DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., Feb. 12 (UPI) -- Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon won Thursday's Gatorade Duel qualifying races for Sunday's Daytona 500 at Daytona (Fla.) International Raceway.
Gordon won the first race, beating Tony Stewart and three-time Sprint Cup points champion Jimmie Johnson, guaranteeing a starting position on the second row.
Later, Busch got drafting help from Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin, grabbed the lead from Hendrick Motorsports driver Mark Martin with five laps remaining, and beat Martin to the finish line by 0.153 seconds.
Martin finished second, followed by Brian Vickers, Juan Pablo Montoya and Hamlin.
Last Sunday, Martin Truex Jr., grabbed the pole position for the annual, season-opening Sprint Cup auto race. Truex led the most laps Sunday with 36, and starts on the outside pole after posting the second best lap in last qualifying.
Matt Kenseth was involved in an accident with eight laps left in the first qualifier Thursday, and will use a backup car following his 26th-place finish.
