Kyle Busch takes first career pole at Martinsville, Denny Hamlin also on front row - MotorSportsTalk

It will be a Joe Gibbs Racing front row to start Sunday’s STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

And while Denny Hamlin – who broke the track’s speed and one-lap elapsed time records earlier in the day in practice – is one of those two JGR drivers on the front row, it will not be on the pole.

Last week’s race winner at California, Kyle Busch, continued his momentum by winning the pole for the first time in his career at the .526-mile bullring in southern Virginia.

“What do you know? It’s Martinsville and we get to start on the pole, so it’s pretty cool,” Busch said. “There’s always a first for everything, I guess. This is pretty neat.

“Short tracks, our cars have already been great. … It’s fun to start up front. It makes things a lot easier, that’s for sure.”

It was Busch’s first pole since at Daytona last July.

Busch is still seeking his first career Sprint Cup win at Martinsville.

Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon lead all active drivers in Martinsville wins with eight apiece.

Conversely, Hamlin was going for his fourth career pole at Martinsville, where he is a four-time winner.

“We were just too loose really in both runs,” Hamlin said. “I felt like the track was a little green when we went out the first time and maybe used up a little bit more tire.

“Overall, it’s still a solid day for us. Second starting spot is going to give us a good pit stall, which is important here. We’re pretty pleased with how our weekend started.”

Hamlin is hoping to tweak the balance on his car a bit during Saturday’s final practice, but weather could be an impediment. Showers are predicted for part of Saturday, especially in the morning, which is also when the final Sprint Cup practice is scheduled.

“Tomorrow’s going to be frantic,” Hamlin said of Saturday’s practice and the prospect of rain. “Hopefully, we get it in.”

Still, even though he will start second, Hamlin likes his overall package nonetheless.

“It’s got good speed,” Hamlin said of his No. 11 FedEx Toyota. “(Saturday) our main focus will be keeping the tires on it as long as we can without giving up too much center turn. It’s a tough balance.”

Joey Logano qualified third, followed by eight-time Martinsville winners Jimmie Johnson (fourth) and Jeff Gordon (fifth), followed by Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart, current Sprint Cup points leader Carl Edwards in eighth and Jamie McMurray.

Also of note was the performance of Danica Patrick, who earned her career-best Sprint Cup starting spot on a non-restrictor plate track.

Patrick qualified a solid 10th at Martinsville, her second career top-10 starting spot. She sat on the pole in the 2013 Daytona 500, a restrictor plate track.

Here’s how the field for Sunday’s STP 500 stacks up at Martinsville Speedway:

1 Kyle Busch 99.674 mph

2 Denny Hamlin 99.548

3 Joey Logano 99.428

4 Jimmie Johnson 99.178

5 Jeff Gordon 99.048

6 Matt Kenseth 99.048

7 Tony Stewart 98.883

8 Carl Edwards 98.846

9 Jamie McMurray 98.625

10 Danica Patrick 98.165

11 Greg Biffle 97.764

12 Clint Bowyer 97.382

13 Brian Vickers 98.965

14 Brad Keselowski 98.929

15 AJ Allmendinger 98.888

16 Ryan Newman 98.877

17 Marcos Ambrose 98.712

18 Kevin Harvick 98.708

19 Alex Bowman 98.661

20 Aric Almirola 98.625

21 Paul Menard 98.610

22 Kurt Busch 98.610

23 Casey Mears 98.599

24 David Ragan 98.599

25 Justin Allgaier 98.430

26 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 98.379

27 Kasey Kahne 98.359

28 Kyle Larson 98.333

29 Travis Kvapil 98.246

30 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 98.206

31 Martin Truex Jr. 98.200

32 Michael McDowell 98.002

33 Josh Wise 97.957

34 Austin Dillon 97.886

35 Cole Whitt 97.802

36 Landon Cassill 97.759

37 David Stremme 97.684

38 Ryan Truex 97.598

39 David Gilliland 97.458

40 Michael Annett 97.217

41 Parker Kligerman 97.078

42 Reed Sorenson 97.053

43 Joe Nemechek 96.332

Failed to qualify: David Reutimann

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Vicki Golden has earned a career worthy of a thousand stories and 805 Beer tells at least one of them, as “Inverted Perspective” premiered March 30 on the company’s website and YouTube channel.

Golden did more to break the glass ceiling in SuperMotocross than she ever thought possible. She knows this because riders have never felt the need to explain any of her accomplishments with the disclaimer, “for a girl”.

At this point in Golden’s career, she’s been the first woman to finish top 10 in AMA Arenacross Lites, the first woman to qualify in the Fast 40 in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the first woman to compete in freestyle Moto X competition, earning a bronze medal by doing so.

Her love for moto came from childhood while she watched her dad and brother ride. By seven she was on her bike and making waves throughout Southern California.

Golden, 30, is still madly in love with the sport and has no plans on moving away but her career is already one to talk about. 805 Beer’s film series wanted to do exactly that.

“I’m taken aback by it all,” Golden told NBC Sports about the documentary. “It’s just crazy to see your story, it’s one thing to live your life and battle everything that comes about but it’s another to just sit there and talk about it.”

805 approached Golden about the feature by asking, “Do you even realize that what you do, and your story is special?”

Golden took the question as a blank canvas to map out the highs and lows of her career and life.

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The title “Inverted Perspective” came from a brainstorming session with Dominick Russo and it highlights Golden’s outlook on the sport of SuperMotocross and her life in general.

“My whole life, my whole career was thinking differently and looking at things that shouldn’t be done and aren’t there, while being able to make a place for myself, where no one thought there should be a place,” Golden said. “It’s inspiring someone to think in different ways. It sums up my life.”

*Vicki Golden is not “fast for a girl”; she’s just fast. – 805 Beer*

While Golden is no stranger to the spotlight, this was the first time she’s been fully involved with the storytelling and creation of a feature about herself.

“It’s not like a full new experience,” Golden said. “Obviously, you get your standard questions about your upbringing and accomplishments, but I’ve never really put into perspective things that happened in my past with my dad and putting that to light. Also, certain other things that maybe got overlooked in previous interviews or films. I wanted to touch on these and Dom wanted to create a story. It’s just cool to see it come to light, it’s a nearly impossible thing to tell somebody’s life story in 40 minutes.”

Golden’s father was left paralyzed after an ATV accident, robbing him the opportunity to ride again. This happened a few months before the father-daughter duo was set to compete in the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Nationals when Vicki was 12. While she might have been unable to grasp the severity at the time, it’s something she carries with her. Golden continues to ride in his honor.

Years later, an accident in 2018 nearly sidelined the then 25-year-old Vicki when a freestyle accident almost resulted in the amputation of her lower leg.

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Golden 805 Beer — *Vicki Golden has ridden a variety of disciplines in SuperMotocross, which gives her a unique perspective. – 805 Beer*

“Inverted Perspective” highlights her father’s diligence in helping Vicki continue with her career and the kindness and strength he carried while fighting his own battle.

“My dad was the entire reason that I started riding in the first place,” Golden said. “So, to honor his memory and to honor what we went through and how hard he pushed to keep our dream alive and keep everything going – in that sense then, it was really special to be able to honor him and talk about him.”

The 40-minute feature was filmed entirely in black and white, a stark contrast from the oversaturated world of motocross where the brighter the suit the easier it is for fans to find their rider and follow him in the race. By filming in monochrome Russo and Golden had the chance to focus on the race and track from a different perspective.

“It was cool to be able to film it differently,” Golden said. “It created a challenge in the sense of what was going to be more visually impactful for the film.

“I couldn’t be here without the companies that back me but at the same time, it’s not like the logos or colors disappeared, it’s just different lights shed on different spots. It’s just a cool way to do it and to take color away and still be impactful. When you think of black and white, you think of old school, the OG way of doing things.”

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