Vickers grabs LifeLock pole

It'll be an energetic front row for Saturday's LifeLock.com 400 at Joliet's Chicagoland Speedway.

Brian Vickers earned the pole for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race with Thursday's blistering lap time of 29.322 seconds. Red Bull Racing teammate Scott Speed, who had to qualify on speed to make the race, surprised the field by posting the second-fastest time.

It's Vickers' fifth pole of the season, a feat he's achieved on four different configurations of track. It's his first pole in five races at Chicagoland Speedway, where he boasts two top-five finishes.

"It was an amazing lap, I didn't expect it to be that quick," said Vickers, who's vying for his second career Sprint Cup win. "I knew that we had a really good car and it was just up to me to mess up or finish the job. One or the other."

Speed, one of the Sprint Cup's top rookie drivers, matched his previous best qualifying attempt from last year's Homestead race.

"We got a great draw, obviously, being able to go out at night," Speed said. "Brian's lap that he did was incredible. I didn't really think that we had a shot to beat that, but I knew we had a shot to be at the front. But we also have to make the race. You've got to be smart about it."

Jimmie Johnson posted the third-fastest qualifying time. He'll be on the second row with Denny Hamlin.

No comment no more: Kyle Busch ­- last year's winner of the Nationwide and Sprint Cup events at Chicagoland Speedway - declined to comment immediately following last week's race at Daytona. He was leading the final lap until he wrecked because of contact with race-winner Tony Stewart, who was in second place as Busch unsuccessfully tried to block him.

Busch spoke Thursday about the incident that cost him a shot at his fourth win of the season and led to other cars slamming into his as they jumbled toward the finish line.

"I got bumped from behind off of turn four, which kind of sent me low a little bit," he said. "Gathered myself and tried to block high, and was too late. Tony was already alongside.

"I did everything I could to win the race, and didn't," he said. "It was a racing wreck that seems to happen now more often than not at Daytona and Talladega on the last lap. It is what it is."

Busch said he spoke with Stewart earlier this week and thanked his former teammate for "checking on me to see if I was alive." Busch, however, added that he felt a stiff penalty should be assessed to anyone who "dumps" a leader that late in a race.

"I think NASCAR can take a step in looking at it, and if the second-place driver dumps - quote unquote - the leader, then black flag (him)," he said. "He doesn't get the win. If he's on him from behind and moves him out of the way and there's no wreck, then fine. He can win the race. But if you're up alongside a guy and you dump him, then I say black flag him and give the win to the third-place guy."

Asked if last week's incident would qualify for such a penalty, Busch didn't hesitate.

"It would be considered a dump," he said.

Other drivers - including Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne and Busch's older brother, Kurt - disagreed and defended Stewart's role as just a part of restrictor plate racing.

"It was a long ways from a dump in my mind," Kahne said. "I'd say they were both battling for the win. It's Daytona, Talladega, those kinds of tracks you do that stuff. Tony did a great job to get to Kyle's outside."

Stewart, meanwhile, left it in the past.

"Yes, I talked to Kyle this week and we talked for about 30 minutes on the phone," he said. "I was very pleased with the conversation that we had. That's all that I've got on the Kyle Busch topic and Daytona. Last week was fun but we're on to Chicago this week."

Time flies: Last year at Chicagoland Speedway, Stewart announced he was leaving Joe Gibbs Racing to start his own team. Currently sitting atop the point standings, the two-time winner at Joliet couldn't be happier about his situation midway through his first season as owner of Stewart-Haas Racing.

"This was a big weekend for us a year ago," he said. "I don't think any of us would have predicted a year from then that we were going to be here leading the point standings and have three wins this season. It's been a long year, but one that's been very gratifying and a lot of fun at the same time."

Junior on Junior: Returning to the track for the first time since being removed as Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s crew chief in May, Tony Eury, Jr. met the press Thursday as the new crew chief for another Hendrick Motorsports driver, Brad Keselowski.

Eury, Jr. offered thoughts on his return, but most of the talk focused on his relationship with Earnhardt, Jr., NASCAR's most popular driver and Eury, Jr.'s cousin.

"We sent a couple of texts that first weekend, and we talked on the phone," Eury, Jr. said. "It was kind of emotional for both of us. In no way, shape or form am I going to let this sport get in between me and Dale Jr. That's the biggest thing."

Earnhardt, Jr. is enduring a miserable season. Mired in the 21st position in points, it's unlikely he'll make the Race to the Chase as a top-12 driver.

What does Eury, Jr. feel went wrong? Pressure, high expectations and intense media scrutiny played a role, he believes.

"A lot of people put him on a pedestal that he doesn't need to be on," he said. "It put a lot of pressure on him to be someone he's not going to be. Dale Jr.'s a great race car driver. But I just think he's got so much pressure on him that he doesn't enjoy it right now."