Boris Said has enjoyed being in Mexico City this week. Credit: Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images

Winning pole 'beautiful' for road racer Said

MEXICO CITY -- Boris Said spoke two words on Saturday after winning the pole for Sunday's Busch Series race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez road course that you don't normally hear in the United States.

Boris Said celebrated after claiming the pole for Sunday's race. Credit: Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images

PRACTICE •   Race Lineup MEXICO CITY COVERAGE When Mexico City was listed on the '05 Busch Series schedule, it wasn't the most anticipated trip of the season. But that has changed this season.  •   Complete story,  click here Many of NASCAR's biggest sponsors have a big presence in Mexico, making it a market the sanctioning body can't ignore.  •   Complete story,  click here Although fewer Nextel Cup regulars are entered this weekend in Mexico City, By the Numbers shows that outsiders still rule when the Busch Series hits the road courses.  •   Complete story,  click here Mexican drivers Carlos Contreras, Adrian Fernandez and Jorge Goeters recently answered some questions about this week's race in Mexico City.  •   Complete story,  click here •   Complete coverage Pole winnerBoris Said wins the pole and will lead the field to green Sunday Hometown heroCrowd favorite Adrian Fernandez turns in solid run Ready for racingNASCAR.COM's Carolina Escobar reports from Mexico City Listos para correrLas principales figuras mexicanas comentan como estan para la gran carrera El regreso ha mexicoFernandez, Goeters y Jourdain, los principales pilotos mexicanos se mostraron muy positivos de cara a la carrera del domingo Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836 LISTEN IN SPANISH •   FOX to broadcast in Spanish

"Muy bonito,'' he said -- the Spanish translation for "very beautiful."

He wasn't talking about his lap of 102.665 mph that edged Denny Hamlin [102.509] for the top spot.

He was talking about the five scantly clad women standing behind him during the post-qualifying press conference.

And the women parading down the front stretch during the introduction of the Rolex Sports Car Series race that was about to begin.

And the women that stood behind the drivers every time they got in front of a camera during a Saturday morning press conference.

Seems NASCAR isn't the only thing they're promoting in Mexico.

"I've raced everywhere in the world, from Australia to Japan to all through Europe,'' Said said. "I've never seen anything like it.''

Hamlin agreed.

"Mexico City is great,'' he said. "The race is just a small part of the fun you get to have down here.''

Scenic side trips aside, racing is what the top Busch Series drivers in America came to Mexico to do. They earned the top three spots -- Johnny Sauter will start third -- over Mexican road-course stars Adrian Fernandez and Jorge Goeters.

The top 15 was filled with Nextel Cup regulars. Jamie McMurray, J.J. Yeley and Kyle Busch took positions 7 through 9. Kevin Harvick, who finished second in this race a year ago, qualified 11th.

Rookie Clint Bowyer will start 13th and Carl Edwards was 15th-fastest after making major changes to his car before qualifying.

Hamlin was particularly pleased to beat out his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Yeley, who taunted him over his car radio after posting the fastest lap early during Friday's first practice.

"He told me, 'I'm two-and-a-half tenths better. What are you going to do about it?' '' Hamlin said. "The next thing I know my crew chief came over the radio and said, 'Don't run off the course trying to beat him.' ''

Yeley, who lost the toenail on his right foot when a suitcase was knocked against him at the airport, wasn't complaining about his lap.

"I'm trying to be like Tony [Stewart],'' said Yeley, whose car is sponsored by Home Depot, the primary sponsor on Stewart's Cup car. "I'm just a shaved, thinner version.

"But it must work because the car is really fast.''

Said had perhaps the most pressure. A road-course specialist hired especially for this race by Evernham Motorsports, he was 13th-fastest in practice.

He said his qualifying lap felt so fast that he couldn't imagine what it would be like in a Formula One car that often graces this 2.518-mile facility.

"I probably should have taken one more lap, but we have 40,000 people at Ingersoll-Rand [his car sponsor] and they would have been mad if I would have dumped it,'' said Said after capturing his first Busch pole since June 28, 1998, at Watkins Glen, another road course.

Hamlin said qualifying was like "stealing a car and running from cops like you wish you could do.''

Replied Said, "You can chase me for a while and pretend you're the cop.''