JGR Qualifying Report - Martinsville
Date: Oct. 19, 2007
Event: Subway 500 (Round 32 of 36)
Series: NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series
Location: Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (.526-mile oval)
Pole Winner: Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports (19.938 seconds at 94.974 mph)
JGR Lineup: J.J. Yeley (8th, 20.039 seconds at 94.496 mph)
Denny Hamlin (30th, 20.185 seconds at 93.812 mph)
Tony Stewart (34th, 20.241 seconds at 93.553 mph)
J.J. Yeley, driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet, qualified eighth to lead the three-car Joe Gibbs Racing contingent during time trials for Sunday’s Subway 500 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. Hamlin turned a lap of 20.039 seconds at 94.496 mph on the .526-mile oval.
“We never made a mock qualifying run and made only 18 laps in race trim (during today’s practice session shortened to 20 minutes by rain),” said Yeley, who scored his third top-10 qualifying effort of the season to go with his pole at Michigan in June and the fifth spot he earned at Martinsville in April. “The Interstate Batteries car is really good, to say the least. We qualified fifth here in the spring and should’ve had a good finish. But I pitted outside the box and that put us a lap down. (Today) we had to go through tech a second time during qualifying and had to change a lot of stuff, so I worked hard to try and keep my composure. I took a really conservative first lap, then went for it on the second lap and just overdrove my entry a little bit. That took me out of my rhythm and hurt the second lap. I didn’t realize the first lap was so good. Any time you come to a short track, up front is a good place to start. We’ve got a good race car. We’re near the front. We’ll just try and stay out of trouble and come home with a good finish here at Martinsville.”
Yeley’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammates – Denny Hamlin, in the No. 11 FedEx Freight Chevrolet, and Tony Stewart in the No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet – qualified 30th and 34th, respectively. Hamlin turned a lap of 20.185 seconds at 93.812 mph, while Stewart stopped the clocks in 20.241 seconds at 93.553 mph.
“Having our practice time cut short by rain and not having the chance to make any qualifying runs really hurt us on that lap," said Hamlin, who started on the pole and led 125 laps before finishing third at Martinsville earlier this year. “The FedEx Chevy was really pushing through the corners and back onto the gas, and at a track like Martinsville, that drive-off is very important. This is a good track for us and we know how to get this car ready in race trim. This FedEx Freight Chevrolet will be ready for the race on Sunday.”
Jeff Gordon captured his 63rd career pole position, seventh of the season and seventh at Martinsville with a time of 19.938 seconds at 94.974 mph. Rounding out the top-five in qualifying were Martin Truex Jr., (19.988 seconds at 94.737 mph), Kevin Harvick (19.999 seconds at 94.685 mph), Jimmie Johnson (20.013 seconds at 94.619 mph) and Kasey Kahne (20.020 seconds at 94.585 mph).
Forty-eight drivers were slated to qualify for the Subway 500. Those not making the cut in the 43-car field were Sam Hornish Jr., Joe Nemechek, Brian Vickers, Jeremy Mayfield and Kevin Lepage.
As far as manufacturers went, Chevrolet took the top spot thanks to Gordon’s pole. Dodge was next best at the hands of Kahne, while Jamie McMurray carried the flag for Ford by qualifying ninth with a time of 20.050 seconds at 94.444 mph. The top Toyota came via Dave Blaney, who turned a lap of 20.120 seconds at 94.115 mph to qualify 17th.
The Subway 500 gets underway at 1:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 21. ABC will broadcast the event live and in high-definition beginning with its pre-race show at 1 p.m.
