Tony Stewart trumped Carl Edwards by one spot in the most important qualifying session of the season, but neither of the top two Chase contenders could best Edwards’ teammate Matt Kenseth.
NASCAR Phoenix Starting Lineup: Tony Stewart Qualifies One Position Ahead Of Carl Edwards
Kenseth took the pole position for Sunday’s penultimate Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix International Raceway, posting an average speed of 137.101 mph to take his third pole of the season.
Stewart, meanwhile, qualified eighth and will start one position ahead of Edwards (ninth), who is the Chase leader by three points.
The qualifying session was crucial for Edwards and Stewart because Phoenix figures to be a track position game with very little passing. The new surface at Phoenix is proving to be treacherous for drivers, who haven’t been able to find an outside groove yet.
Stewart will be stuck starting the race on the outside lane, and may have to hope someone like Chevrolet teammate Paul Menard (11th) lets him in line.
Richard Petty Motorsports teammates AJ Allmendinger and Marcos Ambrose rounded out the top three spots.
- Matt Kenseth
- AJ Allmendinger
- Marcos Ambrose
- Mark Martin
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Jamie McMurray
- David Reutimann
- Tony Stewart
- Carl Edwards
- Kasey Kahne
- Paul Menard
- Brad Keselowski
- David Ragan
- Jeff Burton
- Regan Smith
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kurt Busch
- Brian Vickers
- Cole Whitt
- Robby Gordon
- Landon Cassill
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Jeff Gordon
- Scott Speed
- Joey Logano
- Juan Pablo Montoya
- Kevin Harvick
- Clint Bowyer
- Greg Biffle
- Ryan Newman
- Bobby Labonte
- Joe Nemechek
- Denny Hamlin
- Kyle Busch
- Michael McDowell
- Mike Skinner
- Travis Kvapil
- Casey Mears
- Dave Blaney
- Mike Bliss
- Geoff Bodine
- JJ Yeley
- David Gilliland
DNQ: Scott Riggs, David Stremme, Andy Lally
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