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Ricky Stenhouse Jr. learned it's good to listen to his boss as eclipsed his Roush Fenway Racing teammate, Carl Edwards, to take the pole at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
What did the rookie driver do? In a pre-qualifying interview he said that Jack Roush told him to take the low line around one NASCAR's fastest tracks and in doing so got his first Sprint Cup pole, in a Ford, at a speed of 189.688 mph (or 29.227 seconds) around the one and one-half mile oval.
Stenhouse said “we were sitting in the trailer after practice and Jack asked me what line I was gonna run in qualifying and having a late draw I told him, ‘Well, whoever is on the pole at that time I'm gonna run where they ran,' and he said he didn't want to hear that, he wanted to hear that I was gonna run the bottom because it makes him less nervous when I'm on the bottom.”
Edwards, who had held the provisional pole at 189.021 mph, said “As soon as he (Stenhouse) went to the bottom I thought, ‘He gave it up. It's done,' so it did shock me that he was able to go that fast on the bottom.
“I think this race will change a lot throughout the event. The track changes a lot through the race and I think whatever works at the beginning of the race won't work at the end, and I think you'll see a migrating groove. The fast line won't stay in the same place, but it definitely will make it tough for him to pick which line to start in. I'll be curious to see if he picks the bottom or the top, but it is a 500-mile race and the biggest thing is to work tomorrow to have our cars fast on the long run.”
Colombia's Juan Pablo Montoya, who will be replaced by Kyle Larson next year at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, was third fast in a Chevrolet at 188.539 mph.
Rounding out the top five were Denny Hamlin in a Toyota and Jeff Gordon in a Chevrolet.
Sunday night's 500 miler is the penultimate race before the points are reset. While five-time champion, Jimmie Johnson, leads the actual points, he would be second to Matt Kenseth due to bonus points awarded frowns in the first 26 races. Kenseth has five to Johnson's four.
What did the rookie driver do? In a pre-qualifying interview he said that Jack Roush told him to take the low line around one NASCAR's fastest tracks and in doing so got his first Sprint Cup pole, in a Ford, at a speed of 189.688 mph (or 29.227 seconds) around the one and one-half mile oval.
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| Rickie Stenhouse Jr. (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR) |
Stenhouse said “we were sitting in the trailer after practice and Jack asked me what line I was gonna run in qualifying and having a late draw I told him, ‘Well, whoever is on the pole at that time I'm gonna run where they ran,' and he said he didn't want to hear that, he wanted to hear that I was gonna run the bottom because it makes him less nervous when I'm on the bottom.”
Edwards, who had held the provisional pole at 189.021 mph, said “As soon as he (Stenhouse) went to the bottom I thought, ‘He gave it up. It's done,' so it did shock me that he was able to go that fast on the bottom.
“I think this race will change a lot throughout the event. The track changes a lot through the race and I think whatever works at the beginning of the race won't work at the end, and I think you'll see a migrating groove. The fast line won't stay in the same place, but it definitely will make it tough for him to pick which line to start in. I'll be curious to see if he picks the bottom or the top, but it is a 500-mile race and the biggest thing is to work tomorrow to have our cars fast on the long run.”
Colombia's Juan Pablo Montoya, who will be replaced by Kyle Larson next year at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, was third fast in a Chevrolet at 188.539 mph.
Rounding out the top five were Denny Hamlin in a Toyota and Jeff Gordon in a Chevrolet.
Sunday night's 500 miler is the penultimate race before the points are reset. While five-time champion, Jimmie Johnson, leads the actual points, he would be second to Matt Kenseth due to bonus points awarded frowns in the first 26 races. Kenseth has five to Johnson's four.