Gordon to open Eliminator Round in 13th, Johnson to start seventh

RIDGEWAY, Va. -- As his quest for a fifth championship continues, Jeff Gordon will start the first race of the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup from the 13th position.

He narrowly missed advancing to the second round of Friday's qualifying session.

"I thought that first lap would be enough to sneak our way in there and then we could make some adjustments," Gordon said. "But I don't mind starting 13th. It's not a bad place to start, you just want that really good pit stall. So we'll definitely suffer with the pit stall a little bit, but we can still win it from there. Our car's really good."

Jimmie Johnson was the only Hendrick Motorsports driver to advance to the top-12 round, and he will start Sunday's race in seventh. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne will start 23rd and 24th, respectively.

Below is a look at how all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers fared in Friday's qualifying session.

KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 GREAT CLIPS CHEVROLET SS
Qualified: 24th
Best speed: 98.282 mph
Best time: 19.267 sec.
Average start at Martinsville: 19.2

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS
Qualified: 13th
Best speed: 98.841 mph
Best time: 19.158 sec.
Average start at Martinsville: 7.2

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS
Qualified: 7th
Best speed: 99.230 mph
Best time: 19.083 sec.
Average start at Martinsville: 10.7

DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS
Qualified: 23rd
Best speed: 98.333 mph
Best time: 19.257 sec.
Average start at Martinsville: 14.2