Keselowski wins again at Bristol

Brad Keselowski took his recent impressive streak a step further by claiming his third victory of the NASCAR Sprint Cup season on Saturday night at Bristol.

The 27-year-old was a top-five contender all night long and led the race at seven different times, initially thanks to staying out while the leaders pitted under the first caution. He would remain a threat from then on but never looked quite as dominant as both Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth did, the Hendrick driver leading the most laps while his Roush rival was up front for 110 of the 550 laps scheduled.

However Keselowski really surged when the green waved for the last time after a quick four-tyre stop placed him on the front row for the final restart. He quickly disposed of Michael Waltrip Racing's Martin Truex, who had gambled on a two-tyre stop, and as the battle for second got tighter behind him, Keselowski was able to pull away to take his first Cup win at Bristol - a result he found very meaningful.

"The night race at Bristol! This is the race that Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt won, it's the race of champions. I can't believe it," said a stunned Keselowski. "There are races that pay more. There are races that might have a little more prestige, but this is the coolest damn one of them all. We won it!"

Less than four weeks ago it was uncertain whether the Penske racer could complete the distance at Pocono following a testing crash at Road Atlanta, but since then Keselowski has been either first, second or third in every race, and has the best Cup finishing record for that period.

He is also now within reach of securing a Chase spot through being in the top 10 in the points, as he has jumped to 11th in the standings, only 21 points behind two-time champion Stewart, whose chances of making the play-off continue to dwindle every week. Keselowski also continues to be the leading wildcard entry to the Chase and has all but clinched a place in the play-off.

Behind Keselowski, Truex was able to hold off a charging Gordon as his tyre gamble paid off. The four-time Cup champion was probably the fastest during the night but better pitstops from rivals seemed to hamper his chances of claiming his third win of the season.

"It felt like we had the car to beat; but you know what, we just didn't get the position that we needed to on that last pitstop," said Gordon. "Our pit crew was awesome. Pit road is an interesting place here. We fought hard. That was just a great battle; a lot of fun racing, but just didn't quite have it there at the end."

Reigning champion Jimmie Johnson also led laps and was a top-five contender, beating Earnhardt Ganassi's impressive Jamie McMurray to fifth in the end, ahead of Kenseth. Both Johnson and Kenseth secured Chase spots with their finishes, as did Kenseth's team-mate Edwards with his ninth place at the flag.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin recovered from a spin to finish seventh, also moving up one spot in the points while provisionally hanging on to the final wildcard entry into the Chase only two weeks before the cut-off. Polesitter Ryan Newman was eighth while his Stewart Haas team-mate Stewart had a lacklustre night, finishing three laps down in 28th.

Australian Marcos Ambrose rounded out the top 10 for Richard Petty Motorsports in yet another good run at the half-mile concrete oval.

Points leader Kyle Busch finished 14th, recovering from contact after hitting the wall 85 laps from the end while fighting for position with Truex. His brother Kurt, also a Bristol specialist, was 17th after two pit road penalties hampered his efforts.

Results - 500 laps: Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap 1. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge 2h45m16.000s 2. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota + 0.951s 3. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet + 1.014s 4. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet + 2.382s 5. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet + 2.822s 6. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford + 2.931s 7. Denny Hamlin Gibbs Toyota + 7.773s 8. Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Chevrolet + 8.651s 9. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford + 8.822s 10. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford + 9.049s 11. Kasey Kahne Red Bull Toyota + 9.235s 12. AJ Allmendinger Petty Ford + 9.795s 13. Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota + 10.305s 14. Kyle Busch Gibbs Toyota + 12.208s 15. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet + 13.410s 16. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet + 13.958s 17. Kurt Busch Penske Dodge + 15.568s 18. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet + 15.593s 19. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet + 16.597s 20. David Ragan Roush Fenway Ford + 16.789s 21. Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota + 1 lap 22. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet + 1 lap 23. Casey Mears Germain Toyota + 1 lap 24. David Gilliland Front Row Ford + 2 laps 25. Andy Lally TRG Chevrolet + 2 laps 26. Clint Bowyer Childress Chevrolet + 2 laps 27. David Starr Leavine Ford + 3 laps 28. Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Chevrolet + 3 laps 29. Mike Bliss Phoenix Chevrolet + 3 laps 30. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet + 4 laps 31. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford + 4 laps 32. David Stremme Inception Chevrolet + 6 laps 33. Terry Labonte FAS Lane Ford + 6 laps Retirements: Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota 471 laps Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet 457 laps David Reutimann Waltrip Toyota 430 laps* Travis Kvapil Front Row Ford 371 laps* Mark Martin Hendrick Chevrolet 363 laps Michael McDowell HP Toyota 49 laps Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 42 laps Mike Skinner Germain Toyota 28 laps Scott Speed Whitney Ford 28 laps Robby Gordon Gordon Dodge 10 laps * Running again at finish

Busch sets Nationwide win record

Kyle Busch reached another milestone by setting a record for NASCAR Nationwide Series career wins with his 50th at Bristol on Friday night.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver beat his team-mate Joey Logano in a close finish at the half-mile venue, breaking Mark Martin's record of wins in the second-tier series, which the veteran held since 1997.

Busch's maiden Nationwide win came in 2004 at Richmond at the age of 19 while driving for Hendrick Motorsports. He has now competed in 219 events in the series, meaning he has won 22 per cent of the races he has entered.

In 2008, he tied the record for victories in a single season with 10, matching two-time champion Sam Ard, while in 2010, he broke that record by winning 13 times. He was also the 2009 champion.

"There's an awful lot of accomplishments and it's hard to pinpoint exactly where they fall but certainly tonight's a pretty big one," said Busch. "Just being able to race that hard and race against a team-mate like that, knowing that he had just as good of stuff as I did.

"Certainly, it was great to have Mark [Martin] with us in victory lane in Loudon and take some photos with him for tying him. Tonight was our night.

"Being able to beat him and get atop the all-time win list in the Nationwide Series was special for us as a team and for me as a driver and [wife] Samantha as well.

"This is cool and hopefully we can come back and perform again tomorrow night and do the same thing."

The 26-year-old American is currently the Sprint Cup series leader, and potentially tops the Chase standings thanks to his four wins thus far this season. He is the only driver to have already locked himself in the championship play-off with his victory at Michigan last week.

Newman takes pole at Bristol

Ryan Newman claimed pole position for Saturday night's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Bristol.

The Stewart Haas driver set the benchmark with a lap time of 15.624 seconds in his Chevrolet, beating the previous mark set by Hendrick Motorsports' Jeff Gordon.

Carl Edwards was last in the order for his run after topping both practice sessions earlier in the day, the Roush Fenway Ford driver coming closest to Newman on his way to the outside of the front row of the grid.

"It was a good lap but it didn't feel that fast, I will tell you that," said Newman, who won a sprint car race at Bristol just 48 hours ago.

"Momentum is a part of it but we're in a good position right now and we've just got to make the most of it. We've got a lot of things going our way. This is a track position race, starting up front and having a good pit selection, we'll just need to keep our nose clean tomorrow night."

Newman's pole is his second of the season in the Cup, the first coming last month at New Hampshire when he led an all Stewart Haas front row and went on to win.

This time though it was a bittersweet day for the team as Newman's team-mate Tony Stewart aborted his qualifying run and will start from the back of the grid.

Edwards' team-mate Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon will start from the second row while veteran Mark Martin - the most consistent driver on race pace in final practice - rounded out the top five ahead of Earnhardt Ganassi's Jamie McMurray and Richard Childress driver Paul Menard.

Penske's Brad Keselowski continued to carry momentum with eighth place on the grid in his Dodge as he continues to close on a Chase spot. He showed the best consistency of all in the first practice session of the day.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Joey Logano was the best of the Toyota's in ninth ahead of Keselowski's team-mate Kurt Busch.

Joe Nemechek was the fastest of the non-guaranteed drivers in 28th. Scott Speed was 36th on his Cup return with Whitney Motorsports while TJ Bell, JJ Yeley and Jeff Green - who spun on his qualifying run - failed to make the field.

Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Chevrolet 15.624s 2. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford 15.642s + 0.018s 3. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford 15.643s + 0.019s 4. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet 15.654s + 0.030s 5. Mark Martin Hendrick Chevrolet 15.658s + 0.034s 6. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 15.659s + 0.035s 7. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet 15.676s + 0.052s 8. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge 15.683s + 0.059s 9. Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota 15.688s + 0.064s 10. Kurt Busch Penske Dodge 15.699s + 0.075s 11. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford 15.715s + 0.091s 12. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet 15.721s + 0.097s 13. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet 15.725s + 0.101s 14. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford 15.725s + 0.101s 15. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet 15.727s + 0.103s 16. Clint Bowyer Childress Chevrolet 15.727s + 0.103s 17. David Gilliland Front Row Ford 15.736s + 0.112s 18. AJ Allmendinger Petty Ford 15.738s + 0.114s 19. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 15.755s + 0.131s 20. Denny Hamlin Gibbs Toyota 15.760s + 0.136s 21. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet 15.765s + 0.141s 22. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet 15.775s + 0.151s 23. Kyle Busch Gibbs Toyota 15.785s + 0.161s 24. David Ragan Roush Fenway Ford 15.787s + 0.163s 25. Kasey Kahne Red Bull Toyota 15.793s + 0.169s 26. Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota 15.820s + 0.196s 27. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota 15.822s + 0.198s 28. Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 15.835s + 0.211s 29. Casey Mears Germain Toyota 15.839s + 0.215s 30. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota 15.843s + 0.219s 31. David Stremme Inception Chevrolet 15.875s + 0.251s 32. Michael McDowell HP Toyota 15.879s + 0.255s 33. Travis Kvapil Front Row Ford 15.894s + 0.270s 34. David Reutimann Waltrip Toyota 15.901s + 0.277s 35. Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet 15.930s + 0.306s 36. Scott Speed Whitney Ford 15.949s + 0.325s 37. David Starr Leavine Ford 15.970s + 0.346s 38. Andy Lally TRG Chevrolet 16.012s + 0.388s 39. Robby Gordon Gordon Dodge 16.012s + 0.388s 40. Mike Bliss Phoenix Chevrolet 16.049s + 0.425s 41. Terry Labonte FAS Lane Ford 16.306s + 0.682s 42. Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Chevrolet 16.485s + 0.861s 43. Landon Cassill Germain Toyota 16.089s + 0.465s Did not qualify: TJ Bell LTD Toyota 16.103s + 0.479s JJ Yeley Front Row Ford 16.116s + 0.492s Tony Raines Front Row Ford 16.302s + 0.678s

Gordon: Patrick has it all to prove

Jeff Gordon believes Danica Patrick has plenty to prove in NASCAR while living up to the expectations being set on her.

The four-time Cup champion says NASCAR-bound Patrick comes into the sport with massive hype due to her popularity, although she still has to prove her worth with results, following her announcement of a full-time switch from IndyCar next year.

Speaking ahead of this weekend's Bristol Sprint Cup race, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was asked about how Patrick's move to NASCAR compared to when he entered Cup competition in 1992. He said that if there was any hype at the time, it was more because of his performances on his way up through the stock car ladder, not due to his popularity.

"I was not that popular at the time I made my move," said Gordon. "But I was winning races in the Busch Grand National Series. And so to me, if there was any hype - I didn't think there was that much - it was more of just from a performance standpoint.

"I think Danica still has to prove herself from a performance standpoint. She's, I think, impressed a lot of people in some of her performances this year. But I think she still has a long way to go.

"I think she's great for the sport. I think it's awesome to have her making that announcement to be full time. And so I think we'll just have to wait and see how she does in a full time season and in those Cup events that she's planning on doing. It should be very interesting.

"To me, it's far more challenging for her than it was for me because I didn't have that kind of hype and expectations and that many eyes on me, even though I felt like I did, I know I didn't.

"The most challenging year in my racing career was definitely my rookie year in Nationwide and my rookie year in Cup because you feel like you have so much to do to step it up and to live up to any expectations that there are. She certainly has a lot to live up to."

Gordon's Hendrick Motorsports team-mate Dale Earnhardt Jr, who will run Patrick full-time in the Nationwide Series next season with his JR Motorsports outfit, admits there's plenty of criticism towards Patrick but he reckons she doesn't let it get to her.

"She faces a lot of tough criticism and she does a good job of handling it," Earnhardt said. "I think she does a good job of keeping a good attitude, not letting that kind of stuff change the person you are. She knows what she is here to do.

"She loves to drive race cars and she wants to enjoy doing that and try to be the best she can at that. She keeps a real good attitude about it; doesn't let some of the harsh criticism get her down or anything."

While Earnhardt said he it would be hard for Patrick to turn down the possibility of a Sprint Cup debut at the 2012 Daytona 500 with Stewart Haas Racing, Gordon was supportive of the idea. He said Patrick showed potential last month at Daytona when she led the Nationwide race and was a contender for victory.

"She did pretty well in the Nationwide race," said Gordon. "To me, that was a testament of what she is capable of doing. So I don't see why that would be the case if she has; I mean she's racing the Indianapolis 500 and to me, that's pretty challenging.

"So I think if that's where they want to make her debut, I wouldn't have any heartache against it because of the tracks that she's raced at in the Nationwide Series.

"To me, it's when you've never raced at a superspeedway, especially with the tandem drafting that we have now, if you'd never done that before and never been on a superspeedway before, then I might question it. But that's not the case for her."

Two-time Cup champion Tony Stewart, who is set to run Patrick in eight to 10 events NASCAR's top series in 2012, was non-committal on Patrick entering the Daytona 500 next year when asked about her part-time schedule next year.

Patrick set to announce NASCAR move

Danica Patrick is set to announce her full-time switch to NASCAR in 2012 during a news conference on Thursday.

Patrick's sponsor GoDaddy.com has scheduled a media announcement at noon US Eastern Time, where her 'racing future' will be revealed.

The IndyCar star has been transitioning to NASCAR over the past two years, entering part-time schedules in the Nationwide Series with JR Motorsports. She has already competed in 20 races with a best result of fourth, claimed at Las Vegas last March. She also led laps and was a contender for victory last month in the second-tier series event at Daytona.

Patrick is expected to compete full-time in the series next year with Dale Earnhardt Jr's outfit while making the next step on her way to the Sprint Cup Series, which is believed to be her next goal. She is also expected to attempt a number of Cup events next year with Stewart Haas Racing, owned by two-time Sprint Cup and former IRL champion Tony Stewart.

Asked last weekend at Montreal about her future, she remained tight-lipped as did both Earnhardt and Stewart at Michigan.

It remains to be seen whether Patrick will include the Indianapolis 500 in her 2012 racing schedule. GoDaddy.com CEO Bob Parsons had hinted at Patrick's switch already last May, also saying he would expect her to still race at Indianapolis.

While Patrick's move to NASCAR is expected to be a major boost for the series, her departure from the IZOD IndyCar Series is set to be a blow for America's top single-seaters championship, as she is regarded its most popular driver in the US.

Patrick confirms NASCAR switch

Danica Patrick will enter full-time NASCAR competition next year with an entire Nationwide Series title for JR Motorsports, plus a partial Sprint Cup schedule with Stewart Haas Racing.

Following months of speculation about the future of the IndyCar star, Patrick announced on Thursday that she will leave open-wheel racing behind in order to commit to a future in NASCAR with Dale Earnhardt Jr's team, for which she has competed sporadically this year.

Patrick will also enter between eight and 10 Sprint Cup races with Stewart Haas Racing, with the season-openning Daytona 500 expected to be her first attempt in NASCAR's top tier. The 29-year-old American also said her goal was to make the jump to full-time Cup racing in 2013.

"I have to say that the first time that I got out of the car at the ARCA race in Daytona [2010] it was the most fun I have ever had in a racecar," Patrick explained.

"It probably had to do with the bumping but it was the most fun I've ever had in a car and I think that that really started it all and it went from there.

"I'm excited to start the next chapter, not only in my life but our life [with her sponsor] and I've got some really exciting things ahead. I'm ready to go!"

Patrick denied that her decision to move to NASCAR was based on the potential for a more lucrative deal and said that had that been the case she would have made the switch a long time ago.

"I made this decision because of how much I enjoy driving stock cars and how much I enjoy in particular racing stock cars," Patrick said. "The races are so interesting! There's so many pitstops, so many strategies that play out. You have to take care of your car at times, you have to know when to push with it, you can kind of throw them around a little bit and overcome some handling issues.

"You can bump around which is pretty fun, and I've just really had fun with it. So it's really about enjoying the racing and enjoying the people and enjoying my life when I'm at those races and everybody around me."

Patrick's Sprint Cup outings for next year have yet to be announced, but she is keen on making her debut at next year's Daytona 500.

"I have definitely enjoyed going to Daytona, that's for sure" Patrick said. "I've done four races there now, the ARCA race and then three Nationwide races. So I really like it.

"I though I had a great chance to win at the end of the race in July, but you know, that's one of those things that we haven't completely decided yet."

Having entered already 20 Nationwide Series races for JR Motorsports over the past 18 months, Patrick believes she has made good progress although like every learning curve, hers has become flatter with every race.

This year, on her second visit to Las Vegas Motor Speedway she claimed her best result thus far with a fourth placed finish, and last month she led and was a contender at Daytona.

"I feel more comfortable in the car, obviously I got to the bump-drafting thing at Daytona, which will be a Daytona and Talladega thing and I feel like I've got better on the short ovals, which I think is the one I need the most amount of work on and the mile-and-a-halves are coming around as well," she said.

"It's a typical learning process, it goes fast at the beginning and then I'm sure it will inevitably taper off and be a slow learning after that.

"But I haven't run a full season of Nationwide racing so I'm still very much in that learning phase. I feel more comfortable every time I'm in the car and that's a good sign of my progress and the reflection in the track."

Although Patrick said she would love to return to the Indianapolis 500, it is still "uncertain" whether she will enter the 2012 event.

She says the highlight of her career will remain for now her IndyCar win at Motegi in 2008, while she will miss some of the venues and people in the series she is set to leave at the end of the season.

"As a racecar driver I would've loved to have won every race but that's very hard to do," Patrick said. "It was great to win at Motegi, in Japan and I'll always remember that as being the highlight so far. The IndyCar season is not over yet, so there's still time to win more.

"My greatest successes in racing have come when I'm happy and when I'm enjoying myself and that's when I perform the best. So, I'm very excited, very happy, we've accomplished a lot and again, there's still a little time."

Patrick returns to the IndyCar Series this weekend at Sears Point with Andretti Autosport, while the next of a remaining five outings in the Nationwide Series will come at Richmond in September.

NASCAR welcomes Patrick's switch

NASCAR officials have embraced the news of Danica Patrick's full switch to NASCAR, following her announcement on Thursday.

The IndyCar star revealed she is set to enter the 2012 Nationwide Series season full-time with JR Motorsports, while attempting a partial schedule in the Sprint Cup Series with Stewart-Haas Racing.

NASCAR CEO and Chairman Brian France welcomed Patrick's decision, which he said was exciting news for the sport's massive fanbase, while a big challenge for her career as well.

"We are pleased Danica Patrick has chosen to run full-time in NASCAR in 2012," said France in a statement. "She has demonstrated a strong desire to compete and NASCAR provides her the best opportunity to race against the top drivers in the world with the largest and most loyal fan base in motorsports on a week-to-week basis.

"Danica has shown solid improvement in NASCAR and we believe her decision to run full-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, with additional races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, will be exciting for our fans and a great challenge to her."

Patrick's boss, Hendrick driver Dale Earnhardt Jr, says he is glad she will now devote her full attention to the Nationwide Series in 2012 and expects her to continue to improve in her first full season next year.

"Danica has done a great job in a short amount of time for JR Motorsports," said Earnhardt Jr. "Her work ethic is probably the best of anyone in the sport. People don't understand how difficult it is to do what she did - racing two totally different cars at the same time.

"I'm glad she gets the opportunity to devote all of her attention to this car, because I think she's going to continue getting better. Danica has earned her place on the track, and I look forward to having her back in the #7 car next year."

Two-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart, for whom Patrick is set to run a partial Cup schedule in 2012, also welcomed her switch to NASCAR and says his intention is to run her full-time in 2013.

"We're very excited to have Danica Patrick join Stewart Haas Racing in 2012 for a limited NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule with the intention of us running her full-time in Sprint Cup in 2013," said Stewart.

"We're proud of the fact she wants to come and be a part of Stewart Haas Racing and what we've built with Ryan Newman and myself and all of our partners. Having Danica at SHR is something we're really looking forward to.

"The thing you see in Danica right away is how determined she is to be good at what she does. She's very dedicated to taking the time and effort to make the transition from Indy cars to stock cars. She has talent, she has the right mindset and she has the proper drive and determination. It doesn't matter who it is you're looking for, those are the key attributes that you look for in a driver, and Danica's got them."

IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard said Patrick has played a key role as an ambassador for his series and wished her success in her future NASCAR career.

"Danica has always been a great ambassador for IndyCar, and there is no doubt she has left a positive impression on our sport," said Bernard. "She has touched millions of fans and many that were new to motorsports. Danica attracted a fan base that every athlete and sports property in the world would love to have.

"We should give her a great farewell the rest of this season as she opens a new page in her career and wish her continued success with her new direction."

Keselowski tipped as title threat

The established NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title favourites believe Brad Keselowski is a potential threat in the Chase, following his impressive runs of late which have made him the leading wildcard entry set to join the play-off.

Keselowski ranks 14th in the points with just four races left to set the Chase field heading into Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Michigan, having moved up from 23rd in the standings in the last three weeks by finishing ninth, first and second at Indianapolis, Pocono, and Watkins Glen respectively. He is one of only two drivers to finish in the top 10 in all three events along with points leader Kyle Busch.

When asked to suggest a driver he thought could surprise during the Chase, Busch said: "I think we've seen that here the last couple weeks and that's the #2 [Keselowski] car," said Busch. "He came out of nowhere, winning that race at Pocono and surprising us all and getting two wins on the year and now getting himself as a wildcard berth and then backing it up with a strong run this past week.

"He's certainly had some flashes of brilliance this year where he's run well. If he comes out here and runs well again this weekend, he's going to be a guy that's probably going to be on everybody's mind."

Reigning champion Jimmie Johnson, who was testing alongside Keselowski when the Penske driver had his major crash at Road Atlanta, says that although the past few weeks have placed his rival in the spotlight, Penske's upswing had already been evident for a few months.

"I can't say that it is due to just those two events, I mean those two races [Pocono and Watkins Glen] definitely [contributed]... and being there at the test session and watching what he went through and the pain he was experiencing getting out of the car; there are different areas I have more respect in," said Johnson.

He added: "My perspective for Brad has been more of over the course of the year rather than just the last two races. Those last two races didn't hurt by any means, but, you can't argue with the success they have started since late spring and early summer and they've been rolling."

Four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon says Keselowski has simply confirmed the potential he had already shown in the past but admitted to having more respect for him now after seeing him driving through the pain for the last two weeks on his way to strong finishes.

"I look at him just earlier this year and it seemed like he wasn't even on the radar," said Gordon. "I think Penske deserves a lot of credit and whether Brad and Kurt [Busch] play a big role in that as drivers is important. You can only make your teams better when you're getting good information. You have to give credit to the drivers, but they've definitely gone to work.

"I think what makes the Pocono win and his performance even last week so impressive is because of what happened at Road Atlanta. I think I've always felt like Brad's a really good racecar driver. He's proven that in the Nationwide Series. He's had some success in the Cup Series and now you look at Brad and you go, 'Okay, their performance is better.' He's a lot tougher than I thought he was.

"He told me prior to the [Watkins Glen] race [on] Monday, but he told me this I think on qualifying day. He said, 'I don't think I'm going to make it through this weekend, it's really hurting.' I don't know if that extra [rain delay] day helped him or what, but he made it through and he was really strong.

"I think Brad is really being recognised now as a driver that we all thought he was when he came into the Cup Series because of his Nationwide performance and now he's backing that up."

Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin, last year's championship runner-up, believes that although Keselowski may well be on a hot streak it will be tough for him to be able to maintain it through a 10-week stretch into the Chase, although he too expects him to be a contender.

"There's a lot of guys that go on streaks for a couple weeks," said Hamlin. "To maintain it for 10 weeks is so, so difficult. Obviously the big jump in points he's had over the last few weeks, he's solidified himself pretty much as a Chase competitor with those two wins. I look at him just as tough as the other 11 guys if we're in, we're going to have to race."

For his part Keselowski is not letting himself get carried away and places his focus on winning a third race before the Chase, one that would lock him in the play-off and that could potentially place him as the top seed along Kyle Busch and Richard Childress Racing's Kevin Harvick, both three-time winners this season thus far.

Keselowski still needs to remain in the top 20 in the points in order to be eligible as a wildcard entry into the Chase with his current tally of wins.

"We got a lot of good things going, obviously leading the wildcard standings, but certainly don't take that for granted," says Keselowski. "That could go away if we don't keep performing. Last week was a big week for us, getting us up solidly in the top 20 and little bit of breathing room on 21st, so we can make sure and utilise the two wins. That was big for us.

"But we've still got a lot of racing left, four races left till the Chase starts. I really would just like to go out and win another race and wouldn't have to worry about it at all. I think that's where our focus is."

For more on Keselowski's surge read last week's feature on AUTOSPORT PLUS.

Kyle Busch grabs Chase spot with win

Kyle Busch held off reigning champion Jimmie Johnson in a green-white-chequered finish at Michigan to clinch a spot in this year's NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver claimed the lead from his Hendrick Motorsports rival, who had been up front since the penultimate restart with 13 laps remaining, thanks to a timely final pitstop right before the last caution that placed him ahead once the frontrunners pitted for the last time.

Johnson initially took advantage of the battle for second place following the penultimate restart but as Busch was able to get the better of Hendrick's Jeff Gordon and Roush Fenway's Matt Kenseth in the battle for second place, he quickly started eating into Johnson's lead. Although it took him a few laps once he caught the #48 car, he finally overtook him at Turn 2, with Johnson unable to fight back.

On the final restart for the last two laps of racing, Busch was superior and pulled away to claim his 23rd Cup career win, which locks into contention for this year's title through a wildcard entry, which he most likely will not need as he may safely enter the play-off through his points position, for he currently leads the drivers' ranking.

"That [penultimate] restart there, I think I restarted fourth, and Jimmie was gone, like in three laps. I was like, 'holy cow!'" said Busch. "I didn't think there was any way I was going to run him back down. Our car was good on the long run. I felt comfortable running my pace, trying to get closer to him.

"When I got about three lengths back, I stalled out. I'm like, 'C'mon, man!. Go high, go low'. I was all over the place trying to build speed.

"Finally was able to do that and power by Jimmie and get by him. Once I got by him, I just picked the top [racing line]. That's where I wanted to be anyway. I could run some consistent times up there that were faster than him and drive away a little bit."

Johnson lamented being unable to make the most of his team's great strategy call ahead of the final round of pitstops. His second place moves him up a spot in the championship but still has only one win to his name in a season when race victories will help secure Chase positions. Michigan also remains one of only five tracks where Johnson has yet to win a Cup race.

"Once I was up front in the clean air the balance of the car was a bit too loose," said Johnson. "I got away from Kyle but I was loose and I knew he was going to come at some point and he showed up. [I'm] disappointed that I didn't win but a very good effort for the team especially when you look at where we started the race and where we finished."

Penske's Brad Keselowski rounded out yet another good weekend by finishing third, moving up two more spots in the championship and closer to the top 10 in the points. Keselowski's result means he has the best finishing record of any driver in the past four weeks, as he continues to build momentum towards the play-off. He was a top-five contender all day long but did not quite get the chance to show what he could have done in clean air.

"Wish I had something more for the #48 and #18 there at the end, but it was just really kind of watching and hoping someone would make a mistake," said Keselowski about the final restart. "I couldn't do anything on my own merit. Still a fun race, proud of the effort. The last few weeks are more than I could ever ask for."

Veteran Mark Martin, a five-time Michigan winner, was the fastest car on the last long green-flag run, but did not have chance to contend for victory. A two-tyre call early on gave him track position that he subsequently kept, being a contender on a day where Hendrick Motorsports excelled, all its cars running solidly in the top 10. Dale Earnhardt Jr was set for a top-10 finish but dropped to 14th over the final laps after pitting during the last caution.

His team-mate Gordon led 50 laps and showed enough pace to be a threat, but overheating issues due to rubbish in the grille of his car somewhat hampered his progress at different times throughout the race. He was sixth in the end behind Stewart Haas' Ryan Newman, who made progress on the final restart after pitting for two new tyres on the last caution. Making a similar move, Red Bull's Kasey Kahne was seventh at the flag ahead of RCR's Clint Bowyer and Newman's team-mate Tony Stewart.

Kenseth was the best of the Roush roster in tenth, a disappointing result given that between him and his team-mate Greg Biffle, the squad led more than half the distance. Kenseth had a poor final restart while Biffle blamed a bad set of tyres for his debacle, having led for 86 of the 203 laps. To make matters worse for Roush, its leading championship contender Carl Edwards retired with an engine problem.

With only three races left before the Chase, Denny Hamlin is in further risk of missing the play-off after hitting the wall and being forced to pit for lengthy repairs. He finished 35th and has slid down to 14th in the points despite still provisionally holding on to the final wildcard entry thanks to his Michigan win from earlier in the year.

Results - 203 laps: Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap 1. Kyle Busch Gibbs Toyota 2h41m26.000s 2. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet + 0.568s 3. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge + 0.788s 4. Mark Martin Hendrick Chevrolet + 1.037s 5. Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Chevrolet + 1.826s 6. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet + 1.949s 7. Kasey Kahne Red Bull Toyota + 2.468s 8. Clint Bowyer Childress Chevrolet + 2.473s 9. Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Chevrolet + 2.616s 10. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford + 3.034s 11. AJ Allmendinger Petty Ford + 3.143s 12. David Ragan Roush Fenway Ford + 3.198s 13. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet + 3.413s 14. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet + 3.795s 15. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota + 3.841s 16. Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota + 3.845s 17. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet + 4.016s 18. David Reutimann Waltrip Toyota + 4.017s 19. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota + 4.019s 20. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford + 4.025s 21. Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota + 4.105s 22. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet + 4.230s 23. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet + 4.389s 24. Trevor Bayne Wood Brothers Ford + 4.657s 25. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet + 4.770s 26. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet + 4.822s 27. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford + 4.903s 28. Travis Kvapil Front Row Ford + 1 laps 29. Andy Lally TRG Chevrolet + 1 laps 30. Ken Schrader FAS Lane Ford + 1 laps 31. Landon Cassill Phoenix Chevrolet + 2 laps 32. David Gilliland Front Row Ford + 2 laps 33. Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet + 5 laps Retirements: Kurt Busch Penske Dodge 197 laps Denny Hamlin* Gibbs Toyota 188 laps Carl Edwards* Roush Fenway Ford 174 laps Casey Mears Germain Toyota 32 laps Tony Raines Max Q Ford 26 laps Todd Bodine HP Toyota 21 laps David Stremme Inception Chevrolet 20 laps Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 18 laps Mike Skinner Germain Toyota 14 laps JJ Yeley Front Row Ford 11 laps * Running again at finish

Ambrose wins again in Montreal

Australian Marcos Ambrose claimed his fifth career NASCAR win following a charging drive from the back of the field in the Montreal Nationwide Series round.

Just five days after achieving his maiden Sprint Cup victory at Watkins Glen, the former Australian V8 Supercar champion won his fourth Nationwide event on a road course, despite not taking part in either practice or qualifying as he was on Cup duty at Michigan on Friday.

Ambrose's countryman Owen Kelly had qualified the car in ninth, but NASCAR rules state a driver change following qualifying and ahead of the race means being forced to the back of the grid. However the Richard Petty Motorsports racer was already chasing leader and polesitter Jacques Villeneuve halfway through the 74-lap event.

With 30 laps remaining he had his first chance of claiming the lead from his Penske rival, restarting beside Villeneuve following the second caution of the day. But their battle resulted in an incident as Villeneuve ran wide at Turn 1, went through the grass at Turn 2 and crashed against the right-front of Ambrose's Ford.

As both rejoined, Ambrose was quick to retaliate, spinning Villeneuve later on the same lap. Caution periods allowed the Australian to pit for repairs to his car before he put on a further charge to the front, eventually claiming the lead from Villeneuve's team-mate Alex Tagliani on a restart with 10 laps remaining.

A final caution for oil on the track after Robby Gordon's engine blew up following contact with Tagliani put Ambrose under pressure again but he was able to keep his rivals at bay, beating the Canadian by a comfortable margin while avoiding a repeat of the last-corner disaster that saw him lose the race to Carl Edwards with the chequered flag in sight two years ago.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Michael McDowell was third ahead of Steven Wallace, who punted local Patrick Carpentier into a spin which would later cause him to retire from his final career outing. However, fourth was Wallace's best career finish in the Nationwide Series.

Local JR Fitzpatrick rounded out the top-5, Scott Speed was a solid sixth for Kevin Harvick's team, ahead of former series champion Carl Edwards, who also started from the back of the field.

Danica Patrick struggled on her first NASCAR road course event with a long brake pedal hampering a promising strategy. In the end a suspected broken axle meant she limped to a 24th place at the flag.

Polesitter Villeneuve led the most laps but finished 27th and two laps down on winner Ambrose.

Speed set for Bristol Cup return

Scott Speed is set to return to the NASCAR Sprint Cup at Bristol this weekend after signing a deal to drive for Whitney Motorsports for the rest of the year.

The ex-Formula 1 racer has competed only three times in the Cup this year driving for Larry Gunselman, but he now plans to attempt to qualify Dusty Whitney's #46 Ford Fusion in the 13 races remaining. The team has run a partial schedule through the year with JJ Yeley behind the wheel at the majority of events.

"I really like Dusty and his guys," said Speed. "They work really hard with the little amount that they have. There is a lot of passion over here and I love how tight of a group we are, we are the underdogs and I love it."

Speed has 79 Cup starts to his name after making his debut in 2008 with Red Bull Toyota and racing for the squad until last year. He entered the NASCAR ranks through the Truck Series, claiming a win at Dover in his debut year, and has also competed in the Nationwide Series, most recently at Montreal where he finished sixth for Kevin Harvick's team.

"Scott has shown us what a tremendous asset he is," said Whitney. "We are extremely excited about having him drive our car. He is a great guy with an amazing talent. We hope to make our mark before the season is over.

"We have sponsors lined up for Atlanta and Kansas, and are on the prowl for the other races. I feel that Scott and this team have a lot to offer anyone that wants to get into the sport of NASCAR."

Whitney Motorsports' best finish of the season came earlier this year at Talladega with Bill Elliot finishing 26th.

Villeneuve takes first Montreal pole

Jacques Villeneuve claimed his first ever pole position for a major race at his home track in qualifying for Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Montreal, Canada.

The 1997 Formula 1 world champion had already been on the front row at the track named after his father three times, twice in F1 on his first two outings there with Williams, then last year in NASCAR's second-tier series.

However, pole had eluded him at the venue until this weekend. His best finish at the venue was second in his first Canadian Grand Prix in 1996. Last year he finished third in the Nationwide Series event, having led the race for a single lap.

This year Villeneuve is driving the #22 Penske Dodge that Sprint Cup regular Brad Keselowski has taken to victory lane twice this season, while Kurt Busch drove it to a dominant win from pole position last Saturday at Watkins Glen.

Villeneuve, who had been fastest in the final practice ahead of qualifying, has entered six NASCAR Nationwide Series events, all of them on road courses, most recently finishing third at Road America while making his first start for Penske Racing.

"If there's one place that you want to be quick, it's at home," said Villeneuve. "This is a special track as it bares my father's name. I've raced here 14 or 15 times, so there's a lot of history. It's good when you can get to a track and from the moment you get going, the car is great."

He added: "I did make my lap on the third lap, which isn't the way to go. That shows that our race pace should be good because our tyres are holding up. That gives us a lot of confidence for tomorrow."

Indianapolis 500 polesitter and Villeneuve's Penske team-mate Alex Tagliani secured an all-Canadian front row, while Braun Racing's Jason Leffler was third and best of the series regulars. Former F1 racer Scott Speed was fourth for Kevin Harvick's team, while Joe Gibbs Racing's Michael McDowell rounded out the top five in qualifying.

Robby Gordon was sixth fastest and best among the Sprint Cup regulars in the entry. Watkins Glen Cup winner Marcos Ambrose, Carl Edwards and Trevor Bayne were all on Cup duty at Michigan on Friday and will start from the back of the grid in Saturday's race.

The race is expected to be the final competitive outing of Patrick Carpentier's career and he will be starting from eighth place. He will be driving for Pastrana Waltrip Racing.

Johnson, Busch feud drags on

The feud between Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch that began at last weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Pocono has dragged on to the current round at Watkins Glen.

Last Sunday Johnson and Busch clashed on the final lap at Pocono while battling for third place, with the growing animosity then bubbling over into a heated discussion in the pits when the race was over.

Johnson stated that although the on-track issue had riled him, what really made him furious was his rival's attitude in the pits following the race. He criticised the Penske Dodge driver for "running his mouth" and brought up previous incidents he's been involved in with competitors - and even his own team - in the past.

"There are two parts to this thing: First part is on the track; second part is pitroad," said Johnson. "The on-the-track part, we all know we come off of turn one and Kurt [Busch] gets to me to side-draft me. I try to break the side-draft and then from there he felt it was necessary to run into the side of my car and tear my car up. So, yes, I was mad at that point.

"And then it brings me to the other part which was on pitroad. I'm not sure if anyone has had words with someone before, but when you are in that moment and you're having words with someone and the crowd starts to build around, that guy all of a sudden gets brave. And when you think it's over and you walk away, that guy gets real tough, I don't know about you, but that really makes me mad.

"Bottom line, he just started running his mouth. We know there has been plenty of history over the years. And there are just things that just kind of boil to a head and when I hopped out of the car and started talking to him, he had one level of interaction with me while he was sitting in his race car.

"And when he got out of the car, neither one of us where happy, but we were talking. And the crowd started to build and his bravery started to build. I walk away and he got awfully tough. That part frustrates me and that is where you saw me engage like you did.

"I mean, if you are going to say something, say it to the man's face and eye-to-eye when he is there. Don't wait until he walks away."

The Hendrick driver said he doesn't expect to retaliate against Busch on the track due to the respect he has for his rival's boss, Roger Penske.

However, the pair are set to compete in Saturday's Nationwide Series race at Watkins Glen, where only the victory is at stake as neither are series regulars.

When asked about his reaction to Johnson's comments, Busch joked that he was glad he had got inside his rival's head.

"That's great. It means I'm in his head and if I'm in his head then he's got to worry about us running through this Chase," said Busch. "I've been through enough issues in my past to know where I need to be."

He added that Johnson's moves in trying to defend third place on the last lap at Pocono were not those he would expect of a five-time Sprint Cup series champion, but those of someone that he's had some history of previous exchanges with.

"For me, I think the line is when he swerved at us," added Busch. "I think he said yesterday he was trying to break the draft. That's not a move of a five-time champion. That's the move of a guy that has had an issue with a guy like me.

"We've raced each other hard and I've been spun out and wrecked a few times and we both know that we look at each other very sternly. That's great competition.

"That blends into 'rubbing is racing' when you have a history with a guy. You just don't forget about it. I learned from one of the greats about how to keep a memory on who does you right and who does you wrong. That was Jimmy Spencer. He taught me a lot."

Busch said the pitroad exchange was simply a consequence of the heat of the moment and that he didn't regret what happened.

"Yeah, I mean if we would've run into each other in the motorcoach lot afterwards, the adrenaline would've calmed down a little bit and there probably would have been a better discussion," said Busch.

"But he was really amped up and felt like I did him wrong and to me in the response from the different people this week, they're like 'wow! that's exciting, that's what we want to see!'. That's the intensity and the passion that our sport is built of.

"This is a bunch of guys here racing stock cars in the southeast. This isn't open-wheel racing where we're supposed to pass each other clean and be up front leading by 10 seconds."

Hamlin in early TRD engine move

Denny Hamlin is running a Toyota Racing Development engine this weekend at Michigan, having made an early switch from the Joe Gibbs Racing units.

The 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series runner-up currently sits 12th in the points following a crash at Watkins Glen last Monday, which places him in danger of missing the cut for this year's Chase. With only four races left before the play-off field is set, Hamlin is provisionally in thanks to his sole victory of the season, claimed in the spring at Michigan.

Two weeks ago Hamlin was vocal about his worries regarding reliability issues on Gibbs-built engines potentially costing him a chance to contend for this year's title. Last week Joe Gibbs Racing announced it would run Toyota Racing Development (TRD) engines in its Cup cars in 2012 and at the time team boss JD Gibbs did not rule out running such units this year.

Hamlin says he supports the move from Gibbs to TRD engines as a further engine failure would all but put him out of championship contention.

"You have to understand, this is a big favour to ask a manufacturer to provide engines for us for the rest of the year," said Hamlin at Michigan on Friday. "It's a lot of manpower, a lot of work had to be done, especially within JGR. There's a lot of work that had to be done to get this engine imported into our car.

"So, we were going to have to ask and pull a lot of favours to do it. We just asked them if they'd be willing to do it and they did. I was behind it 100 per cent. I felt like it was the right thing to do. Ultimately what matters is results. Things happen, engines blow - things happen like that - but we felt like they've worked out a lot of reliability issues that they had early on.

"If we were going to make the Chase, we could not afford DNFs because of engine failures and on top of that, we couldn't afford to keep starting in the back every week because of engine failures. I didn't help us out last week, but we started in the back I think four times because of blown engines. That's just too hard to overcome, especially with as hard as it is today to win a race."

Hamlin admitted there were some hurt feelings at Joe Gibbs Racing given his early switch from the in-house built units while his team-mate Kyle Busch and Joey Logano will continue to run the Gibbs engines for the time being.

Busch, currently leading the Cup standings and virtually locked into this year's Chase with three wins, believes his best shot at contending for this year's title is remaining loyal to the Gibbs engine programme.

"We're staying committed to our guys, our engine department for this year and [engine builder] Mark [Cronquist] is still there and all the same guys are still there," said Busch. "We've only had one engine failure this year in a race and it was at Vegas - we blew up.

"We had another problem in practice somewhere, which was my fault and we caught it in time and we were able to make a change in practice. We had to start at the rear [of the grid], but no big deal. We feel pretty confident with where we're at and how we can finish out the year.

"The reason for the merger and everything for next year is primarily because of the fuel injection. We haven't done any R&D work on fuel injection stuff yet, where TRD Cost a Mesa [California], they've done a lot of work in regards to that and preparing for next year, preparing for the future and what that entails."

Hamlin outpaced his JGR team-mates in Friday's qualifying session at Michigan.

Hamlin concerned for Chase chances

Denny Hamlin has voiced his fears that reliability issues could cost his team the chance to battle for this year's Sprint Cup series title.

Hamlin and his Joe Gibbs Racing team-mates have suffered from repeated engine failures during the season, not only in races but also during practice sessions - the last costing Hamlin a poor starting spot at Indianapolis a week ago, as he had to go to the back of the grid after switching power-plants before qualifying.

Earlier this season Hamlin's team-mate Logano retired at Phoenix with an engine issue, Kyle Busch had one at Las Vegas while Hamlin had his share at Fontana. A handful more have taken place before races.

Joe Gibbs Racing have their own engine programme - which has been said to be under review looking forward - while other Toyota teams like Michael Waltrip Racing and Red Bull Racing get their units from TRD (Toyota Racing Development), which has a superior reliability record this year.

Speaking at Pocono, Hamlin said his team is currently getting support from TRD so that it can get its reliability back on track ahead of this year's Chase.

"The good news for us is we've got a lot of people at TRD helping try to work through the issues," said Hamlin. "But, really at this point there's not a whole lot I can do about it. Just kind of hope and pray that it holds together for us.

"I think that they're making strides and trying to get better, and it's not from a lack of effort by any means. Obviously, we need to lean on those guys at TRD to try to help us work through it because it looks like their engine programme has gotten reliability kind of sorted out here in the last couple of years."

Hamlin, last year's Sprint Cup series runner up, is currently 11th in the driver standing and although he is in the Chase 'bubble', he stands as the leading candidate for one of the two wildcard entries into this year's playoff thanks to his victory at Michigan.

With only six races left before the Chase begins any reliability issues in the coming weeks could threaten his chances of being part of this year's play-off as Richard Childress Racing's Paul Menard, Roush Fenway's David Ragan and Penske's Brad Keselowski are on the outside looking in, also with a victory to their names.

Hamlin has been the only driver to make the Chase consecutively for the past five years besides reigning champion Jimmie Johnson.

"We are in a danger zone," Hamlin admitted. "We don't want to be where we're at, but we know we're very capable of winning this race, the next race, the next race and theone after that.

"We're not terribly alarmed, but obviously with the reliability issues and I hate to keep going back to that, but you never know what can happen. Those guys could gain 30 points on you just like that in one week and I don't think that they're that far behind.

"We've got a little assurance knowing that Michigan victory hopefully will keep us in."

Hamlin's team-mate Busch is virtually locked in the Chase thanks to his three wins thus far, while Logano is currently 19th in the standings.

Johnson wants Cup race in Canada

Jimmie Johnson would like to see more road courses added to the Sprint Cup schedule and believes a race in Canada is something NASCAR should explore.

The reigning Cup champion, only once a winner on a road course in NASCAR, would favour the addition of a race in Canada to the top-level series' schedule in the future, as he sees major interest from fans in the neighbour country who often make the trip south of the border to attend Cup events.

NASCAR currently races at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal with its second-tier series, although there are fears for the future of the event as government support for next year's race is said to be under review.

The NASCAR-sanctioned Canadian Tire Series has also raced at the track for nearly five years, and competes on ovals, road courses and street circuits during its calendar.

"I think that having more road course races would be great for our series," said Johnson. "I personally think that heading north into Canada would be the place to do it. There's a couple of facilities up there that we could put on an awesome show at and have a new fan base, sponsors potentially. A whole new thing for our series and it wouldn't be that far to head up there.

"I'm for it. I don't know if it will ever happen. There's obviously a lot of big contracts that exist between tracks and NASCAR and how that all plays out. I think it would be awesome to have it."

Only two tracks in Canada have staged Cup races in the series' history, both taking place in the 1950s on short dirt ovals. However, at all NASCAR events held in states placed on the border with Canada, both the Canadian and American national anthems are part of the pre-race procedures and both flags are waved at the venues during the race weekend.

"My perspective on heading north and into Canada to race is from a fan hunger standpoint," Johnson said. "We have a huge racing audience in Canada. The Canadian fans travel to Michigan, to Loudon even further south to come see our sport and their presence is felt. We sing their national anthem at certain racetracks for a reason. I think it is an untapped market of sorts in an area where we can see some growth.

"Get more eyeballs at the racetrack and more eyeballs on television and in an area we should really consider moving to. It is easy from my seat because I don't own a track and I don't have to worry about the schedule and where a date should go. But, I would think there is some weight in that angle and that thought process.

"If it happens, I have no clue, but that is really the driving force behind it due to a large fan base and some great circuits up there. I love road course racing and think we could put on a good show at a few of the road courses up there."

Last week Johnson's Hendrick Motorsports team-mate Jeff Gordon said he would like to see a road course added to the Chase portion of the Cup calendar in order to have all types of tracks in the final 10-race stretch of the season, making it more varied and complete.

Johnson backed this proposal as he believes he is more in control of his own destiny at road courses than when racing on ovals.

"I enjoy road course racing," said Johnson. "I love the discipline about it and I think it would make things very exciting in the Chase. When you look at wildcard races and the lack of control you have at Talladega... I've seen some dispute [that] it is not what we do all the time and that maybe it's not fair. It's out of the driver's hands.

"I feel more in control at a road course race than I ever would and will at a restrictor plate race. That's kind of my rebuttal to that discussion and from my own personal preference; I would like to see one. But, again, there are a lot of other factors that go into it and I'm not sure it will happen."

The Nationwide Series competes in Montreal for a fifth time this weekend, with Sprint Cup regulars Carl Edwards, Marcos Ambrose, Trevor Bayne and Robby Gordon commuting between Michigan and Canada to compete in both events.

Biffle ends pole drought at Michigan

Greg Biffle claimed his first pole position in more than three years as Roush Fenway Racing dominated qualifying for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan.

Biffle had been third fastest earlier in practice but was able to pick up nearly half a second on his qualifying lap to beat the previous benchmark set by Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin. Stewart Haas' Ryan Newman and Biffle's Roush team-mate Matt Kenseth had been faster in practice but could not beat the pole-winner after running last in the qualifying order, ending up third and second respectively.

Biffle's pole lap speed of 190.345 mph (37.830 seconds) stands as a new record for the current specification of Cup car at the track, which first ran at the two-mile oval in 2008.

"I don't think that could have gone any better, I tell you what," said Biffle. "This team has needed it. We have great cars and I can't say enough for [crew chief] Matt Puccia and this #16 team. They work really hard and I am proud of them.

"All of a sudden Matt is becoming a hell of a qualifier. He makes fun of himself when he gets up there and says that the throttle sticks. What a great job for the whole Ford camp... I can't wait for Sunday."

Carl Edwards was the lowest Roush Fenway qualifier, ending up only 22nd following struggles in practice, while the other three Ford Fusions fielded by the team were up in top seven spots.

Two-time Michigan winner Denny Hamlin was fourth, meaning he beat his Joe Gibbs Racing team-mates in his first qualifying session running Toyota Racing Development engines, having feared reliability issues would put him out of Chase contention only four weeks before the play-off field is set. In the sister Gibbs cars, Kyle Busch was 17th fastest, while Joey Logano - who had a spin in practice - was 23rd running the Joe Gibbs Racing engines the team has used all year long.

Hendrick Motorsports' Mark Martin rounded out the top five ahead of Penske's local hero Brad Keselowski, Roush's David Ragan and Dale Earnhardt Jr, who held provisional pole at the track where he last claimed victory 115 races ago. His team-mate Jeff Gordon and Earnhardt Ganassi's Jamie McMurray completed the top 10.

Wood Brothers Racing's Trevor Bayne was the fastest of the non-guaranteed drivers in 20th, while Johnny Sauter (subbing for Robby Gordon, who is at the Nationwide Series event in Montreal), Erik Darnell and TJ Bell failed to make the field.

Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford 37.826s 2. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford 37.853s + 0.027s 3. Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Chevrolet 37.980s + 0.154s 4. Denny Hamlin Gibbs Toyota 38.036s + 0.210s 5. Mark Martin Hendrick Chevrolet 38.057s + 0.231s 6. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge 38.094s + 0.268s 7. David Ragan Roush Fenway Ford 38.149s + 0.323s 8. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet 38.162s + 0.336s 9. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet 38.176s + 0.350s 10. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 38.204s + 0.378s 11. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet 38.221s + 0.395s 12. David Reutimann Waltrip Toyota 38.226s + 0.400s 13. Kurt Busch Penske Dodge 38.251s + 0.425s 14. Kasey Kahne Red Bull Toyota 38.275s + 0.449s 15. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota 38.280s + 0.454s 16. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford 38.286s + 0.460s 17. Kyle Busch Gibbs Toyota 38.297s + 0.471s 18. Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Chevrolet 38.298s + 0.472s 19. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet 38.344s + 0.518s 20. Trevor Bayne Wood Brothers Ford 38.347s + 0.521s 21. Casey Mears Germain Toyota 38.357s + 0.531s 22. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford 38.364s + 0.538s 23. Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota 38.369s + 0.543s 24. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet 38.414s + 0.588s 25. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 38.504s + 0.678s 26. Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota 38.519s + 0.693s 27. Travis Kvapil Front Row Ford 38.534s + 0.708s 28. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota 38.564s + 0.738s 29. AJ Allmendinger Petty Ford 38.583s + 0.757s 30. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet 38.639s + 0.813s 31. JJ Yeley Front Row Ford 38.650s + 0.824s 32. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet 38.661s + 0.835s 33. Landon Cassill Phoenix Chevrolet 38.788s + 0.962s 34. Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet 38.814s + 0.988s 35. Clint Bowyer Childress Chevrolet 38.834s + 1.008s 36. David Stremme Inception Chevrolet 38.851s + 1.025s 37. Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 38.864s + 1.038s 38. Andy Lally TRG Chevrolet 38.889s + 1.063s 39. David Gilliland Front Row Ford 38.933s + 1.107s 40. Todd Bodine HP Toyota 38.953s + 1.127s 41. Tony Raines Front Row Ford 39.229s + 1.403s 42. Ken Schrader FAS Lane Ford 39.294s + 1.468s 43. Mike Skinner Germain Toyota 39.298s + 1.472s 44. Johnny Sauter Gordon Dodge 39.384s + 1.558s 45. Erik Darnell Whitney Chevrolet 39.547s + 1.721s 46. TJ Bell LTD Toyota 39.720s + 1.894s

Gordon wants road course in Chase

Jeff Gordon believes the NASCAR Sprint Cup's 10-race Chase for the Championship would benefit from having a road course race in the future.

The four-time Cup champion, who has won more road course races at NASCAR's top level than anyone else, says that the only significant thing missing from the Chase is a non-oval race, and that the implementation of double-file restarts would add an extra dimension to the mix for drivers and fans.

"I've always said that in order to make the championship fully complete and find out the true best team and driver, the only thing that I think we're missing in the Chase right now is a road course," said Gordon.

"I feel like the Chase has about everything right now from short tracks to superspeedways to intermediates, so I think it's pretty complete right now, but if you wanted to look at just one little thing that was missing, it would be a road course.

"I guess as exciting as the road courses have been here lately with these double-file restarts, I think the fans would be for it as well whereas in the past, you haven't seen that kind of action. Most people would say that a road course isn't as traditional as the ovals are in our sport, so why have one in the Chase? I could see one in there."

When asked about the possibility of a road course being included on the Chase schedule, NASCAR president Mike Helton refused to close the door on it. However, he said that no such proposal has been put on the table yet.

"I've learned over time to never not imagine the possibilities of something," Helton said during the build-up to the Watkins Glen Cup race.

"But as we sit here today, we still maintain the thought process when we introduced the Chase that we were not going to shuffle tracks around to adapt to the Chase, but that the Chase was the last 10 races.

"Now, however that may work out in the future, if someone comes to us and asks to change stuff around, we would consider it. But there is nothing on the table today.

"We wouldn't stack tracks up in the Chase for benefit of the Chase. The Chase is the last 10 races of the season. But as the evolution of changes go on, who knows what could end up the last 10 races?"

NASCAR's Sprint Cup currently competes at two road course races during the season, both of them during the summer at Sears Point and Watkins Glen.

Earnhardt coy on Patrick reports

Dale Earnhardt Jr remains tight-lipped about the chances of Danica Patrick making a full switch to NASCAR with his Nationwide Series team, amid suggestions that an announcement will be made as early as next week.

Following reports that Patrick has already committed to run full-time in NASCAR's second-tier series with JR Motorsports from 2012, with the potential for Sprint Cup outings as well, Earnhardt insisted his team was not planning any announcements yet - but admitted he would be happy to continue the relationship with Patrick.

He said he had been impressed with Patrick's performances in her part-time Nationwide schedule with his team over the past year-and-a-half, and was also complimentary about her abilities as a team player.

"We've enjoyed working with her and would love to keep working with her," Earnhardt said. "When there's something to announce, they'll announce it. Will have to say wait till that happens, I guess."

He added: "I think what she's accomplished already is success, in my opinion. She obviously would want to continue to improve and compete for wins. But it's tough to learn new tracks, to learn a new vehicle and to be able to drive it well and do well in it and adapt to it. I think she's done that.

"She's awesome about it, she's really done a great job.

"She seems like she's fun to work with, no matter whether you're a man or woman, people have got to be able to get along with you and you've to be a people person and manage people and manage relationships. She seems to be able to do a great job of that.

"We look forward to the future races, the rest of the season to be able to work with her."

Earnhardt said he has not had any contact with Patrick since her outing at Daytona last July and stressed that any dealings between her and his team have been handled by his sister and manager Kelley.

Patrick is currently competing in the Nationwide Series' Montreal event, where she responded to speculation about her future by saying "there's nothing new to report."

Tony Stewart, whose Cup team is said to be working on a deal to run Patrick on her debut in NASCAR's top series, was also silent about the chances of any imminent news on the subject, saying there was nothing to comment on just yet.

Patrick has a best finish of fourth in 20 Nationwide outings, achieved earlier this year at Las Vegas. She also led laps and was a contender for victory in July at Daytona before being involved in a multi-car incident on the final lap.

Edwards coy about future

Carl Edwards remains tight-lipped about his future and insists his contract negotiations are not being a distraction, amid speculation linking him with a move to Joe Gibbs Racing.

The Roush Fenway racer arrives at Indianapolis for Sunday's Brickyard 400 as the NASCAR Sprint Cup points leader but with rumours mounting over where he will be driving next year.

The 31-year-old former Nationwide Series champion, told reporters on Friday at Indy that he is still working on his 2012 contract, but that his focus for now remains on his current deal with Roush, which expires at the end of the year.

"We're working hard on the contract stuff," said Edwards. "I've heard a lot of different ideas out there but it still remains the same. I'm going to make the decision that's the best one I can make and I'm going to do that outside of the media. That's the way I want to keep it going.

"Right now I have signed a contract and that's the contract I signed in 2008 to race for Jack [Roush] in 2009, '10 and '11 and try to win the championship. So that's my mission. That's the only contract I have signed right now and that's the one I'm going to honour. That's what I'm doing."

Edwards said there is still no timetable for when he expects to announce where he will be driving next year and declined to comment when asked specifically if he had already made a decision.

Asked if leaving Roush Fenway at the end of the year would harm his chances of fighting for the Cup title in this year's Chase, Edwards said he does not expect that to be the case.

"I feel like no matter what happens that we have a great thing going here and Jack Roush and Ford and [sponsor] Aflac; this is our mission," said Edwards. "We want to win this championship. That's our goal. Whatever happens will happen..."

He added: "There are a lot of distractions in life but we're doing really well. We're leading the points, we're doing what we need to do. I'm a competitor. My job is to do the job that I'm hired to do and whatever distractions are out there I've got to be able to shut those off and go race and that's what I do."

Roush Fenway's team-mate Greg Biffle says his outfit would be best suited by Edwards making a decision soon so that they can start building towards 2012. He hinted at the team probably downsizing from four to three cars if Edwards was not to come back next year.

"At some point he's going to have to say that I'm not coming back," said Biffle. "He's not going to be able to wait until Homestead, we all know that, so Carl is a big boy, he's a man and he has to make his own decisions.

"Eventually, he's going to have to make a decision and it'll be best for everybody so, one, we can plan for sponsorships and drivers and teams and people. There are a lot of people's jobs on the line - if we're going to be three teams or four teams – so the sooner the better.

"I understand contract negotiations take a long time and there is a lot to them, but truly if you know or you've made a decision, then it's time to give everybody enough opportunity to make their decision on the back side of that."

Edwards has been a Roush Fenway driver since 2003, when he joined the outfit to compete full-time for the first time in the Truck Series.

He currently holds a seven-point gap to Jimmie Johnson in the championship standings, although his sole win of the year provisionally places him behind multiple race-winners Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon in Chase contention.

Kesolowski: I'm lucky to be alive

Penske racer Brad Keselowski criticised the safety standards of Road Atlanta after his testing crash which caused an avulsion fracture to his left ankle.

Keselowski said it was pure luck that prevented a worse outcome from his incident after he went off the track at Turn 1 with a suspected brake failure. The 27-year-old, a two-time winner in the Sprint Cup series, said he initially feared he had more injuries than those diagnosed due to the severity of the head-on impact against a concrete barrier which was protected by two lines of tyres.

A picture from the scene of the crash tweeted by Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson Wednesday - who was also testing - showed Keselowski's car knocked the barrier down.

"It wasn't good," Keselowski told reporters at Pocono on Friday. "The biggest thing is that I felt lucky that was all that was tore up. I hit about as hard as you can hit in one of these cars and I'm still here somehow.

"As a driver, probably one of your worst nightmares is going through a corner, like that one was, without a safer barrier, without any of the stuff that we've got used to and got accustomed to, without brakes.

"And knowing that I had two or three seconds staring at a wall, knowing that I was going to hit it about as hard as you possibly could. Probably less comforting was knowing that it was a temporary wall and on the other side was trees, so I figured I was going to end up in the trees.

"Somehow, I made it through it, broke the wall down and came flying through on the other side. I was just really, really lucky."

"I was pretty sure after I hit the wall that I had broken everything that I could break," he added. "I was hurting pretty good. I guess, you know, a few days recovery and I just healed up. I feel pretty decent now. Walking isn't all that easy, but that's just the deal. You get in the race car and make it work somehow."

NASCAR introduced testing restrictions for teams in 2009, preventing them from running at tracks that host national series events.

The move has forced them to look for alternate venues to carry their testing programmes - with Virginia International Raceway and Road Atlanta being the preferred choice to test for Sears Point and Watkins Glen respectively.

Keselowski says teams have to take "chances" by going to some of these venues in order to remain competitive.

"I had a good time testing at Road Atlanta, but at the end of the day, there's a realisation that there's a reason why it's not a Cup facility. It's not up to the requirements that it takes," he said.

"Those are the things we have to do if we want to remain competitive, if we want to find the edge, if we want to go to Watkins Glen and unload as a competitive team with the Miller Lite Dodge you've got to take those chances. This Wednesday when we took those chances, we paid the price for it and almost a much larger price."

The current Nationwide series champion says despite the pain from his ankle injury he won't step out of his Sprint Cup car this weekend, having decided with his team to skip the second-tier series event he was initially entered for Saturday at Iowa.

Sam Hornish Jr was expected to be on stand-by for him at Pocono on Friday, but following an examination on Thursday, Hornish was discarded as an eventual relief driver for practice.

"I'm not going to get out [of the car]; I don't care how much it hurts. That's not going to happen. Sam [Hornish Jr.] is going to drive my car at Iowa [Nationwide]. I would go there if they would let me. I don't think I'm going to be able to convince Roger [Penske] of that. I can tell you, I'm not getting out Sunday."

Keselowski currently ranks 21st in the driver standings with a victory to his name claimed at Kansas in June. A second win in the next six weeks would place him as the leading contender for a Chase wildcard spot, but he rues his injury couldn't have come at a worst time given the characteristics of the coming tracks, which include some heavy braking.

He, as many of NASCAR's top drivers, uses his left foot to push the brake pedal.

On Friday's final practice session at Pocono, Keselowski lost control of his car at Turn 1 and ended up spinning and coming to a halt without hitting the wall. He initially limped out of his car, which had to be towed back to the garage due to blown up tyres.

"This is about the worst time knowing we're coming up on the Chase, knowing that we need another win to get in, knowing that we have tracks coming up that require a lot of finesse with the brakes - Watkins Glen and here at Pocono," he said

"And then, you've got one of the toughest races of the year with Bristol, it's 500 laps on a short track. There's no good time, but this is certainly the worst time."

Keselowski was eighth fastest in the final practice Friday at Pocono.

Kyle Busch claims Watkins Glen pole

Kyle Busch claimed his first road course pole position in the NASCAR Sprint Cup after heading qualifying for Sunday's race at Watkins Glen.

The Joe Gibbs Toyota driver was the last in the order to complete his flying lap after setting the pace in first practice. Just as AJ Allmendinger was ready to celebrate his second career pole, Busch bumped him from the top spot with a record lap of 1m10.767s - beating the Richard Petty Motorsports driver's benchmark by 0.2s second.

Busch, a former winner at The Glen, claimed his eighth Cup pole, but his first of the year.

"All in all the lap was really good," Busch said. "It seemed to be a pretty clean lap. There's a couple of moments in which I slipped, I don't think I did that great but we were able to get the throttle down and accelerate out of the turns as we needed and I think that's where a lot of the time was made up.

"I've won races at road courses but had yet to be the fastest guy for one lap. Today we did that, Joey Logano did it at [Sears Point] so Joe Gibbs Racing sweeps the road course poles which is great. Hopefully we can get a win."

Allmendinger will start beside Busch on the front row, having shown strong race pace during Friday's practice sessions.

Allmendinger's team-mate Marcos Ambrose had looked favourite to claim pole, but his qualifying run was not as clean as his final practice, when he had been the only driver to break into the 69-second bracket.

The Australian showed enough race pace however to be regarded as a strong favorite for victory.

"I felt a little unfortunate... just overdrove it a little bit," said Ambrose. "But we're proud of our efforts. It would have been great to be on the front row with AJ, but we'll start third, we've got a great package, I feel really confident and we'll just see how the day unfolds.

"It's going to be interesting to see how guys do on the strategy and break-wear and all those factors that come into play on a road course. Hopefully we make the right judgement calls."

Reigning champion Jimmie Johnson held provisional pole for a while and ended up fourth ahead of last year's winner Juan Pablo Montoya, who complained of a loose car on his flying lap. The Earnhardt Ganassi driver was among the most consistent on race-trim on Friday's final practice.

The Stewart-Haas Racing duo of Ryan Newman and five-time event winner Tony Stewart were sixth and seventh ahead of points leader Carl Edwards, the fastest Ford runner for Roush Fenway. Michael Waltrip Racing's Martin Truex Jr and Furniture Row's Regan Smith rounded out the top 10.

Kurt Busch, who had claimed pole for the Nationwide Series race earlier in the day with a new track record, didn't fare as well on his Cup qualifying run and ended up only 27th, his Penske Dodge team-mate Brad Keselowski ending up 12th.

The biggest loser of the session was Kyle Busch's team-mate Denny Hamlin, who lost control of his car at the exit of Turn 5 and ended up hitting the barrier. He will thus see the green flag wave from the back of the grid.

Joe Nemechek was the fastest of the non-guaranteed drivers, while Dave Blaney, Brian Simo and PJ Jones failed to make the field.

Sunday's weather forecast has teams fearing a possible washout for race day, showing an 80 per cent chance of rain.

Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Kyle Busch Gibbs Toyota 1m09.767s 2. AJ Allmendinger Petty Ford 1m09.977s + 0.210s 3. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford 1m10.009s + 0.242s 4. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet 1m10.188s + 0.421s 5. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 1m10.193s + 0.426s 6. Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Chevrolet 1m10.383s + 0.616s 7. Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Chevrolet 1m10.426s + 0.659s 8. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford 1m10.446s + 0.679s 9. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota 1m10.578s + 0.811s 10. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet 1m10.594s + 0.827s 11. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota 1m10.608s + 0.841s 12. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge 1m10.612s + 0.845s 13. Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota 1m10.614s + 0.847s 14. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 1m10.678s + 0.911s 15. Boris Said Phoenix Chevrolet 1m10.729s + 0.962s 16. David Ragan Roush Fenway Ford 1m10.815s + 1.048s 17. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet 1m10.871s + 1.104s 18. Kasey Kahne Red Bull Toyota 1m11.130s + 1.363s 19. Clint Bowyer Childress Chevrolet 1m11.213s + 1.446s 20. Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota 1m11.312s + 1.545s 21. Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 1m11.323s + 1.556s 22. Mark Martin Hendrick Chevrolet 1m11.339s + 1.572s 23. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet 1m11.407s + 1.640s 24. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford 1m11.413s + 1.646s 25. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet 1m11.431s + 1.664s 26. Casey Mears Germain Toyota 1m11.443s + 1.676s 27. Kurt Busch Penske Dodge 1m11.454s + 1.687s 28. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford 1m11.456s + 1.689s 29. Scott Speed Max Q Ford 1m11.487s + 1.720s 30. JJ Yeley Whitney Chevrolet 1m11.543s + 1.776s 31. Robby Gordon Gordon Dodge 1m11.605s + 1.838s 32. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet 1m11.733s + 1.966s 33. Michael McDowell HP Toyota 1m11.733s + 1.966s 34. TJ Bell LTD Chevrolet 1m11.749s + 1.982s 35. Andrew Ranger FAS Lane Ford 1m12.075s + 2.308s 36. Andy Lally TRG Chevrolet 1m12.179s + 2.412s 37. Mike Skinner Germain Toyota 1m12.218s + 2.451s 38. Ron Fellows Baldwin Chevrolet 1m12.299s + 2.532s 39. David Reutimann Waltrip Toyota 1m12.497s + 2.730s 40. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet 1m12.641s + 2.874s 41. David Gilliland Front Row Ford 1m13.293s + 3.526s 42. Denny Hamlin Gibbs Toyota - - 43. Terry Labonte FAS Lane Ford 1m13.587s + 3.820s

Logano is youngest Pocono pole-sitter

Joey Logano became the youngest pole-sitter at Pocono Raceway as Toyota-powered cars dominated qualifying for Sunday's Sprint Cup series race.

The 21-year-old set a fastest lap of 52.309s, at an average speed of 172.055mph, bumping Michael Waltrip Racing's Martin Truex from provisional pole.

Red Bull Racing's Kasey Kahne came closest to Logano's benchmark, but felt he left some speed on the table after deciding to avoid downshifting to third at Turn 1, as most of the fastest drivers did.

Logano's pole is his second of the season and the third of his Sprint Cup career. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is currently 19th in the points and in need of a victory to contend for a potential Chase spot.

Kahne's second place mirrors his qualifying from last week at Indianapolis, where from the front row he dominated in the early going. The Red Bull driver, a former Pocono winner, was among the fastest in race-trim during the final practice session on Friday, also setting the fastest overall time in the session.

Truex Jr ensured a top three qualifying sweep for Toyota, while points' leader Carl Edwards was fourth as the fastest Ford for Roush Fenway Racing.

June Pocono pole-sitter Kurt Busch rounded out the top five, while Logano's Joe Gibbs Racing team-mate Denny Hamlin was sixth after holding on to provisional pole for most of the session.

The Richard Childress Racing cars were all top-15, with Brickyard 400 winner Paul Menard being the fastest of them in seventh. Stewart-Haas's Ryan Newman had posted the fastest lap on Friday during practice but ended up only 12th, ahead of Penske's Brad Keselowski.

June Pocono winner Jeff Gordon had a good lap going but ended up brushing the SAFER barrier at the exit of Turn 2, ending up only 31st in the order.

Despite a threat of rain and overcast skies all though the session, all 46 cars were able to set qualifying times to complete the starting order for Sunday's event.

Todd Bodine was the fastest of the non-guaranteed drivers in 30th while his brother Geoffrey, TJ Bell and Mike Skinner failed to make the field.

Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota 52.309s 2. Kasey Kahne Red Bull Toyota 52.433s + 0.124s 3. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota 52.480s + 0.171s 4. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford 52.486s + 0.177s 5. Kurt Busch Penske Dodge 52.488s + 0.179s 6. Denny Hamlin Gibbs Toyota 52.494s + 0.185s 7. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet 52.518s + 0.209s 8. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet 52.519s + 0.210s 9. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford 52.579s + 0.270s 10. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet 52.594s + 0.285s 11. Kyle Busch Gibbs Toyota 52.607s + 0.298s 12. Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Chevrolet 52.697s + 0.388s 13. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge 52.739s + 0.430s 14. Clint Bowyer Childress Chevrolet 52.749s + 0.440s 15. David Ragan Roush Fenway Ford 52.749s + 0.440s 16. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 52.758s + 0.449s 17. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet 52.768s + 0.459s 18. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet 52.774s + 0.465s 19. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet 52.784s + 0.475s 20. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford 52.805s + 0.496s 21. Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet 52.845s + 0.536s 22. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota 52.854s + 0.545s 23. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 52.891s + 0.582s 24. David Gilliland Front Row Ford 52.920s + 0.611s 25. Mark Martin Hendrick Chevrolet 52.928s + 0.619s 26. Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota 52.944s + 0.635s 27. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford 52.980s + 0.671s 28. Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Chevrolet 53.024s + 0.715s 29. AJ Allmendinger Petty Ford 53.057s + 0.748s 30. Todd Bodine HP Toyota 53.131s + 0.822s 31. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet 53.142s + 0.833s 32. Casey Mears Germain Toyota 53.148s + 0.839s 33. David Reutimann Waltrip Toyota 53.149s + 0.840s 34. JJ Yeley Whitney Chevrolet 53.283s + 0.974s 35. Eric Darnell Red Lone Ford 53.371s + 1.062s 36. Landon Cassill Phoenix Chevrolet 53.410s + 1.101s 37. David Stremme Inception Chevrolet 53.606s + 1.297s 38. Robby Gordon Gordon Dodge 53.637s + 1.328s 39. Travis Kvapil Front Row Ford 53.698s + 1.389s 40. Scott Speed Max Q Ford 53.757s + 1.448s 41. Jason White Gunbroker Ford 53.839s + 1.530s 42. Andy Lally TRG Chevrolet 53.935s + 1.626s 43. Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 38.806s + 1.497s

NASCAR postpones Watkins Glen

Rain has forced Sunday's Sprint Cup series race at Watkins Glen to be postponed until Monday morning.

Despite a poor weather forecast showing imminent rain in the afternoon, NASCAR officials did everything in their power to get the race underway, first waiting for noon showers to cease, then attempting to dry the track as soon as the rain stopped.

Nearly three and a half hours after the scheduled starting time the rain returned however, hampering the officials' efforts and forcing them to postpone the race until Monday.

The new start time will be 10am US Eastern Time, earlier than usual even for rain-delayed events, as Monday's forecast isn't very good either.

Although NASCAR's second-tier series raced in the wet with rain tyres three years ago at Montreal, there is no plan for the Cup series to compete under such conditions.

Goodyear brought a rain tyre allocation to Watkins Glen, but only as a contingency plan for the Nationwide Series, whose personnel had a short window with their logistics before next week's event in Canada.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Kyle Busch will start tomorrow's race from pole position, beside Richard Petty's AJ Allmendinger.

Two years ago the race had to be postponed until Monday, running to its full distance with victory going to Tony Stewart for a record fifth time at the venue.