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Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the pole at Richmond International Raceway in the final race before the Sprint Cup Chase begins.
In doing so he stole the spotlight from teammate and outside pole, Jeff Gordon. And there is Kyle Busch, who is battling for the Wild Card spot in the Chase, down in fifteenth.
After his eleventh career pole, Earnhardt who qualified at 127.023mph, said the win on Saturday night is key. But for Gordon and Busch the pressure is really on.
Earnhardt's arc to become a threat for the Chase began with teaming him with crew chief, Steve Letarte.
"We've been working the last two years to improve ... and this year we made some gains," Earnhardt said. "It feels good to get a pole position and know that we're doing something right there.
"It gives us a good starting spot for [Saturday]. We feel pretty confident about the car after practice [Friday], and starting up front is an advantage. I'm happy that we're performing well and look forward to the race."
Meanwhile four-time champion Gordon told the media before qualifying that he's not going to be a nice guy on Saturday evening if someone, anyone, is in his way. Then after qualifying he said he's fine.
"I think [Friday] was a big mission accomplished for us," Gordon said. "We were very solid in practice all day. I know exactly where I left a little bit out there in [Turns] 1 and 2. I got everything out of it in 3 and 4. But in 1 and 2, I knew I got down to the yellow line too early and just couldn't get back to the gas as hard as I needed to.
"When you do that, you know that there's somebody out there that has a shot of getting you. Second is still a fantastic effort. We had a great practice [Friday], and our car was solid, so [I'm] pretty excited about this race [Saturday night]."
Regan Smith was third in a Chevrolet followed by Clint Bowyer's Toyota. Denny Hamlin, would could be the top seed following Richmond, was seventh fastest
There are a number of different scenarios to play out for the Wild Card which will be resolved on Saturday evening at the three-quarter mile oval.
In doing so he stole the spotlight from teammate and outside pole, Jeff Gordon. And there is Kyle Busch, who is battling for the Wild Card spot in the Chase, down in fifteenth.
After his eleventh career pole, Earnhardt who qualified at 127.023mph, said the win on Saturday night is key. But for Gordon and Busch the pressure is really on.
Earnhardt's arc to become a threat for the Chase began with teaming him with crew chief, Steve Letarte.
"We've been working the last two years to improve ... and this year we made some gains," Earnhardt said. "It feels good to get a pole position and know that we're doing something right there.
"It gives us a good starting spot for [Saturday]. We feel pretty confident about the car after practice [Friday], and starting up front is an advantage. I'm happy that we're performing well and look forward to the race."
Meanwhile four-time champion Gordon told the media before qualifying that he's not going to be a nice guy on Saturday evening if someone, anyone, is in his way. Then after qualifying he said he's fine.
"I think [Friday] was a big mission accomplished for us," Gordon said. "We were very solid in practice all day. I know exactly where I left a little bit out there in [Turns] 1 and 2. I got everything out of it in 3 and 4. But in 1 and 2, I knew I got down to the yellow line too early and just couldn't get back to the gas as hard as I needed to.
"When you do that, you know that there's somebody out there that has a shot of getting you. Second is still a fantastic effort. We had a great practice [Friday], and our car was solid, so [I'm] pretty excited about this race [Saturday night]."
Regan Smith was third in a Chevrolet followed by Clint Bowyer's Toyota. Denny Hamlin, would could be the top seed following Richmond, was seventh fastest
There are a number of different scenarios to play out for the Wild Card which will be resolved on Saturday evening at the three-quarter mile oval.