Harvick wins Busch pole

FONTANA, Calif., April 25 (UPI) -- Kevin Harvick, a NASCAR Winston Cup regular, captured the pole Friday for Saturday's Busch series CaliforniaSpeedway.com 300 with a track-record lap of 183.941 miles per hour.

Two weeks ago, Harvick suffered burns to his feet from the floorboards of his ride in a Craftsman Truck series race at Martinsville Speedway. In a Winston Cup race the next day, he used a heat-resistant gel to soothe the pain, but the gel turned to plasma and he suffered plasma burns.

"I'm going to wrap it before the race and use some Styrofoam," Harvick said Friday. "I may even go with Dave Marcis' old wing tips."

Harvick was the fastest of 18 drivers who broke the previous track record of 179.198 mph, set by Bobby Hamilton Jr. in 2001. It was his seventh career Busch series pole and first this season.

Michael Waltrip, another Winston Cup regular, was second-fastest at 181.745 mph, followed by Ron Hornaday Jr. at 181.479 mph. David Reutimann, Stacy Compton and Brian Vickers were next as Chevrolet Monte Carlos occupied the top six spots.

Hornaday is second in the Busch series standings with 1,042 points, 78 behind Todd Bodine, who will start 14th in a Chevrolet.

David Green, who won the last Busch series race at Nashville Superspeedway, qualified 10th in a Pontiac Grand Prix.