NASCAR: Ryan Newman Grabs Pole for Sunday's Coca-Cola 600

Series point leader Jeff Gordon will start 32.

Photo courtesy: lowesmotorspeedway.com

CONCORD, N.C. - Ryan Newman grabbed the pole for Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 with a fast lap of 185.312 mph. Newman will be joined on the front row by Penske Racing teammate Kurt Busch.

Ryan Newman (pole winner, 39th career NEXTEL Cup pole, sixth pole at Lowe's, No. 12 Penske/Alltel Dodge Charger): "Felt I could have had a lot better lap and wish I had because we didn't win the pole by that much. We can only try as hard as we can and hopefully experience will pay off here and at Indy. We've been performing well the last four-five weeks, but haven't had the finishes to show for it. Hendrick's organization is definitely strong and I look forward to the opportunity of facing them. Happy to be where I am now in the points and appreciate it more. I was worried about Kurt qualifying because he had a great lap last week for the All-Star race. We've done a great job of sharing information. Winning poles here and at Indy is great for Roger Penske."

Kurt Busch (second-fastest, No. 2 Penske/Miller Lite Dodge Charter): "Really excited to have an opportunity to go for the pole. It was a big achievement to see the Penske cars one-two. From what we did last week, I really thought we might have a chance to win the pole. For Roger [Penske, car owner] to pull off a double here and at Indy on the same day would be something else."

Elliott Sadler (third-fastest qualifier, No. 19 Evernham/UAW Dodge Dealers Dodge Charger): "Kind of a bitter run for us to lose the pole by that little of a margin. Proud of my guys doing what they did. It's a good way to start the weekend. It's a great race and it needs to stay 600 miles. If you survive, it's a great test of your stamina. We left a lot of speed on the race track."

Coca-Cola 600 Starting Lineup:

Row 1:

1. Ryan Newman

2. Kurt Busch

Row 2:

3. Elliott Sadler

4. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Row 3:

5. Matt Kenseth

6. Denny Hamlin

Row 4:

7. Ricky Rudd

8. Dave Blaney

Row 5:

9. Bobby Labonte

10. David Stremme

Row 6:

11. Mark Martin

12. J.J. Yeley

Row 7:

13. David Ragan

14. Tony Stewart

Row 8:

15. Scott Riggs

16. Casey Mears

Row 9:

17. Kyle Busch

18. Kasey Kahne

Row 10:

19. David Gilliland

20. Juan Pablo Montoya

Row 11:

21. Jimmie Johnson

22. Bill Elliott

Row 12:

23. Dale Jarrett

24. Jeremy Mayfield

Row 13:

25. Jeff Burton

26. Brian Vickers

Row 14:

27. Kevin Harvick

28. Jamie McMurray

Row 15:

29. AJ Allmendinger

30. Sterling Marlin

Row 16:

31. Martin Truex Jr.

32. Jeff Gordon

Row 17:

33. Joe Nemechek

34. Reed Sorenson

Row 18:

35. Robby Gordon

36. Kyle Petty

Row 19:

37. Tony Raines

38. Greg Biffle

Row 20:

39. Carl Edwards

40. Johnny Sauter

Row 21:

41. Clint Bowyer

42. Jeff Green

Row 22:

43. Kenny Wallace

Did Not Qualify:

Paul Menard

Michael Waltrip

Ward Burton

Kevin Lepage

Mike Bliss

David Reutimann

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