INDIANAPOLIS — So excited for last year’s race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Mark Martin predicted victory six weeks before the event.
His ability to forecast the future ultimately fell flat, as Martin finished 11th in a race that was ruined by a Goodyear debacle and dictated by the cautions NASCAR had to call every 10 to 12 laps to prevent dangerous tire failures.
Martin has a chance at redemption today, when the 50-year-old will become the oldest driver in Indianapolis’ 100-year history to start from the pole for the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. But he refused to make another Babe Ruth-style statement about his prospects.
“I’m not even thinking about it,” Martin said after posting a lap at 182.054 mph in Saturday’s qualifying.
“I prefer not to think about what possible result could be tomorrow,” he said. “I can tell you I think it’s gonna be a dogfight for this race. I really do. I’d like to be in the fray. That’s about as far as I’ll go thinking about it.”
Martin blew away Juan Pablo Montoya, winner of the 2000 Indianapolis 500, for the pole. Running a retro Target paint scheme that duplicates his Indy 500 car, Montoya qualified second with a lap at 180.803.
Montoya always has been good at Indy — he also raced on the track in Formula One — and many competitors have predicted he’ll contend for his first win of the season today. But he’s also clinging to a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, and Montoya has raced cautiously all season in an effort to earn one of the 12 berths.
Power is on IndyCar pole
EDMONTON, Alberta — Will Power will start on the pole after winning the qualifying session for today’s Edmonton IndyCar race dominated by Team Penske.
The Australian ran a fast lap of 61.013 seconds in the final session of qualifying on the 14-turn, 1.96-mile City Centre Airport course.
Ryan Briscoe, Power’s teammate who started on the pole last year in Edmonton, will join Power on the front row. Helio Castroneves will be third for the Penske team while Scott Dixon of Target Chip Ganassi will start fourth.
“All the Penske cars are really fast here,” Briscoe said. “Since we took the cars off the truck, we’ve felt really good.”
Footnotes.
Carl Edwards came from the back of the pack to win the Nationwide Series race in Clermont, Ind.
Edwards started in 42nd out of 43 drivers because he spent the day at the Brickyard qualifying.
• Greg Anderson raced to the No. 1 qualifying position in pro stock at the Fram-Autolite NHRA Nationals in Sonoma, Calif., with a track-record performance of 6.571 seconds at 210.11 mph.
J.R. Todd (top fuel), Matt Hagan (funny car) and Eddie Krawiec (pro stock motorcycle) were the top qualifiers in their respective categories.
• Fernando Alonso earned the pole position for today’s Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest. Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel will start second while teammate Mark Webber will go from third.
The Associated Press
Today’s races
NASCAR SPRINT CUP
Allstate 400 at the Brickyard
6TV: ESPN, noon.
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (oval, 2.5 miles).
Race distance: 400 miles, 160 laps.
Next race: Pennsylvania 500, Aug. 2, Pocono Raceway, Long Pond, Pa.
On the Net: www.nascar.com
INDYCAR
Edmonton Indy
Site: Edmonton, Alberta.
TV: Versus, 4 p.m.
Track: Edmonton City Centre Airport (temporary road course, 1.96 miles).
Race distance: 186.2 miles, 95 laps.
Next race: Meijer Indy 300, Aug. 1, Kentucky Speedway, Sparta, Ky.
On the Net: www.indycar.com
FORMULA ONE
Hungarian Grand Prix
Site: Budapest, Hungary.
TV: Speed, 6 a.m.; Fox, 1 p.m. tape.
Track: Hungaroring (road course, 2.72 miles).
Race distance: 190.53 miles, 70 laps.
Next race: Grand Prix of Europe, Aug. 23, Streets of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.
On the Net:
NHRA
Fram Autolite Nationals
Site: Sonoma, Calif.
TV: ESPN2, 7 p.m., tape.
Track: Infineon Raceway.
Next race: Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, Aug. 13-16, Brainerd International Raceway, Brainerd, Minn.
On the Net: www.nhra.com
