Jeff Gordon was beaten in Bud Pole Qualifying by Kurt Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr., who each scored a top-10 starting spot. Credit: Autostock

New surface throws Gordon for a loop

Streak of front-row starts at Martinsville ends

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Jeff Gordon was nearly a tenth-of a second quicker than the former Martinsville Speedway track qualifying record Friday.

Problem is, he was nearly three tenths of a second slower than pole-winner Ryan Newman.

So much for becoming the first driver in NASCAR history to earn four-consecutive Bud Pole awards at the half-mile bullring.

Subway 500 Lineup 1st Practice Speeds

"The surface is just different," explained Gordon, who had started on the front row five consecutive times, including four poles, heading into the weekend.

"It changes things a lot. I knew when we came up here (to test) that we weren't going to have the edge we've had over the competition here in the past. I felt like I had a good lap. But the lap times certainly didn't show it."

Gordon's 19.797-second circuit placed him 15th overall on the starting grid for Sunday's Subway 500. It is his worst qualifying effort here since his second career Martinsville start in 1993.

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"It does (concern me)," Gordon said. "I know how much of an advantage it's been for us to be starting up front, and we're not going to have it this time."

Gordon had learned certain areas of the track that approached a certain way dramatically reduced lap times. In fact, since the 1998 season, he'd qualified outside the top five just twice.

"It's actually faster. It's got good grip. It's smoother," Gordon said. "Before we just had a great handle on the setup and the way you drive the car to get around these tight corners.

"It's not as challenging now because it's so smooth and has more grip."

Aside from crucial track position, the biggest obstacle facing Gordon's team is pit stall selection.

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Pit selection is chosen according to qualifying results, meaning third-place qualifier Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- whom Gordon trails by 74 points in the Chase for the Nextel Cup - gets a decidedly stall on the ultra-tight Martinsville pit road.

"Ryan (Newman, pole sitter) lays a lap like that down, pretty much the only thing you can look forward to is trying to get better pit selection than everybody else in the top 10," Junior said. "This is a very difficult pit road, especially on the front straightaway.

"If you can get a pit down in the corner in Turn 1 it's easier to get in and out, and you can angle into and leaving your pit stall a lot better. If those guys are forced into stalls here in the front straightaway, they can run into people, get run into, have all kinds of troubles. I think they have a little bit of concern there."

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Credit: Autostock

Gordon is confident that crew chief Robbie Loomis will make the right choice.

"You've just got to live with what you got and pick the best you can," Gordon said. "Robbie has been doing an awesome job all year picking great pit stalls."

Gordon swept Martinsville a year ago, and finished sixth in the spring following a dominant performance that was spoiled when he hit a chunk of concrete that had dislodged from the Turn 3 surface.

"We'll be patient with it," Gordon said. "We're probably going to get blocked in and have trouble in the pits getting in and out, but it should sort itself out. If we can stay on the lead lap, we'll be there at the end."

Junior agrees.

"When you talk about Kurt Busch and Jeff Gordon, qualifying position is not a factor," Junior said. "Those guys can have several pit strategies in the first 50 laps of the race to get them right in top five. I'm not expecting that that is going to hamper their ability on Sunday."