Martin Truex Jr. Takes Pole in Phoenix

Truex Jr. at the Dickies 500 Texas

Martin Truex of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing succeeded in taking pole position for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race, the Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.

Fielding 26th in line, Truex managed a lap time of 26.643s and 135.120 mph on his first run, despite everybody usually going faster on their second outing. Second place went to Kurt Busch who managed a lap time of 26.750s with an average speed of 134.579 mph. In third place, and still with strong chances of managing a successful race in Phoenix, is current points leader Jimmie Johnson, who stopped the clock at 26.775s.

"I felt good about the car in the two runs we made in practice, but after we made the first run, it was OK, and we adjusted on it and went the wrong way," said Truex, who won his third pole of the season and the fourth of his Cup career. "We knew we could go faster. This is a place that normally you pick up in qualifying from what you do in practice, so I felt good going in.”

"We were 20th in practice, but it was like a tenth [of a second] from first to where we were at, so it doesn't take a whole lot. We just made the right adjustments, and the lap felt great. I think we qualified second here [before], and it was the same way [that] time [2007] -- I think our first lap was quicker -- and I'm not sure why that is with us," explained Martin Truex.

With just two races left in the Chase, Mark Martin, who trails Jimmie Johnson by 73 points, managed only 10th spot in qualifying, while third in the overall standings, Jeff Gordon had to settle with 14th position.

Pos. Driver Speed Time
1. M. Truex Jr. 135.120 mph 26.643 s
2. Ku. Busch 134.579 mph 26.750
3. J. Johnson 134.454 mph 26.775
4. K. Kahne 134.293 mph 26.807
5. D. Hamlin 134.228 mph 26.820
6. G. Biffle 134.223 mph 26.821
7. Ky. Busch 134.173 mph 26.831
8. T. Stewart 134.078 mph 26.850
9. C. Mears 134.028 mph 26.860
10. M. Martin 134.023 mph 26.861