Benson said he was disappointed with the speed but says it doesn't reflect on how the Valvoline Pontiac will race on Sunday.

"Qualifying really doesn't matter much here," Benson said. "We can be up at the front of the pack pretty quickly on Sunday if the car is good. Tomorrow we get to see what the new restrictor plate and shock rules will do and that will give us a better indication of where we are. Racing and qualifying are two different deals at this place."

Benson practiced at 186.787 mph and qualified at 186.33 MPH.  Elliott Sadler won the pole. Several regular cars missed the race including Todd Bodine, Steve Park, and Kyle Petty. Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s time was disallowed because his rear quarter panel was too low and failed post-qualifying inspection.

Benson and his teammates will practice 10:30-11:15 a.m. and 12:10-12:55 Eastern time on Saturday.

Starting Lineup

1. E. Sadler

2. McMurray

3. Johnson

4. Marlin

5. Gordon

6. Jarrett

7. Schrader

8. Mears

9. Elliott

10. Labonte

11. Stewart

12. Newman

13. Green

14. T. Labonte

15. Martin

16. Jones

17. Craven

18. Waltrip

19. K. Wallace

20. W. Burton

21. D. Green

22. Mayfield

23. M. Wallace

24. Andretti

25. J. Jarrett

26. Fittipaldi

27. Nemechek

28. Skinner

29. Raines

30. Harvick

31. Spencer

32. Keller

33. Rudd

34. R. Wallace

35. R. Gordon

36. Foyt

37. Kenseth

38. Earnhardt

39. Busch

40. J. Burton

41. Biffle

42. Benson

43. Blaney

Missed Race

Petty

Lepage

Leffler

Bliss

Steve Park

Bodine