Kahne comes on late to take Busch race pole

Kasey Kahne made the most of his late spot in the qualifying order Friday.

Nearly an hour after defending Busch Series champ Martin Truex Jr. sped to the top, Kahne drove his Dodge to a record lap of 186.735 mph to win the pole for the Carquest 300 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.

Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards went out after Kahne and pushed Truex to fourth, with Paul Menard rounding out the top five.

In all, 13 of the 50 drivers attempting to qualify beat the previous mark for the developmental series, set two years ago by Kevin Harvick at 184.445.

Each of the other NASCAR divisions racing at the track over the past week set speed records, as well, thanks to grinding work done in all four turns to make the surface smoother.

Kahne is one of 17 Nextel Cup regulars in the field for today’s Busch race, with another, Scott Riggs, failing to qualify.

Gordon donates $1 million

Jeff Gordon donated $1 million for a children’s hospital at Northeast Medical Center in Concord, N.C., that will be named in his honor.

The estimated $9.4 million hospital will be more than 26,000 square feet and have a 24-bed pediatric unit and five beds in a pediatric intensive care unit. It is expected to open in December 2006.

Earnhardt tries new chief

In the 11 Nextel Cup races this year, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has led a grand total of five laps. That’s quite a letdown for one of NASCAR’s top drivers and one who appeared primed to win his first points title in the series.

So Junior and Dale Earnhardt Inc. took a mulligan earlier this week, naming Steve Hmiel as the interim crew chief for the No. 8 car.

Hmiel, previously Earnhardt’s spotter, will debut in his new position this weekend as Earnhardt tries to get his first win of the season in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Sunday.

Lazier crashes in practice

Buddy Lazier’s final practice for the Indianapolis 500 was over before it began.

The former winner was still getting up to speed when his car went into the outside wall in the fourth turn. He slid along the main straightaway and stopped near the scoring pylon. He was not injured.

The No. 95 Panther Racing car had heavy damage to the right side, and if it cannot be repaired, Lazier would have to start Sunday’s race from the rear of the 33-car field in his backup car.

The other 32 drivers completed the one-hour Carburetion Day practice, their final time on the track before the race.

Rookie Danica Patrick, who will start fourth on Sunday, was the fastest at 225.597 mph.