Labonte Qualifies 21st at Infineon Raceway

QUALIFYING RESULTS:

1. Kurt Busch, Dodge, 76.987 seconds, 93.055 miles per hour
2. Jamie McMurray, Ford, 77.075 seconds, 92.948 miles per hour
3. Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 77.124 seconds, 92.889 miles per hour
4. Ryan Newman, Dodge, 77.188 seconds, 92.812 miles per hour
5. Boris Said, Ford, 77.312 seconds, 92.663 miles per hour
21. Bobby Labonte, Dodge, 78.138 seconds, 91.684 miles per hour
33. Kyle Petty, Dodge, 78.715 seconds, 91.012 miles per hour

The 1.99-mile Infineon Raceway, the host of Sunday’s first NASCAR Nextel Cup road course race of the season, is nestled in the heart of wine country. The scenic track came to life Friday afternoon as teams qualified for Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart 350. It was one of the warmest days of the season, and temperatures are expected to be over 90 degrees during Sunday’s race. The track was very slick when teams qualified. In fact, very few drivers were able to better their qualifying time from their best practice time. Kurt Busch was one of the select drivers that picked up more time and won the pole. Busch will be lined up next to Jamie McMurray who qualified second.

Labonte and the #43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge team was the 15th fastest car at the end of Friday’s practice session. Labonte qualified early and the track was extremely hot. The conditions were not ideal for anyone. Labonte skillfully raced his way to the 21st fastest time of the day.

“It’s pretty hot out there,” said Labonte. “We’ll just be patient on Sunday and let the race unfold. We have a pretty good car. The heat made it pretty slick today.”

Petty and the #45 Wells Fargo Dodge team qualified 33rd for Sunday’s race. Petty, however, was strong during the morning’s practice session when the track was cooler. The team will now work on the car for Sunday’s race. Petty is consistently strong at road courses.

“This is pretty hot for Sonoma,” said Petty. “We’ve been coming here for a long time and this is a pretty hot day. It just changed the track conditions for everyone. We’ll make some adjustments and be ready for Sunday.”

Teams practice on Saturday before Sunday’s race. Sunday’s race will be televised live nationally on FOX and broadcast on PRN Radio. Race coverage begins at 3:00pm (EST).