The new restrictor plates at Talladega haven't bothered Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon. Credit: Autostock

Hendrick cars not fazed by smaller plates

Team's three Chasers will start in top six Sunday at 'Dega

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Qualifying, in terms of Talladega Superspeedway, is usually a pro forma exercise to determine pit road positions.

It was the same on Saturday, with the singular exception of a change to a smaller restrictor plate between Friday's practice to Saturday's qualifying session. In other words, we'll have to wait until lap 188 on Sunday to figure out what effect it had on the 10 drivers in the Chase for the Nextel Cup.

	David Gilliland and teammate Dale Jarrett were the only drivers to top 191 mph. Credit: CIA Stock Photo
	UAW-Ford 500 Lineup Pos. Driver Speed Time 1. D. Gilliland 191.712 49.950 2. D. Jarrett 191.516 50.001 3. J. Johnson 190.400 50.294 4. J. Gordon 190.200 50.347 5. G. Biffle 190.042 50.389 6. Ky. Busch 189.808 50.451 7. S. Marlin 189.522 50.527 8. J. McMurray 189.212 50.610 9. B. Vickers 188.958 50.678 10. J.J. Yeley 188.928 50.686 • Complete lineup, click here

Several teams made gear changes based on practice Friday, and the move to the smaller plate not only knocked 15-18 horsepower off the engine's output, it also played havoc with the way the cars pick up off the corners.

It didn't seem to matter much to Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch, as the three Hendrick Motorsports cars will line up third, fourth and sixth, respectively.

Johnson blasted a lap at 50.294 seconds, 190.400 miles per hour in his Chevrolet to line up third. That will improve his average start of 7.444 in nine starts, but he'll have to improve on his average finish of 20.666, which is seventh among the Chasers.

Gordon has numbers and experience on his side, and he'll start fourth, right next to Johnson. His lap at 50.347 seconds, 190.200 mph was a tick slower than Johnson's,and will likewise improve his average start, a second-best 11.407. His average finish is 15.148, and that's third among Chasers. He's also led 702 laps here.

Busch has no numbers on his side. In three starts, Busch averaged 20.333 for a starting spot, and a Chase-worst 35.333 for finishes. His best here is 32nd. Still, his lap at 50.451 seconds, 189.808 mph was good enough for sixth.

Denny Hamlin hopes his second start is much better than his first one, back in April. Hamlin posted the 12th-best lap of the session and fourth-best of the Chasers at 50.758 seconds, 188.660 mph and will start 18 spots better than he did in April (30th). His average finish is 22.000.

Kevin Harvick has run well in the plate races of late, and he timed in14th at 50.786 seconds, 188.556 mph. Harvick has had some good performances at Talladega, given his averages of 18.818 for starts and 14.363 for finishes. He needs a good finish to get back in the thick of the Chase race.

Matt Kenseth put his Ford 19th, the first non-Chevy among the Chasers. His lap at 50.892 seconds, 188.163 mph was solid, given the plate change. Kenseth has never started well at Talladega, averaging 25.769 in 13 starts. He does somewhat better finishing the plate races here, averaging 16.384.

Chase for the Nextel Cup After Kansas (3rd of 10 races) Pos. +/- Driver Behind 1. -- Jeff Burton Leader 2. +2 Denny Hamlin -69 3. +3 Mark Martin -70 4. -1 Matt Kenseth -84 5. -- Kevin Harvick -96 6. -4 Jeff Gordon -120 7. -- D. Earnhardt Jr. -123 8. -- Jimmie Johnson -165 9. +1 Kyle Busch -233 10. -1 Kasey Kahne -273 • Complete standings, click here SUPERSTORE •   2006 Chase driver hats!

Kasey Kahne, the lone Dodge in the Chase, wound up 25th after a lap at 50.946 seconds, 187.964 mph. Talladega has never been one of Kahne's better tracks, as both his average start (26.600) and finish (26.600) are ninth-best among the 10 Chasers.

Mark Martin, who has won twice at Talladega, never has liked the place because of the jam-packed nature of the racing. He will start 30th on Sunday, his 42nd start here, and he's done pretty well. He averages a third-best 14.024 for starting spots and a fourth-best 15.658 for finishes. His lap was at 50.996 seconds, 187.779 mph.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., who does like Talladega a lot, given that he's won five times here, was a disappointing 33rd in qualifying at 51.080 seconds, 187.471 mph. Earnhardt averages 15.230 for starts and a Chase-best 12.230 for finishes.

Point leader Jeff Burton will start 34th, right next to Earnhardt, on Sunday. His Chevrolet went 51.083 seconds at 187.460 mph. Burton, in 25 starts, has an average start of 24.880 and an average finish of 17.560. He was third here last year.

Chevrolets swept the top five spots among the Chasers and also had the final two. Fords were 19th and 30th, and Kahne's Dodge was 25th. Since a large percentage of the races at Talladega are won from the top 10, that bodes ill for the seven Chasers below that line.