Mark posted the fasted qualifying time on Friday to earn his second straight pole position. But this
time, the NASCAR veteran was able to avoid misfortune in his No. 5 CARQUEST/Kellogg's Chevrolet on race
day, and he crossed the finish line in sixth, picking up the team's first top-10 finish of the season.
"I had fun today," Mark said afterward. "I just wasn't happy with the car (Saturday) during practice,
and I didn't think we were going to be very good (during the race). We started the race, and we really
weren't very good. And one little change, and on the long run, that car was on fire."
It felt really, really good," Mark said after his pole setting run Friday. "That was a great day. The car
was really fast. It was really comfortable, and with the things that have happened to us in the races,
it feels really good to show everybody that we still have speed and we're going to keep digging."
That marked the second time that Mark had earned back-to-back poles during a season. Mark most recently
claimed the front row spot at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 8. Before that, he earned back-to-back
pole positions during the 1989 season, earning the top spot at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway and Bristol.
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