While focus of the weekend is the Sprint Cup Chase, Kasey Kahne stole a little of the thunder with his first pole for Red Bull Racing.
His mind was on the points leaders when he explained that his Toyota was "a little bit free in practice, a little bit too loose -- we ended up seventh. "
He added: "The team made the right changes and did a really good job to get the pole. I am looking forward to Sunday’s race. It’s gonna be exciting being up front in the mix with Denny (Hamlin), (Kevin) Harvick and Jimmie (Johnson) -- they’re all gonna be fast throughout the race."
Kahne , who joined the Red Bull team following his release from RPM, turned a lap of 176.904mph, bumping Phoenix winner Carl Edwards to the outside pole.
“My number one mission here was to beat Jamie,” said Edwards, adding: "We did that and I thought, ‘Man, we’ve got it. We’ve got the pole,’ and then Kasey came along and got the pole, so there couldn’t be two better guys to race for this."
Jamie McMurray was third fastest at 176.713mph and ageless Bill Elliott was fourth fastest at 176.586mph.
"That was a really good lap," McMurray said. "Honestly, I felt like I got all I could out of what I had. I don't think there was anything left. We've been really quick right off the truck; we should have a good weekend."
Meanwhile the best of the three Cup Challengers was Jimmie Johnson who was sixth fastest. The four-time Champion is 15 points behind Hamlin. "There's some work to do there and we'll get on top of things and have some fun," explained Johnson.
Kevin Harvick was 28th while points leader Denny Hamlin qualified 37th. Last year, Hamlin qualified 38th and won the race. If he repeats that performance on Sunday, he will clinch his first Cup.
He tweeted: "Nothing like a challenge. I didn't make my job any easier, that's for sure."
Michael McDowell and Patrick Carpentier (of Joliette, Quebec) failed to qualify.
His mind was on the points leaders when he explained that his Toyota was "a little bit free in practice, a little bit too loose -- we ended up seventh. "
He added: "The team made the right changes and did a really good job to get the pole. I am looking forward to Sunday’s race. It’s gonna be exciting being up front in the mix with Denny (Hamlin), (Kevin) Harvick and Jimmie (Johnson) -- they’re all gonna be fast throughout the race."
Kahne , who joined the Red Bull team following his release from RPM, turned a lap of 176.904mph, bumping Phoenix winner Carl Edwards to the outside pole.
“My number one mission here was to beat Jamie,” said Edwards, adding: "We did that and I thought, ‘Man, we’ve got it. We’ve got the pole,’ and then Kasey came along and got the pole, so there couldn’t be two better guys to race for this."
Jamie McMurray was third fastest at 176.713mph and ageless Bill Elliott was fourth fastest at 176.586mph.
"That was a really good lap," McMurray said. "Honestly, I felt like I got all I could out of what I had. I don't think there was anything left. We've been really quick right off the truck; we should have a good weekend."
Meanwhile the best of the three Cup Challengers was Jimmie Johnson who was sixth fastest. The four-time Champion is 15 points behind Hamlin. "There's some work to do there and we'll get on top of things and have some fun," explained Johnson.
Kevin Harvick was 28th while points leader Denny Hamlin qualified 37th. Last year, Hamlin qualified 38th and won the race. If he repeats that performance on Sunday, he will clinch his first Cup.
He tweeted: "Nothing like a challenge. I didn't make my job any easier, that's for sure."
Michael McDowell and Patrick Carpentier (of Joliette, Quebec) failed to qualify.