AAA 400 Qualifying Report from Dover
STEWART-HAAS RACING
AAA 400 Qualifying
Date: Sept. 25, 2009
Event: AAA 400 Qualifying (Round 28 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: Dover (Del.) International Speedway (1-mile concrete oval)
Pole Winner: Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports (22.878 seconds at 157.356 mph)
SHR Lineup: Ryan Newman (3rd, 23.019 seconds at 156.393 mph)
Tony Stewart (22nd, 23.296 seconds at 154.533 mph)
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 U.S. Army/Haas Automation Chevrolet Impala SS, led the two-car Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) contingent in time trials at Dover (Del.) International Speedway by qualifying third for Sunday’s AAA 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. Newman turned a lap of 23.019 seconds at 156.393 mph on the 1-mile concrete oval.
“I was good in turns one and two and a little snug in (turns) three and four during that lap, but overall it was a really good effort and a good lap for the U.S. Army Chevrolet,” said Newman, who has three Sprint Cup wins at Dover. “We’ve got a new tire this weekend. This place is one of the toughest, if not the toughest on tires, but I think Goodyear did a good job with this tire here, at least up to this point. And it’s laying some rubber on the racetrack. That definitely helps with tire wear, which helps for tire safety in the long run. I think we’ve got something we can for sure be safe with, and more importantly, put on a good race.”
Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Burger King Chevrolet Impala SS for SHR, qualified 22nd with a time of 23.296 seconds at 154.533 mph.
“The one thing we’ve been fighting today is getting our car to land on the track,” said Stewart, who has two Sprint Cup wins at Dover. “You drop way down the hill to go into the corner and when you get to the bottom you want the car to be smooth on landing, and we’ve been fighting that with our Burger King Chevy a little today.”
Jimmie Johnson captured his 21st career Sprint Cup pole, his second of the season and his second at Dover by posting a lap of 22.878 seconds at 157.356 mph.
Juan Pablo Montoya will start alongside Johnson on the outside of row one, as he timed in at 22.974 seconds at 156.699 mph. Newman was third, while Greg Biffle (23.035 seconds at 156.284 mph) and David Reutimann (23.080 seconds at 155.979 mph) rounded out the top-five.
Forty-four drivers attempted to qualify for the AAA 400. Scott Wimmer was the lone driver unable to make the 43-car field.
As far as manufacturers went, Chevrolet swept the top three spots thanks to the qualifying efforts of Johnson, Montoya and Newman. Ford was next best at the hands of Biffle, while Toyota was the third-fastest make thanks to Reutimann. Kasey Kahne, who qualified sixth (23.096 seconds at 155.871 mph_, was the top Dodge.
The AAA 400 gets underway at 2 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Sept. 27 with live coverage provided by ABC beginning with its pre-race show at 1 p.m.
