Biffle claims pole for Sprint Cup race

Gref Biffle won the pole for tonight's Dodge Challenger 500 with a track-record speed of 179.442-mph during qualifying at Darlington Raceway.

Biffle, a two-time winner at Darlington, will start on the front row alongside Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jimmie Johnson, who crashed twice during practice, qualified third and will share Row 2 with Tony Stewart.

"Certainly, everyone has talked about the track being fast, but it's the same old Darlington," said Biffle, who eclipsed the track record set in 1996 by South Boston native Ward Burton. "It [the racetrack] will bite you if you let your guard down.

"This place is so different now than it was in the past. It's easy to drive when the car drives really good."

Biffle said he gained a slight advantage having participated in tire testing earlier this year after the 1.366-mile racetrack was repaved.

Roll is good for Hamlin, but pick-and-roll is not

With the exception of his Nationwide win at Richmond International Raceway last Friday, Denny Hamlin would have appreciated a mulligan for the past week.

The former Chesterfield resident had his chance at an RIR double Nationwide and Sprint Cup victories slip through his hands when a tire deflated during the Dan Lowry 400 last Saturday.

Then earlier this week he injured his hip playing basketball. "It's a lot better," said Hamlin, who posted a track-record speed of 179.651 during the final Cup practice session but qualified 21st with a speed of 176.638. "At least I'm able to sleep on it now."

But he might have a hard time sleeping on the fact that he blew a chance to capture the Nationwide pole when he took an aggressive line during qualifying. In fact, he failed to earn a spot in last night's Diamond Hill Plywood 200.

Biffle touts Darlington to be a Chase race

Like a few other drivers, Biffle would rather Darlington Raceway be included in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Some consider Darlington to be a far greater test of a driver's skill, whereas luck factors heavily at Talladega because of the inevitable wrecks that sometimes take out a number of contenders.

"Oh yeah, I think a lot of the fans and drivers would rather see a place like this in the Chase than a place like Talladega, where it's just throw the dice and see who ends up where and who ends up in a big wreck," Biffle said.

"This is about driving. Talladega is not about driving."

Bowyer's win came under the radar

Quick. Who won last week's race at Richmond International Raceway?

Time. Answer: Clint Bowyer

Bowyer is cool with it, though. The impact of his second career win was lost as the media focused mostly on the Kyle Busch-Dale Earnhardt Jr. dust-up.

"I know where the trophy went and I know where the money went," Bowyer quipped. "That is all I care about. You guys can write whatever you want."

-- Ralph N. Paulk