Kyle Busch captures All-Star pole, plots path to first Charlotte victory

CONCORD, N.C. - Kyle Busch has been a force on the NASCAR circuit for years, but of his 24 Sprint Cup victories, none has come at his favorite track.

He has nine top-10 finishes in 16 starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Victory lane, though, has proven to be elusive.

Busch is hoping that's all about to change after capturing the pole for tonight's Sprint All-Star race for the second straight year. The Las Vegas native completed the unique three-lap qualifying that included a mandatory four-tire pit stop in 1 minute, 59.11 seconds, wrestling the pole away from Ryan Newman.

While winning the pole puts Busch and his No. 18 Toyota in great position to gain his first All-Star victory, it certainly doesn't guarantee a first-place finish - and the $1 million prize that comes with it. In fact, winning the pole has proven to be a bit of a curse.

The last All-Star pole winner to win the race was Davey Allison in 1992.

Just don't tell Busch that.

"I don't have a win here in a Cup car, so we're definitely trying to break through that threshold," Busch said. "To do that you have to be able to put a whole night together and I haven't been able to do that here in the past."

It appeared for a while that Newman's time of 1:59.82 might hold up after 17 other drivers were unable to beat him. However, Busch, who was the fastest during practice and the last driver to hit the track for qualifying, pushed Newman to the outside row.

Denny Hamlin will start third, followed by Greg Biffle and Kevin Harvick. Jimmie Johnson qualified sixth, while Paul Menard, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Regan Smith round out the top 10.

Defending champion Carl Edwards will start 13th.

The All-Star race format has changed significantly this year. The 90-lap race is split into four 20-lap segments preceding a 10-lap shootout. There will be a mandatory pit stop prior to the final 10 laps.

The new format places a premium on winning one of the four segments and showcases the importance of the pit crew. The winner of each segment will move to the front of the field right before the cars head down pit road for their mandatory stop. Drivers will then line up in the order they leave pit road to start the final segment.

Busch's strategy is to win the first segment.

"If you win that first segment that sets your pace for the whole night," he said. "From that point out all you have to do is stay out of trouble and make it to their final segment where they have the realign and you start in the top four."

Included in the 20-driver field are race winners from last season through the May 12 race at Darlington and previous All-Star winners from the past 10 years, including 2010 winner Kurt Busch, who will start 17th.

Three more starters will be added today - the top two finishers in the 40-lap Sprint Showdown as well as the winner of the Sprint Fan Vote, which is almost guaranteed to be Dale Earnhardt Jr. should he not qualify in the Showdown.

A.J. Allmendinger captured the pole for the Showdown in qualifying Friday. He'll start on the front row alongside Martin Truex Jr.

■ TRUCKS - At Concord, N.C., Justin Lofton raced to his first NASCAR Truck Series victory, getting the jump on race leader Brad Keselowski on a restart.

Lofton became the fifth winner in the series this year. Keselowski finished second, and Todd Bodine was third.

Lofton, who had 15 top-10 finishes in his previous 55 career Truck starts, called the win "amazing," adding that "it's been a long time coming."

Brendan Gaughan of Las Vegas finished 12th after qualifying 11th.