NASCAR Texas starting lineup: Kyle Busch wins pole
FORT WORTH -- Kyle Busch didn't show much brotherly love for his older sibling Friday.
With Kurt Busch poised to become an upset pole winner for Saturday night's NRA 500, Kyle Busch bumped him from the No. 1 spot with a track record of 196.299 mph.
The Busch brothers will occupy the front row for the Texas race, with Kyle winning his second pole of the season.
This is the second time the Busch brothers have started 1-2. The last was at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, their hometown track, in 2009.
"We didn't unload the best, but the guys really used the whole tool box today," he said afterward. "I'm looking forward to tomorrow night."
Borrowing a line from Spaceballs, Kurt Busch said before his qualifying lap he'd need "ludicrous speed" to top Aric Almirola's blazing time.
No problem.
Busch posted a lap of 195.688 mph, and it seemed no one could stop him. Then his younger brother came along and spoiled the fun.
Kurt later said he was especially bitter Kyle beat him because "if they're still giving away an $80,000 shotgun, he doesn't even know how to use it!"
Texas Motor Speedway has given a shotgun to the pole winner since April 2005, with sponsors such as Beretta and Turnbull. The pole award is funded separately from its race entitlement. But for the NRA 500 this year, no shotgun was given as no sponsor was available, according to Mike Zizzo, PR director for the track.
Previously, Almirola (195.009 mph) had put down a stellar lap that left other drivers impressed. Brad Keselowski called Almirola "by far the best car this weekend." Jimmie Johnson said it was "a whale of a lap."
As it turned out, it wasn't enough.
Almirola suspected his lap wouldn't hold up, especially because he went out when the sun was covering most of the track -- and the surface later cooled off in the shade.
"I wouldn't have changed anything about my lap, I just would have changed my draw," he said. "If we would have gone out a little later, I think we would have been a little faster."
Danica Patrick, who on Thursday said she was heartened by a 12th-place finish at Martinsville Speedway because it was "a nice reminder that I can drive a race car," qualified 42nd.
"It was horrible," she said after Friday's run. "I was fine coming to the green and then I was fine in (turns) one and two and it was just really tight in (turns) three and four. Tony (Gibson, crew chief) tried to say I was two tenths quicker than the pole sitter going into (turn) three which means I lost 1.2 seconds in (turns) three and four. That seems like a lot, but it sucked in (turns) three and four. It's not going to be a good qualifying."
Here's the starting lineup for Saturday night's NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway:
- Kyle Busch
- Kurt Busch
- Aric Almirola
- Marcos Ambrose
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Jimmie Johnson
- Jeff Gordon
- Carl Edwards
- Juan Pablo Montoya
- Jamie McMurray
- Austin Dillon
- Tony Stewart
- Kasey Kahne
- Brian Vickers
- Brad Keselowski
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Joey Logano
- Paul Menard
- Matt Kenseth
- Jeff Burton
- Trevor Bayne
- Mark Martin
- Casey Mears
- David Ragan
- Clint Bowyer
- David Gilliland
- Dave Blaney
- Kevin Harvick
- Bobby Labonte
- Ryan Newman
- Travis Kvapil
- David Stremme
- Mike Bliss
- Greg Biffle
- JJ Yeley
- Michael McDowell
- David Reutimann
- Landon Cassill
- Josh Wise
- Joe Nemechek
- Danica Patrick
- Timmy Hill
DNQ: Scott Speed, Scott Riggs
Follow Jeff Gluck on Twitter @jeff_gluck