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Rain Cancels Nextel Cup Qualifications At Watkins Glen

Watkins Glen, N. Y. ? Rain played havoc with the on-track schedule at Watkins Glen International on Friday afternoon and for the third time in the last four years, qualifications at the 2.45-mile road course were rained out.

As a result of the rainout, the starting field for Sunday?s Centurion Boats at The Glen was set based on owner points.

Jeff Gordon, a four-time winner at the Glen, inherits the pole position and he will be joined in the front row by Denny Hamlin.

Matt Kenseth will start third followed by Jeff Burton, Tony Stewart (a three-time Glen winner), Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer.

Said Gordon about his eighth pole position of the season, ?I keep trying to find reasons that payoff for leading the point standings, and it is moments like this when the payoff occurs.?

Prior to qualifications being cancelled, Gordon rode around the track in an official car. ?The track seemed to be dry but the windshield kept getting wet,? he commented. ?Parts of the track were dry and parts were dry.?

Gordon didn?t believe his car was capable of gaining the pole position but he thought he could have qualified in the top-five. ?Starting up front here is very important,? he said. ?We tested the car a few days ago at Road Atlanta and we raced it at Sonoma (Infineon Raceway).

But in our first few laps here, I felt lost, but we were able to make major adjustments toward the end. During tomorrow?s practice, every lap we make will be crucial to prepare for Sunday?s race.?

The point leader regards Sunday?s race as an opportunity to accumulate bonus points. ?The race will be about bonus points and trying to pump up our team.?

Hamlin indicated his car ran well in practice but wasn?t disappointed that qualifications were cancelled. ?We will take second, but I would liked to have seen what we could have done if qualifying had been held,? he said. ?I think we have a good car.?

Canadian road racer Ron Fellows will be in the 26th starting position as a substitute for Tony Raines in the DLP HDTV Chevrolet.

Patrick Carpentier, another Canadian, will make his Cup debut in the Valvoline Dodge that is usually driven by Scott Riggs. Carpentier was rewarded with the ride after his stellar performance in Montreal a week ago. ?Montreal was like a fairy tale for me, and everything worked out,? Carpentier said. ?Two weeks ago I didn?t have that much going for me.?

Road racer P. J. Jones will start the race in the 39th spot in the Burger King Toyota with Kenny Wallace holding down the 43rd and last starting position.

Past champions Terry Labonte, Dale Jarrett and Bill Elliott made the starting field as did Brian Vickers by virtue of winning a Cup race in 2006.

Failing to make the race were Klaus Graf, Ward Burton, A. J. Allmendinger, Brian Simo, Boris Said and Marcos Ambrose, who was gifted with an entry by Robby Gordon.

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