Edwards stays hot and wins pole at Bristol

Carl Edwards wins pole at Bristol Motor Speedway

Carl Edwards is looking for back-to-back Sharpie 500 wins and started off the weekend on the right foot by winning the pole in Friday's NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying session at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Edwards turned a lap of 121.860 mph in his Roush Fenway Racing Office Depot Ford to win his first pole of 2008 and first career one at Bristol.

"That's as fast as I could go," said Edwards, who slapped the wall exiting the fourth turn on his lap. "I wish I hadn't hit the wall, but I imagine it will be worse than that by the time the race is over. Bob did a really good job because it was just like it was in practice."

David Reutimann, fresh from his contract extension announcement at Michael Waltrip Racing, qualified second in the No. 44 UPS Toyota.

"Qualifying is one thing, but the race is another," Reutimann said of his run. "We still have some work to do for the race. I feel like we're decent, we just have to get it to be more consistent."

Jeff Gordon, Regan Smith and Bill Elliott rounded out the top five.

Kevin Harvick, Ken Schrader (in the Hall of Fame Racing No. 96 Toyota), A.J. Allmendinger, Kyle Busch and Elliott Sadler rounded out the top-10 qualifiers.

Three drivers failed to make the race: Patrick Carpentier, Johnny Sauter and Jeff Green.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. will start 40th on an owner points provisional after posting the 43rd-fastest time overall. Jamie McMurray and Michael Waltrip also needed provisionals to make the field.

Lineup

POS

CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR SPEED TIME BEHIND
1 99 Carl Edwards Ford Office Depot 121.860 15.746 Leader
2 44 David Reutimann Toyota UPS 121.175 15.835 -0.089
3 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 121.121 15.842 -0.096
4 01 Regan Smith* Chevrolet DEI / Principal Financial Group 121.083 15.847 -0.101
5 21 Bill Elliott Ford Motorcraft 120.740 15.892 -0.146
6 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Pennzoil Platinum 120.649 15.904 -0.158
7 96 Ken Schrader Toyota DLP HDTV 120.634 15.906 -0.160
8 84 A.J. Allmendinger Toyota Red Bull 120.588 15.912 -0.166
9 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's 120.550 15.917 -0.171
10 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Stanley Tools 120.528 15.920 -0.174
11 12 Ryan Newman Dodge Alltel 120.512 15.922 -0.176
12 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops / Tracker / "Driven to the Outdoors" 120.324 15.947 -0.201
13 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 120.316 15.948 -0.202
14 16 Greg Biffle Ford DISH Network Turbo HD 120.248 15.957 -0.211
15 38 David Gilliland Ford Ford. Drive one. 120.203 15.963 -0.217
16 15 Paul Menard Chevrolet Quaker State / Menards / "Driven to the Outdoors" 120.203 15.963 -0.217
17 5 Casey Mears Chevrolet Pop-Tarts / CARQUEST 120.180 15.966 -0.220
18 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet AT&T Mobility 120.150 15.970 -0.224
19 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 120.120 15.974 -0.228
20 70 Tony Raines Chevrolet Hunt Brothers Pizza 120.090 15.978 -0.232
21 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Freight 120.083 15.979 -0.233
22 07 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Jack Daniel's / "Driven to the Outdoors" 120.083 15.979 -0.233
23 8 Aric Almirola Chevrolet U.S. Army 120.083 15.979 -0.233
24 109 Sterling Marlin Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 120.038 15.985 -0.239
25 17 Matt Kenseth Ford DEWALT 120.000 15.990 -0.244
26 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 119.970 15.994 -0.248
27 6 David Ragan Ford AAA Insurance 119.783 16.019 -0.273
28 20 Tony Stewart Toyota The Home Depot 119.768 16.021 -0.275
29 45 Kyle Petty Dodge Wells Fargo 119.618 16.041 -0.295
30 41 Reed Sorenson Dodge TUMS Quik Pak 119.604 16.043 -0.297
31 7 Robby Gordon Dodge Planet Color / Barrett Jackson 119.589 16.045 -0.299
32 28 Travis Kvapil Ford "Knight Rider" 119.477 16.060 -0.314
33 00 Mike Skinner Toyota Champion Mortgage 119.395 16.071 -0.325
34 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 119.299 16.084 -0.338
35 77 Sam Hornish Jr.* Dodge Mobil 1 119.284 16.086 -0.340
36 22 Dave Blaney Toyota Caterpillar 119.188 16.099 -0.353
37 43 Bobby Labonte Dodge Cheerios "Box Tops for Education" 118.877 16.141 -0.395
38 66 Scott Riggs Chevrolet State Water Heaters 118.708 16.164 -0.418
39 42 Juan Montoya Dodge Juicy Fruit Slim Pack 118.650 16.172 -0.426
40 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.+ Chevrolet AMP Energy / National Guard 118.328 16.216 -0.470
41 26 Jamie McMurray+ Ford Sharpie 118.211 16.211 -0.465
42 55 Michael Waltrip+ Toyota NAPA AUTO PARTS 117.243 16.366 -0.620
43 78 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet Furniture Row/ DenverMattress.com 119.165 16.102 -0.356
Did Not Qualify
44 34 Jeff Green Chevrolet Front Row Motorsports 119.025 16.121 -0.375
45 10 Patrick Carpentier* Dodge Valvoline 118.855 16.144 -0.398
46 08 Johnny Sauter Dodge getFUBAR.com 115.430 16.623 -0.877