Chevys lead way for Chasers in NHIS quals

Harvick's first pole propels him into right start for Round 1

If momentum is a deciding factor in NASCAR, then Kevin Harvick is the man to beat on Sunday in the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Harvick led four Chasers in the top 10 in Friday's Bud Pole Qualifying, knocking fellow Chaser Jeff Gordon off the pole late in the round.

Sylvania 300 Qualifying results for Chasers Pos. Driver Speed Time 1. K. Harvick 132.282 28.793 2. J. Gordon 131.751 28.909 5. D. Hamlin 130.667 29.149 7. J. Johnson 130.264 29.239 13. Earnhardt 129.842 29.334 16. Ky. Busch 129.763 29.352 22. J. Burton 129.533 29.404 25. M. Kenseth 129.375 29.440 26. M. Martin 129.322 29.452 33. K. Kahne 128.998 29.526 Lineup Pos. Driver Speed Time 1. K. Harvick 132.282 28.793 2. J. Gordon 131.751 28.909 3. Ku. Busch 131.483 28.968 4. R. Newman 131.216 29.027 5. D. Hamlin 130.667 29.149 6. D. Stremme 130.305 29.230 7. J. Johnson 130.264 29.239 8. G. Biffle 130.193 29.255 9. R. Gordon 130.086 29.279 10. K. Schrader 130.038 29.290 • Complete lineup, click here Fast runKevin Harvick secures pole for Sylvania 300 at Loudon Good timesDenny Hamlin gets a treat from Kevin Harvick during qualifying Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

Harvick, who was second to Gordon in practice by a scant 0.022 seconds, beat Gordon by 0.116 seconds to take his first Bud Pole of the season and set himself up for a solid run at the Nextel Cup championship. His pole-winning lap was 28.793 seconds at 132.282 mph.

Harvick did much better than his starting average of 15.272 in his 11 previous starts. His average finish is 13.727, which is ninth-best among Chasers.

Gordon, who suffered through a miserable night at Richmond a week ago, was fastest in practice at 29.082 seconds, 130.968 mph, and improved to 28.909, 131.751 mph in qualifying. He will start second.

Gordon is second-best among the Chasers in starting position at 10.043, but he's sixth of 10 in average finish at 12.782.

Rookie Denny Hamlin was the next best Chaser in fifth. Hamlin's lap was 29.149, 130.667 mph. Hamlin, making his second start at NHIS, improved his average start from 12.000 (fourth in the Chase) to a Chase-leading 8.500.

Hamlin did pick up from practice, where he was fifth, but not in terms of position. He finished sixth in his lone start there in July.

Jimmie Johnson, one of four drivers to have won at NHIS, came up seventh with a lap at 29.239 seconds, 130.264 mph. He is the Chase leader in average starting position at 8.666, and ironically his average finish is 8.666 -- second behind Hamlin. Johnson picked up nearly two-tenths of a second from practice, where he was 26th.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. wound up 13th, turning in a lap at 29.334 seconds, 129.842 mph. Earnhardt bettered his career average start of 16.285 (eighth in the Chase) with his run, and now turns his attention toward overcoming his Chase-worst average finish of 18.857.

Earnhardt was 28th in practice, picking up nearly two-tenths of a second in qualifying.

Kyle Busch wound up 16th in qualifying, turning a lap at 29.352 seconds, 129.763 mph, making him one of the four Chasers who failed to improve on his practice time (18th at 29.334 seconds). Busch's average start is 13.666, fifth-best among the Chasers, and his average finish is a third-best 10.666.

Jeff Burton, the leading winner at NHIS with four victories, wound up 22nd with his lap of 29.404 seconds, 129.533 mph. Despite his success at NHIS, Burton's average start of 19.608 is worst among the 10 Chasers, and his average finish of 13.478 is eighth-best. Burton also did not pick up from practice, losing better than a tenth of a second off his 10th-fastest time there.

Matt Kenseth, the points leader heading into the first Chase race, clocked in 25th with his lap of 29.440 seconds, 129.375 mph. Kenseth picked up better than a tenth from his 32nd-fastest practice speed and will be the best Ford Chaser when the race starts on Sunday.

Kenseth's average start of 16.923 (ninth among Chasers) will suffer, and his average finish of 10.923 is fourth-best among the top 10.

Kenseth's Roush Racing teammate Mark Martin was 26th in qualifying with a lap at 29.452 seconds, 129.322 mph. He did not pick up from practice (22nd), losing a tenth of a second.

Martin, who along with Gordon and Burton has started all 23 NHIS events, averages 14.434 for a starting spot (sixth-best among Chasers) and 10.956 for finishing position (fifth).

The surprise of the day was Kasey Kahne, the lone Dodge driver in the Chase. His lap of 29.526 seconds, 127.534 mph was good for 34th spot, which threatens his third-best starting average of 10.400. He was way off his practice time -- nearly two-tenths of a second.

Kahne averages 12.800 per NHIS finish, seventh-best among the Chasers.

The seven Chevrolets in the Chase field qualified first, second, fifth, seventh, 13th, 16th and 22nd, while the two Fords start together in the 13th row (25th and 26th). Kahne is mired way back in Row 17.

Four drivers in the Chase have won races at NHIS: Burton (four), Gordon (three), Johnson (two) and Busch (one).