You don't get any more efficient than this: Jimmie Johnson has won the pole again in 2013 at Pocono, and he'll once again seek to win the race from the first position.
Qualifying for Sunday's GoBowling.com 400 took place under lovely Pennsylvania skies, and perhaps as a result, the top six drivers all set new track records at the track, led by Johnson's 49.819 seconds/180.654 mph. Kyle Busch will start alongside Johnson, followed by Carl Edwards, last week's winner Ryan Newman, and Kurt Busch. Other notables: Brad Keselowski (11th), Clint Bowyer (16th), Tony Stewart (20th), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (25th), Danica Patrick (34th).
"I?d like to have another shot at it," Johnson said afterward. "I think I could do a better job. But all of my senses said that was awesome and my fun meter was certainly pegged. It was a lot of fun to drive a car that good on a track with so much grip."
After qualifying, Kyle Busch tossed a few more logs on the Jimmie Johnson conspiracy fire by noting that the 48 car seems to go through tech inspections multiple times, and said, "A lot of these other teams figure out how to play by the rules. It seems like there's one that's sometimes late."
He continued onward. "Every time they're late, they're always fast. Maybe we need to be late."
"A good starting spot here can mean the difference between winning and losing here,? Edwards said after qualifying. If that's the case, the rest of the field is in a lot of trouble indeed. Johnson, with four wins on the season, is already 75 points ahead of second-place Bowyer. Another exceptional week at Pocono, and Johnson could afford to take a couple races off.
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