Jeff Byrd 500 Qualifying
STEWART-HAAS RACING
Jeff Byrd 500 Qualifying
Date: March 18, 2011
Event: Jeff Byrd 500 Qualifying (Round 4 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (.533-mile oval)
Pole Winner: Carl Edwards of Roush Fenway Racing (14.989 seconds at 128.014 mph)
SHR Lineup: Tony Stewart (13th, 15.129 seconds at 126.829 mph)
Ryan Newman (21st, 15.181 seconds at 126.395 mph)
Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet Impala, led the two-car Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) contingent in time trials at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway by qualifying 13th for Sunday’s Jeff Byrd 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. Stewart turned a lap of 15.129 seconds at 126.829 mph on the .533-mile oval.
“It kind of felt like the car was up on top of the track,” said Stewart, who won at Bristol in August 2001. “Tight in the center, too. The good news is that it’s fixable. The Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevy was pretty good in practice, so with another session tomorrow, we’ll get ready for Sunday.”
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Tornados Chevrolet Impala for SHR, will start 21st after turning a lap of 15.181 seconds at 126.395 mph.
“We struggled with the balance a good bit, so we’ve got a couple of things to work out,” said Newman, who has 10 top-10 finishes in 18 career Sprint Cup starts at Bristol. “I’m just proud of everybody to get this Tornados Chevy to where we are right now. We’ve got some work to do in race trim, but I’m sure we’re capable of it.”
Carl Edwards captured his ninth career Sprint Cup pole, his second of the season and his second at Bristol by posting a lap of 14.989 seconds at 128.014 mph. Newman continues to hold the track qualifying record with a lap of 14.908 seconds at 128.709 mph, set on March 21, 2003.
Edwards’ Roush Fenway Racing teammate Greg Biffle will start on the outside of row one, as he timed in at 15.035 seconds at 127.622 mph. Regan Smith was third (15.040 seconds at 127.580 mph), while Paul Menard (15.045 seconds at 127.537 mph) and David Ragan (15.055 seconds at 127.453 mph) rounded out the top-five.
Forty-four drivers attempted to qualify for the Jeff Byrd 500. The lone driver not making the cut in the 43-car field was Ken Schrader.
As far as manufacturers went, Ford swept the front row thanks to the runs of Edwards and Biffle. Chevrolet was next best at the hands of Smith, while the top Toyota came via eighth-quick Martin Truex Jr. (15.104 seconds at 127.039 mph). The best Dodge was 20th-quick Kurt Busch (15.181 seconds at 126.395 mph).
The Jeff Byrd 500 gets underway at 1 p.m. EDT on Sunday, March 20 with live coverage provided by FOX beginning with a pre-race show at 12:30 p.m.
-SHR-
