Rain disrupts NASCAR qualifying

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., July 6 (UPI) -- Heavy rains Friday wiped out qualifying for Saturday night's Pepsi 400, leaving the fastest car on the track out of the race.

Qualifying was well under way, with 39 of 53 drivers having made their attempts, when the off-and-on showers that had been falling around the Daytona International Speedway began in earnest.

NASCAR rules state that if qualifying cannot be completed, the field is set according to the current points standings.

Boris Said, who had run the fastest qualifying lap prior to the rains, is not among the top 43 drivers in the points chase so he was dropped from the field.

Said had run a lap of 48.490 seconds around the superspeedway. Dave Blaney and Jeremy Mayfield had the next two fastest laps.

Instead, it will be points leader Jeff Gordon on the pole for the race with Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson next in line.