BROOKLYN, Mich.: Greg Biffle won the pole for this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Michigan International Speedway.
Biffle posted a qualifying lap of 190.345 mph for his first pole since June 2008. Biffle is 13th in the points standings but without a win this year. A victory would be a significant boost to his hopes of reaching the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
Matt Kenseth was second in qualifying, and Ryan Newman was third.
Biffle is coming off a 31st-place finish at Watkins Glen. After that race, he confronted Boris Said in the pits afterward and gave him a couple of quick hits while Said was still in his car. Said had touched off a wild crash at the end of the road race.
Crucial time
Denny Hamlin won Michigan’s Sprint Cup race back in June. If he can repeat the feat this weekend, he might have a few more fans than usual.
Hamlin is 12th in the points standings and is in line to earn one of two wild card spots for NASCAR’s postseason, but if he can move into the top 10 it could open a wild card chance for someone else. That’s one of several subplots as drivers scramble to qualify for the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup. There are four races remaining in the regular season.
“One extra win, by myself or someone else, completely changes the game,” Hamlin said.
The top 10 drivers and the two drivers with the most victories in 11th to 20th place earn spots for the Chase. Right now, Brad Keselowski has the inside track to one wild card. He’s in 14th place with two wins. Hamlin has just the one win from earlier this year at Michigan International Speedway, but that might be enough, since nobody else chasing a wild card spot has more at this point.
Paul Menard (15th place) has a victory as well, so he can give his chances a major boost by winning again.
“Our focus, even more so than before, shifts to getting the second win and doing all we can to try and get that second win,” Menard said. “Throwing the dice on the table and seeing what we’ve got.”
NASCAR introduced the wild card before the start of this season, and it could set the stage for some aggressive racing among drivers who realize finishing first — and only first — could help them jump into the championship race.
“That’s what the points system and movement was made to do — is give guys an opportunity that don’t quite have the consistency but still have the opportunity to race for the Chase,” said Kurt Busch, who is in good shape in sixth place. “That element of the wild card has definitely made it exciting for everybody to watch.”
Marcos Ambrose, who won his first race in NASCAR’s top series Monday at Watkins Glen, is in 22nd place. David Ragan, who is one spot behind Ambrose, also has a victory, and so does Regan Smith, who is 25th.
Hamlin could be in a precarious position if someone behind him earns a second victory — or he could change the equation himself by moving up into the top 10. He’s currently 33 points behind 10th-place Tony Stewart.
“If Menard got a win, he’s in, right?” asked Carl Edwards, who was trying to work out the different hypotheticals Friday. “But if Denny runs well and Tony falls out then there’s another two guys — if Tony doesn’t get a win, or something like that. Right? I don’t know.”
Two races in Michigan
Michigan International Speedway is set to host two NASCAR Sprint Cup races again in 2012.
Track president Roger Curtis says he has signed sanctioning agreements. The first race is scheduled for June 17 and the second for Aug. 19. MIS has hosted at least two NASCAR races every year since 1969 with the lone exception in 1973.
Following Sunday’s race, the two-mile super-speedway will be completely resurfaced for the first time since 1995 at a cost of $7 million. Curtis says the track has had $60 million in improvements over the last five years.
