May 11 , 2007

DARLINGTON, S.C. – Darlington Raceway, the track nicknamed "Too Tough to Tame," handed Michael Waltrip and the NAPA AUTO PARTS team another hardship during qualifying for Saturday's Dodge Avenger 500. Although Waltrip's time of 30.446 seconds (161.519 mph) was 39th quickest - faster than drivers Joe Nemechek, Kyle Busch, Mark Martin, David Gilliland, Jeff Green, Ricky Rudd, Juan Pablo Montoya and Kyle Petty - the two-time Daytona 500 champion did not earn a starting spot for the Darlington event due to NASCAR's top-35 qualifying rule.

Waltrip’s qualifying speed was somewhat of a disappointment to the NAPA team after a very promising practice session earlier in the day. The driver of the No. 55 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry recorded the 14th-fastest lap of the session with a time of 30.337 seconds, second in line of the teams needing to qualify on time. Only his teammate, David Reutimann, was faster with a time of 30.003 seconds. Unfortunately for Waltrip, he was unable to demonstrate similar speed in qualifying.

On Saturday night, only one Michael Waltrip Racing entry will compete in the Dodge Avenger 500. David Reutimann earned the 14th starting spot with a lap of 30.137 seconds. MWR's other driver, Dale Jarrett, failed to qualify after posting the 41st fastest lap.

Clint Bowyer won his first Bud Pole Award with a lap of 29.806 seconds (164.987 mph). Rounding out the top-10 qualifiers were Greg Biffle, Jamie McMurray, Carl Edwards, Kasey Kahne, Denny Hamlin, Ken Schrader, Kevin Harvick and Jeff Gordon.

The fastest Toyota in qualifying was David Reutimann. Fellow Toyota drivers Brian Vickers, A.J. Allmendinger, and Dave Blaney qualified 15th, 20th and 22nd, respectively.

Live coverage of the Dodge Avenger 500 at Darlington Raceway begins Saturday night, May 12 at 7:00 p.m. EDT on FOX. If you can't catch the race on TV, it can be heard on your local MRN Radio affiliate and Sirius Satellite Radio starting at the same time.

Dodge Avenger 500 Qualifying Results:
http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2007/11/data/lineup.html

Dodge Avenger 500 Practice Results:
http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2007/11/data/practice1_speeds.html

Next Up:
NEXTEL All-Star Challenge on Saturday, May 19 at Lowe's Motor Speedway (non-points race)
2006 Winner: Jimmie Johnson
2006 Pole Winner: Kasey Kahne
Television: SPEED at 9:00 p.m. EDT
Radio: PRN and Sirius Satellite Radio at 9:00 p.m.

The top two finishers in the NEXTEL Open will transfer into the NEXTEL All-Star Challenge. The NEXTEL Open gets underway at 7:30 p.m. on May 19.