Familiar stories in Martinsville qualifying

Newman will lead Chase contenders to green flag Sunday

Mother Nature played a role in setting the field for Sunday's Subway 500, but not in the usual way.

Ryan Newman Credit: Autostock

Cloudy and threatening rain every minute, the old girl couldn't beat back an assault from Ryan Newman on Martinsville Speedway's newly repaved surface.

Newman, whose average starting spot here in five races is an even 5.0, laid waste to the track record set in 2000 by fellow Chaser Tony Stewart. Newman's lap at 19.513 seconds, 97.043 miles per hour topped Stewart's mark of 19.855 seconds, 95.371 mph by .342 seconds and 1.472 miles per hour.

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It was similar to the performance Newman put on last week at Lowe's Motor Speedway, where he broke the track mark by nearly two miles per hour. Newman, who trailed leader Ricky Rudd in practice by a slim margin, earned his series-leading seventh pole of the season with his run.

Despite his solid performance in qualifying, Newman still has trouble finishing races in the top 10 at Martinsville. His average is 20.8, and he's led just 49 laps in his five races here. His best finish here is fifth, which he's done twice, but he also has two DNFs.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Credit: Autostock

Dale Earnhardt Jr., who runs well here despite never having won a race, was the final car out for qualifying and he wound up third, which is exactly where he practiced. Earnhardt averages 9.777 for starting spots and 13.222 for finishing position; and given the fact that Martinsville will likely be a one-groove show on Sunday, that puts him in good stead for the championship.

Kurt Busch, the championship leader, has not had much luck here in the past (a victory, one top-five and two top-10s in eight races), but it certainly didn't look like it Friday afternoon. Busch laid down the seventh-fastest lap of the day in his Ford. He was 10th-quickest in practice, so his seventh-quick run is not a surprise. Like Newman, however, he has to finish better to maintain his lead. His average finish is 24.25, despite having won a race in 2002.

Jeremy Mayfield Credit: Autostock

Jeremy Mayfield was ninth-fastest in practice, and he wound up 11th in qualifying. His lap at 19.779 also broke Stewart's record, and he will line up 12 spots better than his average starting spot of 23.0. Martinsville isn't Mayfield's best track, as his average finish of 22.444 shows, but he does have a top-five and four top-10s here in 18 races.

Stewart, who was fifth-quick in practice, managed a 13th-place run in his Chevrolet and also ran faster than his track record. His average start here is 17.545, and his average finish is 13.909. Included in that total are one victory, three top-fives and six top-10s in 11 races.

Jeff Gordon, who swept the poles here last year in addition to winning both races, was a disappointing 15th, a fact he attributed to not being able to come to grips with the new surface as well as he would have liked. Gordon's average reflects how good he has been in the past here. His average start is 6.26 and his average finish is 8.391.

Jimmie Johnson, last week's winner at Lowe's Motor Speedway, was 18th and the first driver to fall short of the old track record (19.869, 95.304). He was 19th in practice. His average start is 12.4 and his average finish a solid 11.2. He was runner-up to Gordon here last fall, his best finish in five races, and he has two top-five and four top-10 finishes here.

Matt Kenseth Credit: Autostock

By far the most experienced Chaser here at Martinsville, Mark Martin, was 23rd in qualifying after practicing 15th quickest. In 37 starts here, Martin has three poles, two victories, 10 top-five and 20 top-10 finishes. In those 37 starts, his average starting spot is 11.702 and his finishing position averages out to 12.918.

It never seems like Matt Kenseth starts well anywhere he races, but he's always around at the finish. That's the way it played out here Friday. Kenseth was seventh-quick in practice at 19.766 seconds and qualified 25th at 19.981. His average start at Martinsville is 26.111, and his average finish is 17.888. His one top-five finish here was a runner-up, however, and he has three top-10s in nine starts.

The good news for Elliott Sadler, who sits fourth in the points with five races left, is that he did better than his average starting position of 34.363. The bad news is, it was just one spot. Sadler wound up 33rd after qualifying and went slower than he practiced (26th). His average finish is 23.545.