Craven Qualifies First

Ricky Craven made it all the way back from Talledega, and he made the trip in record time with a home crowd waiting to welcome him.

“This is a perfect homecoming,” he said after winning the pole for Sunday’s Jiffy Lube 300 Winston Cup at the New Hampshire International Speedway. Craven began racing in Maine, and lived for a time in Concord, N.H., just down the road from the track.

His run of 129.379 mph over the 1.058-mile oval beat Mark Martin’s record of 128.815, set last year.

No one came close to him Friday with Bobby Hamilton his nearest challenger at 128.806 mph.