Hometown boy Stewart captures Brickyard pole

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Dale Earnhardt Jr., turned a record lap Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Two minutes later, Bill Elliott supplanted him atop the record list with a circuit many thought was untouchable.

	Tony Stewart says poles at Indy mean nothing to him, its race wins he wants. Credit: Autostock.

It lasted about 10 minutes, until Tony Stewart scorched his hometown track in 49.191 seconds at 182.960 mph, shattering Brett Bodine's former track record by some six-tenths of a second and denying Elliott his third Bud Pole in as many weeks.

"I knew it was a good lap, definitely the best we've been all weekend for sure," said Stewart, a Rushville, Ind., native. "We've struggled all year, so to go out and do what we just did -- that's exactly what this crew needed for sure."

It's not as bad as Stewart lets on. He is currently seventh in the championship points race with two wins, a pair of Bud poles and eight top-five finishes. But having entered the season on everyone's short list of championship contenders, he'd hoped for a bit more fruitful campaign.

One might assume Saturday's effort would help remedy Stewart's dismay, but he maintains that poles mean nothing to him. Still, after earning the right to lead the field to the green flag at IMS, Stewart was noticeably gleeful.

Upon exit from his car, the elated driver pumped a gratifying fist towards the hometown crowd.

"To be honest, I could care less about poles," Stewart said. "I want my name on a brick (trophy) and a I want my name on a Borg Warner Trophy (given to the winner of the Indianapolis 500). You guys can take the poles and do whatever the heck you want with them."

Elliott will gladly take them. His four Bud Poles are tops in the series, and he was eyeing a fifth Saturday before Stewart bumped him.

"I felt like we got all we could get out of it," said Elliott, who led the field to the green flag at New Hampshire two weeks ago and at Pocono last weekend.

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"If you hit it right, you've got a chance. If not, you don't. I think I got all I could out of it, and it's good to be up there. Track position is everything here at Indy."

Former Brickyard winners Jeff Gordon and Dale Jarrett will have to battle for track position Sunday. Gordon, the only three-time winner here, will roll off 18th.

Jarrett, the only other multiple winner here, starts 15. Neither is overly concerned, however. Gordon won the 2001 Brickyard 400 from the 27th starting position.

Earnhardt Jr. will start third, followed by Robby Gordon, who finished eighth in the Indianapolis 500 in May. Rookie phenom Ryan Newman, from South Bend, Ind., gave Stewart cause for concern late in the session, but fell a bit short. He'll start fifth.

Stewart said that had he gone out late and Newman early, the roles may have been reversed.

"Ryan scared me there at the end. He's got a lot of talent," Stewart said. "He ran a really good lap. If the roles were reversed, he might be starting on the pole. That's the luck of the draw here."

Steve Park qualified sixth, followed by Kevin Harvick, series points leader Sterling Marlin, Mark Martin and Joe Nemechek in the top10. Kurt Busch was quickest in practice Friday, but spun out during his qualifying attempt and required a provisional.

Jimmie Johnson and 2000 Brickyard 400 winner Bobby Labonte also needed provisionals to make the show.

"I told the guys I'd be happy with anything in the top-10," said Stewart, just before hopping in his International Race of Champions machine. "I honestly didn't think we had that lap in us, but it stuck to the track real well. I just stuffed it up in (Turn) 1 and it stuck. It was an awesome lap."