Franchitti takes pole for Firestone 300

HOMESTEAD, Fla., Oct. 9 (UPI) -- Dario Franchitti, averaging 212.696 mph, won the pole Friday for the Firestone Indy 300 at Homestead, Fla.

Franchitti will start from the pole for the fifth time this season.

Scott Dixon was second and Ryan Briscoe third in qualifying for the season-ending IndyCar race to be run Saturday at the Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Franchitti got a bonus point by winning the pole and is four points behind first-place Dixon in the race for the IndyCar Series championship.

"I was pleasantly surprised since we hadn't run quite well in practice this morning," Franchitti said after qualifying at the1.5-mile track.