Carl Edwards put his Ford on the pole for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway. Photo by Jared C. Tilton/NASCAR via Getty Images
A day after he drove one of the first American race cars, Carl Edwards captured the pole for Sunday’s Quicken Loans 400.
Edwards, the sixth driver on the track Friday afternoon, recorded the fastest lap of the day at 202.452 mph to win the Coors Light Pole Award. His No. 99 Ford will start Sunday’s race alongside Kurt Busch’s Chevy.
“We’ve been working very hard and trying to turn the corner with these Ford Fusions to make them faster,” Edwards said. “I just cannot wait to race this race car.
“There isn’t a faster car on the track than our car and to us that’s a big deal.”
Busch was a little more than a tenth of a second off Edwards’ pace at 201.879 mph.
This is Edwards’ first pole of the season and first ever at Michigan International Speedway, where he’s won twice. His last victory here came in August 2008.
Edwards will start Sunday’s race 51 points behind Sprint Cup Series leader Jimmie Johnson.
Edwards and Busch were among 13 drivers qualifying faster than 200 mph. Nineteen drivers eclipsed 200 mph in qualifying last June in the first qualifying session here since the track was completely repaved. Marcos Ambrose, who’ll start 23rd on Sunday, set the qualifying record last spring at 203.241.
Kasey Kahne, Paul Menard, Aric Almirola and Joey Logano rounded out the top six. Johnson, who’s never won a pole or race here, will start 17th.
Busch was the 41st of Friday’s 44 qualifiers but felt like he had a chance to surpass Edwards.
“Carl Edwards went out and posted a number early that was right in the range we thought we could run,” said Busch, who also was second fastest in Friday morning’s practice session. “When you’re second, no worries.
“Overall, to be up front and to have clean air on our car early in the race will definitely be a benefit.”
Kahne had the fastest lap in the practice session and was faster during qualifying. He said he thought the track could be especially fast after Saturday’s additional qualifying periods and the Nationwide Series Alliance Truck Parts 250.
“Sunday should be a good show,” Kahne said. “It’s a cool track and its fast right now.
“To come as close as those guys came to the qualifying record shows how fast the cars are here. The track feels really good, really smooth. It’ll definitely open up more tomorrow.”
Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who broke a 143-race dry spell here last spring, will start 12th, two spots ahead of Tony Stewart, who had to resort to his backup car after brushing the wall out of turn 2 during Friday morning’s practice session.
Edwards’ feat came a day after Busch drove Sweepstakes, the car Henry Ford built for a 1901 challenge race. His victory won him the confidence of investors and led to the founding of the Ford Motor Co. two years later.
The auto pioneer’s great-grandson, Edsel Ford II, arranged the ride for Edwards, who drove it around Greenfield Village near the company’s Dearborn, MI, headquarters Thursday.
“It was scarier driving that thing at 25 mph on the road than going into a corner here,” he said.
A win Sunday would be especially sweet for Ford, which marks the 110th anniversary of its founding the same day.
The pole, the 12th of his career, netted Edwards a berth in next year’s Sprint Unlimited.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Michigan International Speedway – Brooklyn, MI
Quicken Loans 400 Qualifying – June 14, 2013
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1 99 Carl Edwards 35.564 202.452
2 78 Kurt Busch 35.665 201.879
3 5 Kasey Kahne 35.783 201.213
4 27 Paul Menard 35.856 200.803
5 43 Aric Almirola 35.863 200.764
6 22 Joey Logano 35.870 200.725
7 33 Austin Dillon 35.887 200.630
8 20 Matt Kenseth 35.898 200.568
9 18 Kyle Busch 35.918 200.457
10 42 Juan Pablo Montoya 35.920 200.445
11 11 Denny Hamlin 35.927 200.406
12 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 35.982 200.100
13 56 Martin Truex Jr. 35.991 200.050
14 14 Tony Stewart 36.038 199.789
15 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 36.043 199.761
16 2 Brad Keselowski 36.045 199.750
17 48 Jimmie Johnson 36.056 199.689
18 31 Jeff Burton 36.062 199.656
19 16 Greg Biffle 36.112 199.380
20 51 Bobby Labonte 36.116 199.358
21 29 Kevin Harvick 36.139 199.231
22 55 Mark Martin 36.142 199.214
23 9 Marcos Ambrose 36.237 198.692
24 13 Casey Mears 36.255 198.593
25 21 Trevor Bayne 36.285 198.429
26 38 David Gilliland 36.297 198.364
27 15 Clint Bowyer 36.310 198.292
28 1 Jamie McMurray 36.349 198.080
29 24 Jeff Gordon 36.378 197.922
30 98 Michael McDowell 36.508 197.217
31 34 David Ragan 36.583 196.813
32 47 AJ Allmendinger 36.587 196.791
33 83 David Reutimann 36.683 196.276
34 30 David Stremme 36.685 196.266
35 39 Ryan Newman 36.784 195.737
36 7 Dave Blaney 36.826 195.514
37 10 Danica Patrick Owner Points
38 35 Josh Wise Owner Points
39 32 Ken Schrader Owner Points
40 36 JJ Yeley Owner Points
41 93 Travis Kvapil Owner Points
42 87 Joe Nemechek Owner Points
43 19 Mike Bliss Owner Points
Did Not Qualify: Scott Riggs
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