NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
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CUP: Newman Takes Martinsville Pole
Ryan Newman will start from the inside of Row 1 in Sunday’s TUMS Fast Relief 500...
Tom Jensen  |  Posted October 23, 2009   Martinsville, VA
Ryan Newman won the pole position for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series TUMS Fast Relief 500 to be raced Sunday at Martinsville Speedway. (Photo: nascarmedia.com)
Ryan Newman qualified on the pole for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series TUMS Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Ryan Newman claimed the pole for Sunday’s TUMS Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway, race No. 6 of 10 in the season-ending Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Newman took the top spot with a lap of 96.795 miles per hour in his No. 39 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet Impala SS. It was Newman’s second pole of the season, the 45th of his NASCAR Sprint Cup career, and his third at Martinsville.

And it came at an opportune time for the Indiana native Newman, who is eighth in points, 288 behind leader Jimmie Johnson.

Jeff Gordon, who has finished second in a series-high eight races this season, turned a lap of 96.519 mph around the 0.526-mile Martinsville oval to put his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on the outside pole at NASCAR’s shortest track.

The third qualifier was Martin Truex Jr. with a lap of 96.509 in his Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevy. Mark Martin, the second-place driver in points, qualified fourth, with a lap of 96.504 mph in his Hendrick entry, while David Reutimann completed the top five in a Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota.

The second five consisted of Casey Mears, Joey Logano, Bobby Labonte, Reed Sorenson and Kevin Harvick. Johnson, shockingly, qualified 15th at a track where he has won five of the last six races.

Although he is third in points, 135 behind teammate Johnson and 45 back of Martin, Gordon said Friday he’s as passionate as ever about winning his fifth championship — and breaking Johnson’s momentum in the process.

“Right now our focus is to go out and at least put some pressure on them to know that we are not just going to run around and finish second and that we can compete with them,” Gordon said of Johnson, who is seeking his record fourth consecutive Sprint Cup title. “As much for trying to win the championship this year as well as getting ourselves prepared for next season. We are thinking about now as well as the future.”

And Martin, who has been runner-up in points four times, bristled at the suggestion that isn’t being aggressive enough in his pursuit of Johnson.

“I am racing with everything I got and if I could find a way to be better, I would,” he said. “And I will continue to look and search for anyway I can, going forward, to find a way to be better yet, but all I can do is put it out there. That’s all I can do. I will put it out there and race with every bit of fire and because I don’t cause a lot of stink on the race track doesn’t mean I don’t race without a lot of fire. You ask somebody that’s raced me this year. I race with everything that I got.”

“It still isn’t over said Johnson,” of the title hunt. “Mark’s going to fight until the very last lap at Homestead, and Gordon, too. And Stewart’s right there in fourth.”

TUMS FAST RELIEF 500 QUALIFYING RESULTS

MARTINSVILLE: FRIDAY PRACTICE ONE

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or Speed Channel

Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief for SPEEDtv.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. He is the author of ?Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED,? and has appeared on television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association. Jensen is the 1997 National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year and has won numerous national and state awards for news reporting, columns and feature writing. The Answer Man is back at SPEEDtv.com. Tom Jensen answers your questions during every race week and looks forward to hearing from you - please e-mail it to




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