LOUDON, N.H., July 19 (UPI) -- Bill Elliott continued his recent surge Friday by capturing the pole for Sunday's NASCAR Winston Cup New England 300.
Driving a Dodge Intrepid, Elliott, known as "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville" in his heyday, clocked 131.469 miles per hour around the 1.058-mile New Hampshire Speedway for his third pole of the season and 54th career. He also started up front for the MBNA 500 in March and the Samsung Radio/Shack 500 in April.
Elliott, a resident of Dawsonville, Ga., is one of the more popular drivers on the Winston Cup circuit. Lately, he also has been one of the more consistent.
This will be his seventh start in the top five in his last eight races. He has finished in the top 10 five times in his last eight events, climbing to eighth in the Winston Cup standings.
"Going into a long stretch like we're going into, morale is going to be the key," Elliott said. "Last year, we were riding a roller coaster, and right now it seems like we just kept nipping away at it. We'll do the best we can; we've come a long way as a team."
Elliott is one of three drivers in the top 10 in the standings who has yet to win this year. He is 253 points behind overall leader Sterling Marlin, who qualified 18th.
Elliott will be joined on the front row by Mike Skinner, who clocked 131.175 mph in a Chevrolet Monte Carlo.
Rusty Wallace, another driver in the top 10 in the standings without a win, will start third in a Ford. He won the inaugural race here in 1993 and set the qualifying mark two years ago. Wallace is sixth in the standings, 171 points behind Marlin.
Bobby Labonte joins Wallace on the second row in a Pontiac Grand Prix. Dave Blaney rounds out the top five and begins a group of five straight Fords.
Marlin has 2,483 points, just 49 more than Mark Martin, who will start inside Marlin in a Ford.
Teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon also are within striking distance of the standings lead. Johnson, a rookie, starts 13th in a Chevrolet and is 89 points off the pace. Gordon, the defending series champion, starts 11th and is another six points back. He won this race in 1995.
