WATKINS GLEN, N.Y., Aug. 10 (UPI) -- Occasional showers fell on the Watkins Glenn International road course Friday, wiping out qualifying for Sunday's Nextel Cup race.
That left points leader Jeff Gordon on the pole, the eighth time this season he has started out front. He has twice and finished in the top five every time from the pole position this season.
Denny Hamlin will start alongside Gordon, while Matt Kenseth and Jeff Burton will make up the second row.
With five races left before the start of the season-ending "chase for the championship," four drivers are fighting for the final two spots.
The top 12 drivers will make the chase -- and Martin Truex, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Ryan Newman are currently 11th through 14th. They are separated by 128 points.
