Samsung 500 Qualifying Update

Texas Motor Speedway -- 04/06/08

Author: Becca Gladden

Published: Saturday Apr 5 2008 10:10pm

No matter what happens at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, this weekend will probably always be remembered for the harrowing qualifying crash that befell rookie Michael McDowell on Friday. Preparing for just his second Sprint Cup start, the 23-year-old Michael Waltrip Racing driver hit the wall almost head-on with such explosive force that one witness said he'd heard cannons go off with less noise than the sound of McDowell's impact.

As everyone now knows, McDowell emerged unscathed from a wreck that just a few years ago could easily have been fatal. While pundits understandably praised the safety innovations that combined to insure McDowell's survival, the wreck has left lingering questions -- among them, whether Waltrip brought McDowell along too quickly, and whether the track surface was safe for racing after a wide swath of oil and oil dry had been placed on it a few runs before McDowell made his laps.

Both fans and experts will be debating this accident in the weeks ahead, but racing got underway again after an hour-plus delay to clean the track and repair the damaged wall.

Once qualifying was over, it was Dale Earnhardt Jr. (+465) who snagged the pole with a 190.91 mile per hour lap. The top four qualifiers were one each from NASCAR's four current manufacturers: Earnhardt Jr. in a Chevy, followed by Carl Edwards (+405) in a Ford, Kyle Busch (+845) in a Toyota, and Ryan Newman (+3150) in a Dodge. Earnhardt's teammate Jimmie Johnson (+625) rounded out the top 5.

Though Earnhardt's pole winning lap was over two-tenths faster than Carl Edwards in second, Junior admitted that the long delay in qualifying after the McDowell incident worked in his favor. Edwards qualified before the wreck when the track was quite a bit warmer. "We had a great advantage going so much later than Carl ran. There is no denying that," said Earnhardt.

Earnhardt and Edwards are both previous winners at Texas Motor Speedway and both have been pleased with their cars all weekend. Edwards, in fact, ran second in Friday morning's practice session and posted the fastest lap in both the Friday afternoon practice and Happy Hour. David Reutimann (+2250) was faster than Edwards by .08 Friday morning.

One driver that hasn't been too satisfied with his car is Jeff Gordon (+1550), who lines up 18th on Sunday, though he, too, took his qualifying lap before the McDowell wreck.

Gordon's times placed him 16th and 23rd in Friday's practice sessions and 35th in Happy Hour. "We have been real hit or miss here," said Gordon of his past Texas runs. "We have been good enough to win at times, but we haven't been good enough on a consistent basis to pull off that win." Texas and Homestead are the only tracks on the NASCAR Cup circuit where Gordon has never posted a victory.

Along with Carl Edwards, four drivers ran in the top 10 in all three practices: Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Greg Biffle (+915), and David Ragan. All but Biffle also qualified in the top 10, while the 16 car will line up 16th on Sunday.

Much of the buzz this weekend has been about the Roush-Fenway boys, who've traditionally performed well on the 1-1/2 mile track. Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth (+985), and Greg Biffle are all receiving favor from nascar oddsmakers. HMS driver Earnhardt Jr., who scored both his first Busch and Cup wins at Texas and starts on the pole, and JGR's Kyle Busch, winner of Saturday's Nationwide race, are also betting favorites.

It's important to remember, however, that this is a long 500-mile race and attrition (tires, engines, parts, etc.) will certainly be a factor. Cars that perform well at the start of the race may not be the same ones who are there at the end. Pit strategy will also be critical in the closing laps, as we saw in Saturday's Nationwide race. "Track position is going to be key tomorrow," said Elliott Sadler (+2250), who won at this track in 2004 and starts 26th on Sunday. "You pick up a little bit of aero push with these new cars. Track position and clean air are all the things that you can use to your advantage."

Sunday marks the first appearance of the COT at Texas Motor Speedway, and crew chiefs who think quickly on their feet - making the right adjustments to improve handling during the race and the right pit calls at the end - will play a big role in the eventual outcome.