Last Thursday night, Ryan Newman finished a lap at 188.475 to grab top pole position for the Coca-Cola 600.

It was Newman’s eighth career pole at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, the most of any active driver. The run also marked his 44th overall career pole.

A close second to Newman is Kyle Busch with 188. 258. Points leader Jeff Gordon qualified for third pole position, followed by Hendrick Motorsports teammates Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson. They will all compete in NASCAR’s longest race this Sunday.

Bill Elliot needed to qualify on speed. He earned the 10th pole position, marking his 800th career start. J.J. Yeley, who filled in for the suspended Jerry Mayfield, failed to qualify for the race.