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Newman knocks Gordon off Martinsville 500 pole

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Rookie Ryan Newman succeeded where 34 drivers before him failed, posting a lap of 92.837 mph to knock Jeff Gordon off the pole for the Martinsville 500.

Newman had the fastest car in practice Friday, and he wasn't about to slow down in qualifying after watching Gordon's lap of 92.733 stand for a while.

The pole is the fourth of the season for Newman, tying him with fellow rookie Jimmie Johnson and veteran Bill Elliott for the Winston Cup series lead.

The qualifying runs were the first competitive laps on the .526-mile oval since the track had the lower groove in the turns ground down to have some bumps removed.

Also, Steve Grissom will replace Jerry Nadeau in Petty Enterprises' No. 44 car after Nadeau injured his ribs in a go-kart race late Thursday night.

SAM'S TOWN 250: Points leader Greg Biffle won his fourth pole this season with a lap of 116.817 mph in qualifying for the Busch race in Memphis.

Biffle bumped Randy LaJoie, who won here last year, off the pole as he turned the .75-mile oval in 23.113 seconds in his Ford.

AMERICANS IN F1: Paul Edwards, Grant Maiman, Joel Nelson and Scott Speed earned fully funded rides in Europe for next year as part of a new program designed to get Americans into Formula One. The four were chosen by a panel of racing experts.

ROAD TO CHINA: Formula One will race in China for the first time in 2004. The circuit has a seven-year deal to hold a grand prix race at a new $244-million track in Shanghai, the sport's governing body said.

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