DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., Feb. 13 (UPI) -- Rookie Martin Truex Jr. won the pole Friday for Saturday's Busch Hershey's Kisses 300.
Truex, whose Chevrolet is sponsored by Bass Pro Shops, a national fishing supply chain, reeled in the pole with a fast lap at 181.138 miles an hour around the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway.
The car is owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his stepmother, Teresa, on a team called Chance-2 Racing.
"Everybody dreams of coming to race at Daytona. It's the biggest race of the year," Truex said. "Growing up you watch the Daytona 500 and everybody wants to get here and race."
Unfortunately for Truex, he was running behind Michael Waltrip in Friday's practice session and ran into the back of Waltrip's car. Truex Chevrolet suffered minor damage but returned to the garage.
It appeared that a tire blew on Waltrip's car, sending him into a spin.
