On a fast new surface, 41 of 44 drivers broke the qualifying record at Darlington Raceway.
But it was Greg Biffle who set the pace, turning a blistering lap of 179.442 mph Friday night to win the Sprint Cup Dodge Challenger pole at Darlington. He shattered the previous record of 173.797 mph set by Ward Burton in 1996.
“Everybody has talked about how the track is really fast, but it's the same old Darlington,” Biffle said. “It will bite you as soon as you let your guard down, especially with the speeds now. You can get in trouble in a hurry, and I've been close to getting that (Darlington) stripe.”
Biffle's lap in a Ford beat Hendrick Motorsports teammates Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson, who qualified second and third for Saturday night's race in their Chevrolets. Earnhardt ran a lap at 179.357, while Johnson clocked in at 179.206.
-- The Associated Press
Sprint Cup Dodge Challenger 500 lineup
at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway
Lap length: 1.366 miles
Race length: 501.322 miles/367 laps
TV: Saturday, KDFW/Ch. 4, 6 p.m.
(Car number in parentheses)
1. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford, 179.442 mph
2. (88) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 179.357
3. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 179.206
4. (20) Tony Stewart, Toyota, 179.076
5. (2) Kurt Busch, Dodge, 178.965
6. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 178.809
7. (19) Elliott Sadler, Dodge, 178.129
8. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 178.071
9. (66) Scott Riggs, Chevrolet, 178.064
10. (43) Bobby Labonte, Dodge, 177.775
11. (29) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 177.736
12. (31) Jeff Burton, Chevrolet, 177.659
13. (22) Dave Blaney, Toyota, 177.307
14. (40) Sterling Marlin, Dodge, 177.134
15. (6) David Ragan, Ford, 177.109
16. (01) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 177.109
17. (78) Joe Nemechek, Chevrolet, 177.077
18. (00) Michael McDowell, Toyota, 177.070
19. (42) Juan Pablo Montoya, Dodge, 176.822
20. (21) Bill Elliott, Ford, 176.778
21. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 176.638
22. (1) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet, 176.606
23. (77) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 176.581
24. (28) Travis Kvapil, Ford, 176.568
25. (26) Jamie McMurray, Ford, 176.498
26. (84) AJ Allmendinger, Toyota, 176.473
27. (8) Mark Martin, Chevrolet, 176.359
28. (83) Brian Vickers, Toyota, 176.283
29. (5) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 176.170
30. (44) David Reutimann, Toyota, 176.126
31. (96) J.J. Yeley, Toyota, 175.848
32. (12) Ryan Newman, Dodge, 175.666
33. (38) David Gilliland, Ford, 175.578
34. (17) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 175.528
35. (45) Kyle Petty, Dodge, 175.172
36. (99) Carl Edwards, Ford, 174.494
37. (55) Michael Waltrip, Toyota, 174.253
38. (07) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 174.241
39. (41) Reed Sorenson, Dodge, 173.644
40. (7) Robby Gordon, Dodge, owner points
41. (15) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, owner points
42. (9) Kasey Kahne, Dodge, owner points
43. (10) Patrick Carpentier, Dodge, 175.166
Failed to Qualify
44. (70) Johnny Sauter, Chevrolet, 174.798
45. (34) Jeff Green, Chevrolet, 174.105
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