NASCAR – Busch Got the Ticket, But Brad Kesolowski Gets The Pole, at the Coke 600

Brad Kesolowski will lead the racers to the green flag for the second time in his Sprint Cup career at tomorrow’s Coca~Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, in beautiful Charlotte North Carolina.  After racing his way into the All Star race here last week  “Bad Brad” has raced his way to the pole.  Ripping around the1.5-mile track in 28.112 seconds (192.089 mph) for his best start since this past Septembers Pole at New Hampshire.

Kesolowski talks with his crew before the race at Texas in April - Image courtesy of JDTImages.ca

When asked about his crew chief finding more speed than the other guys Brad joked about Kyle Busch’s unfortunate incident with the State Troopers. “Well, my crew chief  Paul Wolfe, he lives off of Perth Road, so maybe he found some secrets there.”

“Other than that, he’s making small gains every week. Sometimes they don’t show up. Sometimes you make gains, and you can feel ’em, but you all don’t see ’em. But as race car drivers, we go off the feel off of our butt, and the feel off my butt says the car’s getting better. They’re turning just a little bit better. The horsepower’s getting just a little bit better, and I think that we have more in store.”

A.J Almendinger (191.693 mph) will sit beside Kesolowski on the front row after being edged out near the end of the qualifying runs.  Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin and Jeff Burton will round out the top 5.

Some surprises in the qualifying order who have raced well here in the past are Tony Stewart in 22nd at 189.414 mph and Dale Jr., who has been running his best races lately in 25th with run of 188.937 mph.  I have a feeling we’ll be seeing these 2 make moves tomorrow as both of them know their way around it and love to race at this track.

Coming off a win at this very track just last week, Carl Edwards is feeling pretty confident going in to the race.  Qualified in 3rd he has shown that there is enough speed in the car this week to run out front again and possibly get his second win of the season in a Sprint Cup Points race. “I think that we figured some things out.”

“This is the race that I train and work out for all year,” said Edwards, who is well known for his physical fitness. “This race is made for me. It’s a long, grueling marathon of a race.”

“Bob and the guys have done a really good job, and I think it bodes well for the 600 for sure,” Edwards said after his win at All-Star race.  “I would hope that we can come back here next week with as good or a better car and definitely a lot more confidence than we had before we got here this weekend, so that’s good. This is the first time I’ve come here and run like this, so it’s huge for me.”

Crew Chief Bob Osbourne shares the confidence of his driver. “I think everyone on the team is looking forward to racing at Charlotte again this weekend after winning the All-Star Race last Saturday,” he said. “That was a huge win for our team.”

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