[media-credit name=”Photo Credit: Noel Lanier” align=”alignright” width=”225″]
[/media-credit]Joey Logano wants to leave JGR with a bang and nothing would sound better than to win another race for the famed Super Bowl winning coach and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion winning car owner, Joe Gibbs. Logano is off to a good start this weekend after posting a lap of 27.14, which beat Kyle Busch by just four tenths of a second. Austin Dillon, Sam Hornish Jr., and Brian Vickers rounded out the top-5.
Vickers is particularly happy this weekend. He will drive full-time for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Nationwide Series next season in 2013, and is excited about defending his championship from ten years ago. Sam Hornish Jr. wants to prove to Roger Penske that he is worthy enough to force Penske to make a fourth team for 2013. Penske cited economic uncertainty as the reason why Hornish was let go the first time after the 2010 season. Hornish has since built a reputation off his Nationwide Series performances, and his run-ins with Danica Patrick.
Austin Dillon is coming into this weekend with good news as well after it was announced he will be running in the Daytona 500 next season driving RCR’s No.33. He is hoping to pull out a victory here in the desert. Brad Keselowski, Kasey Kahne, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Jason Leffler, and Brian Scott rounded out the top-10.
Stenhouse was unhappy about his lap after complaining of his car’s very loose condition. “We had a bad lap because I got loose. I nearly wrecked it.”
He can breathe a little easier though. At least he didn’t crash like Elliott Sadler. Sadler entered Turn 3 on his qualifying lap in the marbles and ended up in the wall. Sadler came up off the dog leg a little too abruptly, and it cost him as he ended up in the marbles as soon as he entered the turn. The two came into this race tied for the championship lead. Sadler will have to race his way through the field and be smart. He won here in the spring. Brian Scott starts this race from the tenth position after collecting his second career Truck Series victory last evening. He hopes to create his own sweep.
| Starting Lineup | |||||
| Great Clips 200, Phoenix Int’l Raceway | |||||
| http://www.speedwaymedia.com/n2s/qual.php?race=32 | |||||
| =========================================== | |||||
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Make | Speed | Time |
| =========================================== | |||||
| 1 | 18 | Joey Logano | Toyota | 132.621 | 27.145 |
| 2 | 54 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | 132.445 | 27.181 |
| 3 | 3 | Austin Dillon* | Chevrolet | 132.261 | 27.219 |
| 4 | 12 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Dodge | 132.047 | 27.263 |
| 5 | 20 | Brian Vickers | Toyota | 132.033 | 27.266 |
| 6 | 22 | Brad Keselowski | Dodge | 131.989 | 27.275 |
| 7 | 38 | Kasey Kahne | Chevrolet | 131.844 | 27.305 |
| 8 | 6 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Ford | 131.675 | 27.34 |
| 9 | 30 | Jason Leffler | Chevrolet | 131.593 | 27.357 |
| 10 | 11 | Brian Scott | Toyota | 131.31 | 27.416 |
| 11 | 33 | Brendan Gaughan | Chevrolet | 131.081 | 27.464 |
| 12 | 31 | Justin Allgaier | Chevrolet | 130.957 | 27.49 |
| 13 | 88 | Cole Whitt* | Chevrolet | 130.938 | 27.494 |
| 14 | 7 | Danica Patrick | Chevrolet | 130.895 | 27.503 |
| 15 | 19 | Mike Bliss | Toyota | 130.895 | 27.503 |
| 16 | 2 | Elliott Sadler | Chevrolet | 130.624 | 27.56 |
| 17 | 43 | Michael Annett | Ford | 130.439 | 27.599 |
| 18 | 14 | Eric McClure | Toyota | 130.077 | 27.676 |
| 19 | 10 | Jeff Green | Toyota | 130.044 | 27.683 |
| 20 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | Toyota | 129.861 | 27.722 |
| 21 | 51 | Jeremy Clements | Chevrolet | 129.734 | 27.749 |
| 22 | 199 | Alex Bowman | Toyota | 129.613 | 27.775 |
| 23 | 108 | Paulie Harraka | Ford | 129.227 | 27.858 |
| 24 | 100 | Blake Koch | Toyota | 129.208 | 27.862 |
| 25 | 40 | Erik Darnell | Chevrolet | 129.037 | 27.899 |
| 26 | 86 | Kevin Lepage | Ford | 128.921 | 27.924 |
| 27 | 81 | Jason Bowles* | Toyota | 128.852 | 27.939 |
| 28 | 47 | J.J. Yeley | Chevrolet | 128.852 | 27.939 |
| 29 | 42 | Josh Wise | Chevrolet | 128.778 | 27.955 |
| 30 | 46 | Chase Miller | Chevrolet | 128.292 | 28.061 |
| 31 | 191 | Tony Raines | Toyota | 128.041 | 28.116 |
| 32 | 89 | Morgan Shepherd | Chevrolet | 128.023 | 28.12 |
| 33 | 73 | Derrike Cope | Chevrolet | 127.547 | 28.225 |
| 34 | 1 | Mike Wallace | Chevrolet | 127.083 | 28.328 |
| 35 | 15 | Timmy Hill | Ford | 127.083 | 28.328 |
| 36 | 23 | Jamie Dick | Chevrolet | 126.778 | 28.396 |
| 37 | 39 | Dexter Stacey | Ford | 126.011 | 28.569 |
| 38 | 4 | Daryl Harr | Chevrolet | 124.675 | 28.875 |
| 39 | 44 | John Blankenship | Chevrolet | 122.917 | 29.288 |
| 40 | 41 | Noel Dowler+ | Ford | 121.741 | 29.571 |
| 41 | 124 | Derek White+ | Toyota | 120.144 | 29.964 |
| 42 | 70 | Nur Ali+ | Chevrolet | 102.837 | 35.007 |
| 43 | 174 | Mike Harmon | Chevrolet | 126.121 | 28.544 |
