Almirola wins Busch pole

Aric Almirola outran Jason Leffler on Friday to grab his second NASCAR Busch Series pole in his 10th attempt. The 22-year-old Hispanic driver won his first pole last June in Milwaukee, sitting in for Nextel Cup star Denny Hamlin, who was qualifying the same day in Sonoma, Calif.

Almirola set the bar high early turning a fast lap of 183.741 mph on a cold, windy afternoon. Then Almirola, who grew up in Tampa, Fla., watched while driver after driver took a shot at the top spot.

"It was nerve-racking," he said. "I'm sure I won't get very much sleep [Friday night], and I'm sure I'll be nervous [Saturday]. But, when we take the green flag, I'm a rookie, but I'm no different than anybody else out there."

Leffler, driving the fastest of the new Busch Series Toyotas, came closest to knocking the youngster off the top spot with a 183.587.

Jon Wood took the third spot for Saturday's Orbitz 300 (noon ET, ESPN 2) at 183.531, followed by two-time Busch champion and current Nextel Cup regular Martin Truex Jr. at 183.419.