Logano blisters Michigan track record

BROOKLYN, MI — Another track record has fallen in 2013 with the Gen-6 car.

Joey Logano broke Marcos Ambrose’s single-lap qualifying record at Michigan International Speedway Friday afternoon with a lap averaging 203.949 mph.

“That felt faster than practice,” said Logano who was unsure if his lap of record would withstand at the top of the scoring chart after his qualifying lap. “I think it was better than what we had in practice.”

The lap for Logano came towards the middle of the qualifying session when the 2-mile, d-shape oval was under full cloud cover, making for optimum conditions to produce a fast lap.

The pole marks the first time in 2013 that Logano has won a pole award and his first since Homestead-Miami last November. It’s also the pole Logano has won with Penske Racing.

Sunday, Logano looks for his first win with the Penske Racing team at the Sprint Cup level; a win the team needs to make a run at a Chase birth.

“You got to pass a lot of cars, that’s the difficult part,” Logano said about being 27-points outside the top-10 four races before the Chase.

“One win is not going to be enough right now. You got to have a win and points…or two wins.”

Another driver attempting to make the Chase will start alongside Logano come Sunday.

Kurt Busch, who sits 11th in Sprint Cup points,  qualified his Chevrolet in the second position with Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, and Jeff Burton rounding out the top-five.

“203 mph didn’t feel like 203,” Busch said following his qualifying lap commenting on the stability of both the care and tire at the two-mile track.

Johnson commented that some drivers opted more on the side of a safe lap rather than risk overdriving the car which he stated would hurt the lap more than a conservative approach.

Pure Michigan 400 Unofficial Starting Lineup 

1. Joey Logano
2. Kurt Busch
3. Jimmie Johnson
4. Mark Martin
5. Jeff Burton
6. Juan Pablo Montoya
7. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
8. Denny Hamlin
9. Brad Keselowski
10. Kyle Busch
11. Clint Bowyer
12. Matt Kenseth
13. Jeff Gordon
14. Aric Almirola
15. Kevin Harvick
16. Greg Biffle
17. Martin Truex Jr.
18. Trevor Bayne
19. Carl Edwards
20. Paul Menard
21. Ryan Newman
22. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
23. David Gilliland
24. David Ragan
25. David Reutimann
26. Marcos Ambrose
27. Austin Dillon
28. Danica Patrick
29. Jamie McMurray
30. Bobby Labonte
31. Kasey Kahne
32. Scott Speed
33. Casey Mears
34. Timmy Hill
35. JJ Yeley
36. David Stremme
37. Joe Nemechek
38. Travis Kvapil
39. Brendan Gaughan
40. Josh Wise
41. Johnny Sauter
42. Dave Blaney
43. Landon Cassill