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 AVONDALE, Ariz. (AP) - Denny Hamlin quickly is going from virtual unknown to potential NASCAR Nextel Cup star. The driver, who turns 25 on Friday, grabbed his first Cup pole Saturday in only his sixth try, topping the field at Phoenix International Raceway with a lap of 134.173 mph and beating out a trio of contenders in the Chase for the championship.
Bunched behind Hamlin's No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet were series runner-up Jimmie Johnson, third-place Carl Edwards and fourth-place Greg Biffle. Series leader Tony Stewart, Hamlin's veteran teammate, who leads Johnson by 38 points, Edwards by 77 and Biffle by 122, qualified ninth for Sunday's Checker Auto Parts 500.
"It's happened so fast for me, it's definitely tough to have it all sink in," said Hamlin, who has three top-10 finishes in his five Cup starts and will run full time next season for Gibbs in both the Busch and Cup series. "But I'm just getting great cars every week."
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