Vehicles with the NASCAR Air Titan drying machines attempt to dry the track after qualifying was canceled for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. Photo by Jerry Markland/Getty Images
Practice may not have made perfect for Carl Edwards, but it did make him a pole winner, after rain washed out Saturday’s time trials for Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway.
Accordingly, the field was set by rainout rules, with the starting order determined by top speeds posted in the first of Friday’s two Cup practice sessions. Edwards ran 199.675 mph to secure the top spot.
Martin Truex Jr. (199.650 mph) will start second, followed by Marcos Ambrose (199.608 mph), Joey Logano (199.596 mph) and Ryan Newman (199.542 mph).
Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, series leader Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kahne will occupy the sixth through 10th positions on the grid, respectively.
Though Edwards will lead the field to the green flag, he will not get official credit for a pole position and will not earn eligibility to the 2014 Sprint Unlimited, because the starting order was not determined by time trials.
Because the probability of rain on Saturday was high, there was considerably more intrigue in practice than is typical at a restrictor-plate track.
“It was actually pretty exciting for all the teams, because we looked at this forecast, and we were all concerned that there wasn’t going to be single-car qualifying,” Edwards said. “It was like a heat race out there. Everyone was doing everything they could to lag back and partner up and get the fastest lap times they could.
“It was pretty exciting. We got the fastest lap with about one minute to go. That was our whole mission (Friday), and I’m pretty proud of the fact that we ended up with the fastest time.”
Truex was happy to have speed in practice but acknowledged that the race itself is likely to be quite different.
“We had a good plan in practice yesterday,” Truex said. “Our car felt really good. Obviously, Gen-6 car, first time at Talladega, a lot of guys trying to figure it out. We expected it to be similar to Daytona, but it actually feels quite a bit different, which was interesting.
“We really don’t know what to expect for (Sunday) yet. Practicing here is never quite like what it is in the race. You get in different positions, guys tend to be more aggressive in the race somewhat. When you get all 43 cars out there in a pack, it changes quite a bit.”
Because of the rain out, Elliott Sadler did not make the 43-car field. His No. 81 Toyota had fewer qualifying attempts this year than any other car entered in the race.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Talladega Superspeedway – Talladega, AL
Aaron’s 499 Qualifying – May 04, 2013
1 99 Carl Edwards 2013 Owner Points 2nd
2 56 Martin Truex Jr. 2013 Owner Points 18th
3 9 Marcos Ambrose 2013 Owner Points 25th
4 22 Joey Logano 2013 Owner Points 20th
5 39 Ryan Newman 2013 Owner Points 19th
6 20 Matt Kenseth 2013 Owner Points 14th
7 11 Denny Hamlin 2013 Owner Points 16th
8 48 Jimmie Johnson 2013 Owner Points 1st
9 24 Jeff Gordon 2013 Owner Points 17th
If you are struggling with sexual problem like ED, then what to do? To overcome such situation makes use of . This may or may not result in Acute Gouty Arthritis or Gout Attack. The patient has a difficulty to utter words. Do not take more than once daily. 10 5 Kasey Kahne 2013 Owner Points 3rd
11 2 Brad Keselowski 2013 Owner Points 6th
12 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2013 Owner Points 4th
13 18 Kyle Busch 2013 Owner Points 7th
14 55 Michael Waltrip 2013 Owner Points 13th
15 21 Trevor Bayne 2013 Owner Attempts 3
16 27 Paul Menard 2013 Owner Points 10th
17 16 Greg Biffle 2013 Owner Points 8th
18 43 Aric Almirola 2013 Owner Points 11th
19 34 David Ragan 2013 Owner Points 31st
20 15 Clint Bowyer 2013 Owner Points 5th
21 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 2013 Owner Points 21st
22 13 Casey Mears 2013 Owner Points 27th
23 10 Danica Patrick 2013 Owner Points 28th
24 29 Kevin Harvick 2013 Owner Points 9th
25 14 Tony Stewart 2013 Owner Points 24th
26 35 Josh Wise 2013 Owner Attempts 9
27 30 David Stremme 2013 Owner Points 33rd
28 1 Jamie McMurray 2013 Owner Points 12th
29 31 Jeff Burton 2013 Owner Points 22nd
30 42 Juan Pablo Montoya 2013 Owner Points 26th
31 38 David Gilliland 2013 Owner Points 35th
32 93 Travis Kvapil 2013 Owner Attempts 9
33 78 Kurt Busch 2013 Owner Points 23rd
34 51 Regan Smith 2013 Owner Points 15th
35 83 David Reutimann 2013 Owner Points 32nd
36 95 Scott Speed 2013 Owner Attempts 6
37 32 Terry Labonte Series Champion
38 98 Michael McDowell 2013 Owner Attempts 8
39 47 Bobby Labonte 2013 Owner Points 29th
40 7 Dave Blaney 2013 Owner Points 30th
41 87 Joe Nemechek 2013 Owner Attempts 9
42 33 Landon Cassill 2013 Owner Points 36th
43 36 JJ Yeley 2013 Owner Points 34th
Did Not Qualify: Elliott Sadler
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