Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’s Toyota, poses in Victory Lane after setting the track record after qualifying for the pole position the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee, Friday. — AFP

BRISTOL, Tennessee — Kyle Busch won his first career pole at Bristol Motor Speedway with a track record qualifying lap Friday.



Busch turned a lap at 129.535 mph (208.46 kph) in his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to take the top starting spot for Sunday’s NASCAR race. It beat the record of 128.709 set by Ryan Newman in 2003, which had been the first sub-15 second lap at Bristol.



Busch’s lap was 14.813 seconds, besting Newman’s lap of 14.908.



“This new car, I like driving it because you can drive it like the older car we had years ago where you could just abuse it a little bit and drive it a little harder,” Busch said. “The old car was all about being smooth and precise and this one here, you can make a little bit more speed by trying a little bit harder.”



Busch, a five-time Bristol winner, had never previously qualified here higher than ninth.



Kasey Kahne qualified second in a Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports with a lap at 128.995, and Busch’s teammate Denny Hamlin was third at 128.960.



“I think we’re going to see one of the best races we’ve ever seen in a long time here,” Hamlin.



That’s an about-face for Hamlin, who was fined $25,000 by NASCAR for criticizing the new Gen-6 car. He’s refusing to pay, but said he won’t appeal the penalty and NASCAR will collect the money from his race winnings.



Brian Vickers was fourth in a Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing and Paul Menard was fifth in a Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.



Defending series champion Brad Keselowski was the highest qualifying Ford driver in seventh. — AP