Friday afternoon, the skies over Martinsville, Va., didn't cooperate with NASCAR officials.In town for the sixth race of the still young 2009 season, both the Sprint Cup Series and the Camping World Truck Series got in some needed practice time before rain showers halted activities at the 0.526-mile short track later in the afternoon -- scrubbing both Sprint Cup qualifying and a full CWTS final practice.
Thanks to the rain, point leader Jeff Gordon will start on Sunday's pole but Saturday activities might also be slowed by more precipitation.
The forecast for the area on Saturday looks less than promising with morning fog, a 70 percent chance of rain and thunderstorms all day and expected rainfall amounts of up to three-quarters of an inch all being projected for a day scheduled to have Sprint Cup final practice, CWTS qualifying and finally the CWTS 200-lap race.
Here's to hoping you weren't planning a one-day trip on Saturday to NASCAR's shortest track.
Gordon, meanwhile, earned the pole for Sunday's Goody's Cool Orange 500 thanks to the NASCAR rulebook that sets the field by virtue of the current owner points. Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards rounded out that group's Top-5.
Denny Hamlin, the second-place finisher a week ago, lines up 8th after topping the practice charts in Friday's session -- one that was heavily dominated by several race runs because of teams being concerned about Saturday's forecast.
Sterling Marlin, Tony Raines, Dennis Setzer and Derrike Cope all had to pack up and go home after the system to fill the field left them out of the limit of 43 starters. Marlin, however, seemed in position to make the race after running the 13th-quickest lap time in Friday's practice.
After taking the pole, Gordon talked about how he and his crew chief Steve Letarte both had a selfish agenda on their minds for Friday's proceedings.
"I will tell you that my hopes for the day and I think Steve Letarte and the rest of the team will go along with this is that we got practice in today and could run some race runs and try some things out and get some laps and that qualifying would rain out so we could sit on the pole and get the number one pit stall," said Gordon. "Our day has been about as perfect as we could ask for it today. That's just us kind of being selfish and knowing that where we're at in the points and looking all week of the forecast of the weather."
That number one pit stall -- at the very end of pit road with no obstacles for a driver when he leaves the stall -- can be a big advantage, especially at Martinsville.
"There's no doubt that if anybody gets that number one pit stall it gives them the upper hand," said Gordon. "Of course the location of it, the ease of getting off pit road. The pit stalls are so tight here that there's really only one good one and that's it."
