Truex nips Kahne to take Atlanta Pole

Martin Truex Jr.

Rhonda McCole/AR1.com

Martin Truex, Jr. won his second Sprint Cup pole of the season on Saturday, posting the fastest lap in the qualifying session for Sunday’s Pep Boys Auto 500 Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Truex was one of the last of the top 35 drivers to take a lap on the 1.5-mile tri-oval, and put up a top lap of 184.189 mph in the no. 1 Guitar Hero Chevrolet to knock Kasey Kahne off the top spot and secure his third career Sprint Cup pole.

Kahne held on to the second position in the no. 9 Budweiser Dodge. Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch rounded out the top five qualifiers.

“We had a good car in practice, the guys made some changes and we worked real hard on it in practice," said Truex, Jr. “We got a good draw and everything worked out for us."

Truex’s effort was one of the few bright spots for him and his Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing team. After starting thee season winning the pole for the season-opening Daytona 500, the team has managed just three top-10 finishes while dropping to 23rd in the series points.

Faced with lingering doubts about the team’s stability and sponsorship issues going into the 2010 season, Truex opted to leave the team for a ride with Michael Waltrip Racing for next season.

“It has been one heck of a tough season, but these guys never give up," said Truex. “I just want to thank them again for their hard work. We've had some great runs. We've really worked hard this year and we don't have a lot of results to show for it and that's frustrating. And that's the big reason why I would really like to get them in victory lane.

“I just want to go out on a high note for them and for all they've done for me and for all the work we've put in this year just trying to get the results that I feel like they deserve. Hopefully we can finish the deal off this weekend for them. I sure would like to get them in victory lane before the year is out."

Kurt Busch, winner of the race here in March, will roll off sixth, followed by Mark Martin, Brian Vickers, David Stremme and Denny Hamlin.

Patrick Carpentier, Tony Raines and Regan Smith failed to qualify for the event.

Results

+ Set by Owner Points
* Denotes Rookie