CUP: Earnhardt Jr. Leads Happy Hour At Talladega

Sprint Cup

CUP: Earnhardt Jr. Leads Happy Hour At Talladega

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kurt Busch have top practice speeds in final session…

Mike Hembree | Posted October 05, 2012 Talladega, AL

Dale Earnhardt Jr. led the final practice session Friday for Sunday’s Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 Sprint Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway.

Earnhardt Jr. had a top lap of 197.598 miles per hour as only 32 of the race entries participated in the one-hour session. Denny Hamlin, third in points, was among the drivers who sat out the practice.

Following Junior in the top five were Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Marcos Ambrose. In the next group were Travis Kvapil (who led the earlier practice), Clint Bowyer, Jeff Gordon, Martin Truex Jr. and Juan Pablo Montoya.

Point leader Brad Keselowski was 25th in the practice, and second-place Jimmie Johnson was 21st.

Most teams limited their participation in the practice – or avoided it entirely – to save engine strength and car wear for Sunday’s race.

Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEED.com and has been covering motorsports for 30 years. He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.

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Mike Hembree

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