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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
CUP: Martin Seeks Elusive 500 Win From Point
Mark Martin will start the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500 from the pole...
Mike Hembree  |  Posted February 06, 2010   Daytona Beach, FL
Mark Martin signs the pole award background after qualifying first for the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. (Photo: Getty Images)
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Mark Martin has won the Daytona 500 Pole. (Photo: Getty Images)

The old guy just keeps on clipping along.

Mark Martin, who turned 51 last month, turned the fastest lap Saturday in qualifying at Daytona International Speedway and will start on the pole for the Feb. 14 Daytona 500. Martin thus became the oldest pole winner in the 52-year history of stock car racing’s biggest event.

Martin’s fast lap of 191.188 miles per hour edged his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Dale Earnhardt Jr., who ran 190.913. They locked in their starting positions for next weekend’s race with their Saturday drives. The remaining 41 spots in the field for NASCAR’s richest race will be filled using results from a pair of 150-mile qualifying races Thursday, qualifying speeds and provisionals.

The pole is Martin’s first for the 500. A win in the race also would be the first for the veteran Arkansas driver. The only two significant vacancies on his resume are a win in the 500 and a Sprint Cup championship.

“It’s time, it’s time,” Martin said. “You know we haven’t done it yet, so this is the best shot I’ve had, or as good. I had some really good shots and didn’t get it done, but I think we have our best chance now.”

There were some surprises in the lead group as 54 drivers recorded time-trial laps on a moderate but windy Saturday afternoon.

Fifty-four-year-old Bill Elliott, who is scheduled to run a part-time schedule again this year, had the day’s fourth-fastest speed, and Juan Pablo Montoya was fifth. Ryan Newman was third.

Penske Racing had three cars in the top 15 with Kurt Busch (seventh), Sam Hornish Jr. (12th) and Brad Keselowski (15th).

Forty of the drivers who recorded laps Saturday were faster than 2009 500 pole winner Martin Truex Jr.’s speed of 188.001.

Team owner Rick Hendrick emphasized in the off-season that he wanted more cooperation between the Martin and Earnhardt Jr. teams, and the sweep of the 500 front row was seen as proof that that concept is moving forward.

“It’s such an incredible accomplishment for the 5 and 88 team,” Martin said. “This was not an accomplishment of mine. This was Alan (crew chief Alan Gustafson) and all our guys, and to have Dale Jr. on the outside of the front row locked in just means we’re doing something right.”

Earnhardt Jr., hoping to rebound from a sour 2009, said he had his eyes on the pole, “but at least we have the two Hendrick cars on the front row. It’s a tribute to a great organization, and the driver really doesn’t have nothing to do with it. That’s all race car right there.”

Defending series champion Jimmie Johnson had the day’s sixth fastest speed.

RESULTS: Daytona 500 Qualifying

RESULTS: Daytona 500 Friday Practice 1

RESULTS: Daytona 500 Saturday Practice

Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEEDtv.com and has been covering motorsports for 28 years. He has written several books on NASCAR, including "NASCAR: The Definitive History of America's Sport" and "Then Tony Said To Junior: The Best NASCAR Stories Ever Told". He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.

SPEED™, anchored by its popular and wide-ranging coverage of NASCAR, is the nation’s first and only cable television network dedicated to automotive and motorcycle racing, performance and lifestyle. Now available in more than 79 million homes in North America, SPEED is among the industry leaders in interactive TV, video on demand, mobile initiatives and broadband services. For more information, please visit SPEEDtv.com, the online motor sports authority.

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