Vickers follows top practice run with pole at Michigan

It didn't take Brian Vickers long to realize that his No. 83 Toyota was a potential pole winner.

By the second lap of Sprint Cup practice Friday at Michigan International Speedway, Vickers knew he had something special. Later that afternoon, Vickers put his Camry on the pole position for Sunday's 3M Performance 400 at the 2-mile track.

3M Performance 400
Race Lineup

Pos. Driver Speed Time

1. B. Vickers 188.536 38.189
2. J. Johnson 187.028 38.497
3. E. Sadler 186.577 38.590
4. Dale Jr. 186.321 38.643
5. J. Gordon 186.032 38.703
6. P. Carpentier 185.979 38.714
7. D. Reutimann 185.907 38.729
8. R. Smith 185.874 38.736
9. G. Biffle 185.821 38.747
10. S. Riggs 185.821 38.747

• Lineup | Videos | Photos"We tried some things during practice that didn't work at all,'' Vickers said. "So we went back to where we were and I think that's one of the best qualifying cars I've ever had. It was a heck of a lap.

"Sometimes you just hit it. You don't know why.''

Vickers turned a lap in 38.189 seconds (188.536 mph) to knock Jimmie Johnson off the top spot late in the Friday's session and secure the first pole for Red Bull Racing (watch video), which made its debut in Cup racing last year.

"It was there from the first lap, the first turn,'' said Vickers, who won his fifth career pole and his first since leaving Hendrick Motorsports at the end of the 2006 season.

"Some days, some weeks you just hit it -- and we hit it," Vickers said. "We wish we knew what caused that, because you'd do that every week. Obviously, we've come a long way since last year."

Last season was mostly a struggle for Vickers, who finished 38th in the standings. But the 24-year-old, who raced to fourth here in June -- one of three top-fives this season -- has made big strides this year and is a solid 17th in the standings.

"I'm very proud of everybody at Red Bull Racing and Toyota,'' he said. "We've come a long way since last year.

Johnson (187.028 mph) will start on the outside of the front row (watch video).

"We picked up speed from practice, but I just knew inside the car that it wasn't the perfect lap," Johnson said. "It was way tighter than it needed to be. I was shocked when they told me the lap time."

Johnson's lap was more than three-tenths of a second slower than Vickers.

"And I think, for that [Red Bull] team and Brian, this has been a track that fits their style. He'll be ever more of a threat come race time," Johnson said.

"That's a great team,'' Vickers said of Johnson and his No. 48 Hendrick Chevrolet. "It's the team to beat in our sport for the last several years.''

And the fast lap by Vickers wasn't a fluke. He was also fastest in the 90-minute practice earlier Friday (speeds).

"To lay that lap down in practice and back it up in qualifying, that's a really good feeling,'' the youngster said. "Really unbelievable. I wish we could take that and apply it to every week. But it's not that easy.

"But anytime you can see progress, feel progress, patience comes easier.

Elliott Sadler (186.577 mph) will start third in Sunday's race, followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. (186.321 mph) and Jeff Gordon (186.032 mph), as Hendrick Motorsports drivers claimed three of the top-five spots on the grid.

Patrick Carpentier, David Reutimann, Regan Smith, Greg Biffle and Scott Riggs will start from the sixth through 10th positions, respectively, on Sunday.

Notes: Brad Coleman, who will make his Cup debut on Sunday, was the last car to make the race on speed. Coleman has replaced J.J. Yeley in the No. 96 Hall of Fame Racing Toyota. ... Of 44 drivers competing for 43 starting spots, Johnny Sauter was the odd man out. Sauter's No. 08 Dodge was more than .2 seconds slower than Coleman's Camry. ... Terry Labonte didn't need his past champion's provisional to get into the field. He'll start 17th in the No. 45 Petty Enterprises Dodge, 18 positions ahead of his brother, Bobby Labonte, who drives the No. 43 Petty car. In a nine-car pileup last week at Watkins Glen, Bobby Labonte took one of the hardest hits of his career. ... Matt Kenseth, trying to protect 12th position on the Cup standings, starts 14th. Clint Bowyer, 13th in points, will have to rally from the 41st starting position.