Mark Martin celebrates after winning his fourth Coors Light Pole of the 2012 season. Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR
Carl Edwards joked that he played with Mark Martin toys as a child.
But it was Martin, 53, who had the last laugh Friday, as he blew away the rest of the field in qualifying for Sunday’s Pure Michigan 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway.
Martin toured the two-mile track in 36.053 seconds (199.706 mph) for a decisive edge over second-place Edwards (198.626 mph). The Coors Light pole award was Martin’s series-best fourth of the season, his first at Michigan and the 55th of his career, tying him with Bill Elliott for seventh on the all-time series list.
Series leader Jimmie Johnson qualified third at 198.440 mph, followed by Matt Kenseth (198.183 mph) and Kasey Kahne (197.878 mph).
Despite having driven the No. 55 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota just twice since the Cup series last visited Michigan in June, Martin showed no rust at all in beating Edwards by .196 seconds.
“Gosh, I’ve had a few years of practice,” Martin said. “I don’t need a whole bunch of practice. I just need a race car like what I drove today. I need fast race cars, and that’s what (crew chief) Rodney Childers is giving me.
“All it is is driving the car — I’ve been doing that since I was 15.”
Edwards, who ran what he thought was a very strong lap, knows about Martin’s longevity only too well.
“He is an inspiration for me as to how well you can do for such a long period,” Edwards said. “The guy — I had Mark Martin toys when I was a little kid, and here he is. There are generations of people who have all had little Mark Martin toys and who knows, my kids someday might be racing against the guy, and they will probably be just as frustrated.
“How old is he? 53? He can probably bench press more than all of us and go faster than all of us. He is a pretty spectacular guy.”
Trevor Bayne, Martin Truex Jr., Marcos Ambrose, Landon Cassill and Paul Menard will start Sunday’s race from positions six through 10, respectively. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who lost the series lead last Sunday at Watkins Glen, qualified 22nd.
Stephen Leicht and JJ Yeley failed to make the 43-car field. Parker Kligerman subbed for Sam Hornish Jr., who is racing in the Nationwide Series in Montreal on Saturday, and qualified 17th. Hornish will take over on Sunday at Michigan but must start from the rear because of the driver change.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Michigan International Speedway – Brooklyn, MI
Pure Michigan 400 Qualifying – Aug. 17, 2012
1 55 Mark Martin 36.053 199.706
2 99 Carl Edwards 36.249 198.626
3 48 Jimmie Johnson 36.283 198.440
4 17 Matt Kenseth 36.330 198.183
5 5 Kasey Kahne 36.386 197.878
6 21 Trevor Bayne 36.404 197.780
7 56 Martin Truex Jr. 36.428 197.650
8 9 Marcos Ambrose 36.457 197.493
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10 27 Paul Menard 36.518 197.163
11 24 Jeff Gordon 36.527 197.114
12 15 Clint Bowyer 36.546 197.012
13 16 Greg Biffle 36.568 196.893
14 14 Tony Stewart 36.571 196.877
15 39 Ryan Newman 36.598 196.732
16 20 Joey Logano 36.641 196.501
17 22 Parker Kligerman 36.688 196.249
18 78 Regan Smith 36.694 196.217
19 2 Brad Keselowski 36.701 196.180
20 29 Kevin Harvick 36.725 196.052
21 11 Denny Hamlin 36.743 195.956
22 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 36.768 195.822
23 18 Kyle Busch 37.248 193.299
24 1 Jamie McMurray 37.254 193.268
25 42 Juan Pablo Montoya 37.279 193.138
26 51 Kurt Busch 37.308 192.988
27 91 Reed Sorenson 37.362 192.709
28 47 Bobby Labonte 37.384 192.596
29 13 Casey Mears 37.391 192.560
30 93 Travis Kvapil 37.395 192.539
31 30 David Stremme 37.430 192.359
32 31 Jeff Burton 37.445 192.282
33 19 Jason Leffler 37.460 192.205
34 26 Josh Wise 37.465 192.179
35 87 Joe Nemechek 37.477 192.118
36 38 David Gilliland 37.541 191.790
37 34 David Ragan 37.554 191.724
38 23 Scott Riggs 37.906 189.944
39 10 David Reutimann 38.088 189.036
40 32 TJ Bell Owner Points
41 43 Aric Almirola Owner Points
42 36 Dave Blaney Owner Points
43 98 Mike Skinner 37.907 189.939
Did Not Qualify: Stephen Leicht, JJ Yeley
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