The last time Matt Kenseth won a Bud Pole, he also won the race: Sharpie 400 at Bristol. Credit: Autostock

Kenseth leads Chase qualifiers with Bud Pole

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Matt Kenseth doesn't often win a pole, but when he does, you can bet he'll be fast when the green flag drops Sunday.

Kenseth won his third career pole in 214 starts Saturday at Kansas Speedway, setting a track record at 29.858 seconds, 180.856 mph. That's a ton better than his best start here, which was 13th in 2001, and light-years better than his average start of 23.0. Incidentally, his average finish also is 23.0.

Carl Edwards

Inside the Chase Banquet 400 Qualifying Chase drivers Driver Behind Start T. Stewart -- 9 R. Newman -4 11 R. Wallace -76 33 J. Johnson -82 22 G. Biffle -98 8 C. Edwards -100 5 M. Kenseth -111 1 J. Mayfield -112 14 M. Martin -138 19 Ku. Busch -180 10 Complete Lineup: click here Point Standings: click here Out in frontKenseth secures pole position for Banquet 400 from Kansas On the moveCarl Edwards secures a Top 10 start at Kansas In the huntGreg Biffle will start the Banquet 400 from the 8th position Strong runTony Stewart focuses on his qualifying run from Kansas Sign up for TrackPass now BUY YOUR NEXTEL DRIVER PHONE

Seven Chasers wound up in the top 14 on Saturday.

Carl Edwards laid down a lap at 29.931 seconds, 180.415 mph in the No. 99 Ford to line up fifth on the grid. Edwards has raced once at Kansas, starting 16th and finishing 22nd. He was the last of five cars to break Jimmie Johnson's track record of 29.938 seconds, 180.373 mph, and Kevin Lepage tied Johnson's mark in sixth.

Greg Biffle was the next Chaser in line, coming home eighth and leading a gaggle of Chasers clustered at the bottom of the top 10. His lap in the No. 16 Ford was 30.014 seconds, 179.916 mph, and he'll start better than his average of 19.000. Biffle averages a finish of 17.0 in his three previous starts.

Chase leader Tony Stewart clocked in at 30.025 seconds, 179.850 mph in his No. 20 Chevrolet, several spots higher than his average start of 13.25. His average finish is a Chase-best 8.5 (tied with Rusty Wallace).

Close behind Stewart was Kurt Busch, who logged in at 30.060 seconds, 179.641 mph in the No. 97 Ford. Busch averages 24.0 per Kansas start and 21.5 for a finish, and he'll have to improve on that second number as well to have a hope of defending his championship.

Ryan Newman is another driver whose average start and finish are exactly the same. Newman posted the 11th-fastest lap at 30.087 seconds, 179.480 mph in the No. 12 Dodge. Newman's average start and average finish is 9.5, third best among Chasers. Jeremy Mayfield averages 17.75 per Kansas start, and he timed in 14th in his No. 19 Dodge with a lap at 30.106 seconds, 179.366 mph. Mayfield averages 13.25 per Kansas finish.

After leading one of Friday's practice sessions, Mark Martin slipped to 19th in the No. 6 Ford. His lap at 30.172 seconds, 178.974 mph was better than his average Kansas start of 22.0. His average finish here is 17.75.

Johnson held the track record until Scott Wimmer went out, the second car to qualify. Johnson logged a lap at 30.192 seconds, 178.855 mph to line up 22nd. This is Johnson's first start outside the top four in the four Kansas races to date, and it's sure to drop his starting average of 2.3. His finishing average is 16.3, having finished 10th, seventh and 32nd here.

Bringing up the tail end of the Chasers is Rusty Wallace, whose No. 2 Dodge clocked in at 30.334 seconds, 177.154 mph, good for 33rd. Wallace averages 15.75 per Kansas start.

In terms of manufacturers, four Fords would up in the top 10 and all five are in the top 14. Stewart's Chevrolet was the best non-Ford in ninth, Newman's Dodge was the best Charger in 11th.