Gordon, Nemechek Earn Top-10 Starts at LMS

CONCORD, N.C. (May 23, 2003) – Jeff Gordon and Joe Nemechek led Hendrick Motorsports as the NASCAR Winston Cup Series qualified at Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Friday. Gordon, driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, will start fourth in Sunday’s 600-mile event after posting a lap of 29.350 seconds and 183.986 mph, while Nemechek will line up seventh in the No. 25 UAW-Delphi Chevy. Jimmie Johnson and Team Lowe’s Racing took a provisional after a failed crankshaft derailed the team’s qualifying attempt. He will line up 37th on the grid in the No. 48 Chevrolet. Two-time Winston Cup champion Terry Labonte fought handling problems during time trials and will start behind Johnson in 39th overall. At 185.312 mph, Ryan Newman earned the Lowe’s Motor Speedway pole position after posting the fourth-quickest time in Friday’s qualifying practice. With a lap of 185.688 mph, Johnson was more than 1 mph quicker than the field in the practice session, with Gordon eighth, Nemechek 13th and Labonte 17th. The final Winston Cup “Happy Hour” practice is scheduled for Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m. EDT.