Juan Pablo Montoya grabbed his second pole in as many weeks Saturday. The Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing driver will lead the field to the green flag for the Finger Lakes 335 at Watkins Glen International. Montoya, an accomplished road racer with seven wins in Formula 1, won at the Glen in 2010. His pole last week at Pocono translated to a disappointing 20th-place result.
Kyle Busch, who won at the Glen in '08, will start second. Row two is shared by Jimmie Johnson - still seeking his first win at Watkins Glen, one of five tracks he hasn't won on - and Brad Keselowski. Marcos Ambrose rounds out the top-five and will share the third row with Ryan Newman. Newman's teammate and car owner Tony Stewart - the Glen's all-time wins leader with five - will roll off seventh. Clint Bowyer, who won at Sonoma in June, starts from the eighth position as he seeks to become the first driver since Busch in '08 to sweep the road races.
Completing the top 10 are two drivers newly off the free agent market. Martin Truex Jr. will start ninth, with a longterm extension with Michael Waltrip Racing imminent. Jamie McMurray, meanwhile, celebrated his new contract with Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing with a tenth-place qualifying effort.
Jeff Gordon, a three-time Watkins Glen winner, will start 12th as he looks to continue the momentum from his win last week. Point leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. will roll off 16th.
David Ragan of Unadilla was 32nd in his No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford.
Only 43 cars attempted the race, meaning no drivers missed the show.