Labonte Qualifies 27th for EA Sports 500 at Talladega

TALLADEGA, Ala., Friday, Oct. 1, 2004 – Bobby Labonte qualified 27th during Bud Pole Qualifying Oct. 1 at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Ala.

Labonte turned a lap of 50.799 seconds, 188.508 mph in the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet. Labonte picked up .2 of a second from his fastest practice time.

“That wasn’t the pick-up we wanted,” Labonte said. “We would have liked to have picked up a little bit more. But, we’ll get out and practice tomorrow and see what we’ve got. That’s more important than qualifying right now.”

Labonte will start on the inside of Row 14 next to veteran Ward Burton. Labonte’s teammate, Tony Stewart, qualified 30th in The Home Depot Chevrolet with a lap of 50.826, 188.408. Ricky Craven qualified 20th a third JGR entry. Craven qualified the No. 11 Old Spice Chevrolet at 50.672, 188.980.

The EA Sports 500 will start at 2:30 p.m. (EDT) Oct. 3 and be broadcast live on NBC and MRN.