Talladega Qualifying Report

No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge
October 4, 2008
2.66-mile Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway

QUALIFYING RESULTS:
1. Travis Kvapil, Ford
2. Casey Mears, Chevrolet
3. Aric Almirola, Chevrolet
4. Regan Smith, Chevrolet
5. Paul Menard, Chevrolet
23. Terry Labonte, No. 45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodge
32. Bobby Labonte, No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge

Travis Kvapil picked up his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pole during Saturday’s time trials for Sunday’s 500-mile race at the Talladega Superspeedway. Casey Mears will start alongside. None of the 12 contenders for the “Chase for the Sprint Cup” qualified inside the top-10 positions.

Bobby Labonte and the No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge team qualified 32nd on Saturday. B. Labonte was 13th fastest in Friday’s first practice session. He picked that up to third-fastest in final practice. B. Labonte and crew chief Jeff Meendering like the way the car drafts and that is the name of the game when the green flag falls on Sunday.

“We definitely thought we would qualify a little higher based on how our car ran on Friday,” sounded B. Labonte. “The Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge is really good in the draft, especially if I have the right cars around me. The goal, though, is to be in position at the end of the race. You have to keep your car clean for 450 miles so you can do what you need to do at the end.”

Sunday’s race will be televised live on ABC. It will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and Sirius Channel 128. Pre-race coverage is scheduled to begin at 12:00 PM.