This has been a trying season for Tony Kanaan.

He seemingly had the Indianapolis 500 within his grasp before Andretti Green Racing teammate Marco Andretti forced him to lose control of his Honda-Dallara, ruining an otherwise perfect day.

Then, last week in Iowa, he was bounced early after a near-flawless start in which he led 71 laps.

That was enough for the "old man" to pull the young AGR troops together for a roundtable discussion.

"We've had an up-and-down season, and people have tried to tear our team apart," Kanaan said. "People are trying to say we have problems within the team, which we don't have anymore. We put the dots where they have to be, and we're working well together."

And they worked perfectly together during the final stages of qualifying for tonight's eighth running of the SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond International Raceway.

Kanaan, with the racetrack cooling and gripping better in the corners, capitalized on the setup adjustments of Andretti to snatch the pole from Scott Dixon, who appeared to have his sixth pole of the IndyCar Series season stashed away until Kanaan and Andretti bumped him onto the second row alongside rookie Graham Rahal.

Kanaan captured the 10th pole of his career with an average four-lap speed of 167.876 mph. Kanaan turned four solid laps to earn his position on the front row.

"I think it's an advantage grip-wise when the track cooled, but it was pure luck," Kanaan said. "I think I deserve a little luck.

"We had to balance the car off for the race. I got an advantage going last. If I could choose a place to start first, it would be here."

Andretti will start on the outside of Row 1 after posting a second-best qualifying speed of 167.795. Rahal was third at 167.250, and Dixon, a three-time winner this season, was fourth at 167.120 .

Kanaan and Dixon both agreed that starting out front will figure significantly in setting the tune for the 300-lap race, which has been extended 50 laps.

"It's going to help, but only for a while," said Kanaan, who started second last year at RIR. "I have a head start, but that doesn't mean anything."

Dixon, the 2003 winner here, said it won't be where you start, but how you endure a crowded field of 26 cars.

"It's going to be a race of attrition," Dixon said. "You have to be consistent and stay out of trouble. You have to think twice when you're passing someone out there. It's going to be a hell of a race, especially with [50] extra laps."