Texas race delayed by rain

The Duck Commander 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway near Fort Worth was originally scheduled to take the green flag shortly after 3 p.m. ET, but those plans were halted by rain. As track-drying efforts got underway, NASCAR and track officials targeted a 4:30 p.m. ET start, but rain also dampened those plans.

Track drying continues, as NASCAR and TMS officials haven't given up hope on getting the race in on Sunday. Texas is equipped with track lighting, making a night race possible, if the weather cooperates. Among track drying efforts has been the use of three original Air Titan vehicles, as well as five newer Air Titans that, according to NASCAR, cut drying time by 80 percent.

When the race does get underway, Tony Stewart will start from the pole for the first time in Sprint Cup cpetition since 2012. Stewart is a two-time winner at Texas. He'll be joined on the front row by Brad Keselowski, who has started on the front row five of the last six races.

"I’m not normally a qualifier, but our first round we were 16th and I didn’t think I ran a very strong lap," Stewart said. "So, I felt like I could do better the second round and we were second quick after that. The third round it was just a matter of waiting until the end trying to let the tires cool off as much as we could. Got out and had a really good lap."

Stewart's Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kevin Harvick also has a fast car. Before claiming the third starting spot, Harvick posted the fastest lap, ever, during a NASCAR qualifying session at a mile-and-a-half track with a speed of 198.282 mph.

Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards ate the winningest drivers at TMS among active drivers, each with three wins. Edwards will start the race from the fifth spot, while Johnson starts outside the top-10 in 16th.

"The track has been great for us and winning the pole there last year was a blast," Edwards said. "We are headed back there in our Fastenal Ford with winning as our only goal."

The six races, so far in 2014, leading up to the Texas race have produced six different winners. Edwards is among those six winners. Johnson, though, is still seeking his first win of the season.

Kyle Bush, the winner of last year's race at Texas, will start in the back half of the field, starting 29th.

Kurt Busch, last week's race winner at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, brother of Kyle Busch and teammate to Harvick and Stewart, will start just outside the top-10 in 11th.

"The adrenaline of winning and accomplishing something special as a team carries over, but Martinsville is a half-mile track that is very different from the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway," Busch said. "The way we struggled at Las Vegas earlier this year, we know that we definitely need to rebound on the 1.5-mile tracks. We need to use this adrenaline and momentum from Martinsville last week to help us at Texas."