Scott Dixon earned his eighth career AAMCO Transmissions Pole Award, winning the top spot for Saturday’s Firestone Indy 200 at Nashville Superspeedway.
The Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver lapped the 1.3-mile, concrete oval in 22.8947 seconds, 204.414 mph in his No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Honda-powered Dallara.
Andretti Green Racing’s Dario Franchitti, who holds a 47-point lead over Dixon in the standings, will start second. Franchitti’s best qualifying lap was 22.9555 seconds, 203.873 mph.
Tony Kanaan and Sam Hornish Jr., whose post-race confrontation July 8 at Watkins Glen led to a scuffle in pit lane, will start side-by-side in Row 2.
Dan Wheldon and Helio Castroneves comprise Row 3, while Danica Patrick, Marco Andretti, Jeff Simmons and Scott Sharp round out the top 10.
Also on Friday, Alex Lloyd won the SWE Pole Award for Saturday’s Sunbelt Rentals 100 Indy Pro Series event at Nashville. Lloyd earned his third career pole with a quick lap of 25.7368 seconds, 181.841 mph. Lloyd, who shares the series record for victories in a season, will compete for his eighth win of the year. Wade Cunningham will start second while Robbie Pecorari, Hideki Mutoh and Sean Guthrie round out the top five
Scott Dixon (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Dallara/Honda/Firestone, AAMCO Transmissions Pole Award winner): “We had to wait a little longer than we thought we would, but the car has been fast all weekend. It’s good for what we need. We need to put the pressure on the AGR (Andretti Green Racing) guys anytime we can, leading sessions and leading qualifying. Hopefully, we have a good car in the race tomorrow. It’s going to be tough to hold on. We’re going to just have to see. It’s going to be a good race tomorrow. It’s been very difficult to pass, tougher than we’ve had in the past, so we’ll have to see how that plays out. Once it cools off at night time, it might open up the second groove and give people the opportunity to pass. ”
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