N'Wide: Edwards on Lowe's pole

Carl Edwards posted a lap of 183.175 mph to sit on the Nationwide Carquest Auto Parts 300 pole. His closest rival in the points, Kyle Busch qualified second, but will have to drop to the back of the pack Saturday night because of an engine change.

Our View: Starting up front in a 300-mile race is very important, so Edwards has to be considered a threat. Busch cannot be discounted, however, since that kid can work traffic better than almost any other driver in the field.