Mark, driver of the No. 5 Kellogg's/CARQUEST Chevrolet, zipped around
the 1.54-mile quad oval at
187.045 mph during Friday's qualifying session to post the fastest time and pick up his first pole
position in almost eight years. The Hendrick Motorsports' newcomer stayed in the top 10 for the first
215 laps, but ran into trouble on Lap 216. Then, Mark hit debris on the racetrack, which punctured a
tire and sent his No. 5 Chevy hard into the wall. His crew quickly made the repairs on pit road, but
Mark couldn't rally completely from the setback. He finished 31st.
"This kind of luck cannot continue. It just can't," Mark told his team on the radio. "You guys gave
me an incredible race car. We were great today. And that's all any of us can ask for. You did a great
job of fixing it, too, on pit road. You were fast and thorough. Thank you."
The Cup Series will take a break this week and resume racing action next weekend at Bristol (Tenn.)
Motor Speedway. The Cup race will air at 1:30 p.m. ET on March 22 on FOX.
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