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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first pole position of the season today for the 2011 Daytona 500 that will be held at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. His time of 48.364 seconds was faster than all others who qualified. Jeff Gordon followed in the second position with a time of 48.396. Unlike other qualifying sessions, this qualifying session only decided the first and second position, while the others will be decided by the two Gatorade Duels held on February 17.
It was the third time that both first and second place car was from Hendrick Motorsports. Following his qualifying run, he said, "We had a great car today. I didn't really have a whole lot to do with it, just had to hold on the bottom as tight as I could and the power and the body and everything does all the work." He continued, "It obviously gives you a good idea that you've got a great car, but anyone can win the race. There's guys that qualified outside the top 20 that have got winning cars." Earnhardt started second in the race last year, and has won the race once, which was in 2004.
The race will be held at 13:00 EST on February 20, 2011. The race will be broadcast on Fox in the United States. It will also be broadcast on the radio station Motor Racing Network at 12:00 EST.

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NASCAR: Dale Earnhardt, Jr. earns 2011 Daytona 500 pole