Vickers off to good start in attempt to close Chase gap

As the Chase for the Sprint Cup field begins to take shape, qualifying begins to take on even more importance. On Friday at Michigan International Speedway, drivers who have ground to make up were definitely on their game.

3M Performance 400

Race Lineup

Pos.	Driver	Speed	Time
1.	B. Vickers	188.536	38.189
2.	J. Johnson	187.028	38.497
3.	E. Sadler	186.577	38.590
4.	Dale Jr.	186.321	38.643
5.	J. Gordon	186.032	38.703
6.	P. Carpentier	185.979	38.714
7.	D. Reutimann	185.907	38.729
8.	R. Smith	185.874	38.736
9.	G. Biffle	185.821	38.747
10.	S. Riggs	185.821	38.747

• Lineup | Videos | Photos

Brian Vickers, sitting on the very edge of those who still have a shot, blistered two-time defending series champion Jimmie Johnson's lap with a monster circuit at 188.536 mph -- more than three-tenths of a second faster that Johnson.

It was the first pole for Red Bull Racing, the fifth for Vickers, and it couldn't have come at a better time.

"It was awesome," Vickers said. "When we unloaded we were so fast, I didn't know if they'd repaved the track or we were just that fast. I'm pretty happy with it."

Vickers is 17th in the points, 210 behind 12th-place Matt Kenseth, and that No. 1 pit stall will help keep him up front on Sunday.

On the opposite side from Vickers was Clint Bowyer, the current occupant of 13th place in the points, just 22 points behind Kenseth for a Chase spot. Bowyer went 41st in qualifying, at 183.001 mph.

Kenseth, who normally doesn't qualify all that well, was 14th at 185.672 mph in his Ford.

From sixth-place Jeff Gordon to 12th-place Kenseth, it's a gap of 126 points. That means the points can totally flip-flop in one race.

Gordon was solid in qualifying, running fifth at 186.032 mph. Tony Stewart sits seventh in the points, 138 ahead of Bowyer in 13th, and he timed in 21st at 185.152 mph.

Kasey Kahne was 32nd in his Dodge, timing in at 184.134 mph, and Denny Hamlin was 37th in his Toyota at 183.491 mph.

Greg Biffle was ninth at 185.821 mph, protecting his 10th-place position in the points, and 11th-place Kevin Harvick timed in 38th at 183.313 mph.

Of those outside the Chase, 14th-place David Ragan was 16th at 185.452 mph, and Ryan Newman, 15th in the points, timed in 20th at 185.238 mph.

Martin Truex Jr., still trying to overcome a penalty earlier in the season, sits 16th in the points, 209 points behind Kenseth, and he qualified 25th at 184.639 mph.

Of those on the Chase Bubble, Biffle, Gordon, Kahne, Kenseth, Newman and Stewart have all visited Victory Lane at Michigan. On the flip side, Bowyer's best finish is 16th, Ragan's best is eighth and Hamlin has a top-five finish on the 2-mile oval.

Kenseth, as is the case nearly everywhere he races, finishes better than he starts. His average finish in 18 races is 9.3. The only Chaser with a better average is Carl Edwards at 7.2. Hamlin is also a good closer at 10.8.

Bowyer's average finish is 26.2, and Vickers' is 18.4. Newman, despite winning several poles, finishes at an 18.4 clip. Gordon has a 10.8 average finish, and also has led 899 laps.

Stewart, on a roll with back-to-back runner-up finishes, finishes at 12.5, and Truex is at 13.4.

Michigan is one of those tracks where very few drivers get off the lead lap and even fewer fall out, so Sunday's race is going to play a big role in setting up the big show next week at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Also
• Vickers follows top practice run with pole at Michigan
• As Chase nears, 10th-place Biffle deflecting pressure