.867 + 0.497 34. Robby Gordon Chevrolet 127.406 29.895 + 0.525 35. Jeff Green Chevrolet 127.397 29.897 + 0.527 36. Scott Wimmer Chevrolet 127.189 29.946 + 0.576 37. Jeremy Mayfield Dodge 127.036 29.982 + 0.612 38. Kevin Lepage Dodge 126.977 29.996 + 0.626 39. Michael Waltrip Dodge 126.943 30.004 + 0.634 40. Stanton Barrett Chevrolet 126.656 30.072 + 0.702 41. Kyle Petty Dodge 126.467 30.117 + 0.747 42. Scott Riggs Dodge 126.332 30.149 + 0.779 43. Ted Christopher Dodge 126.257 30.167 + 0.797 44. Joey McCarthy Chevrolet 126.032 30.221 + 0.851 45. Bill Elliott Chevrolet 125.956 30.239 + 0.869 46. Derrike Cope Dodge 125.952 30.240 + 0.870 47. Morgan Shepherd Dodge 125.323 30.392 + 1.022
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