Will Power took his second pole position of the IndyCar season as Penske continued to dominate at Edmonton.
The Australian snatched first place away from his teammate and compatriot Ryan Briscoe late in the final Fast Six qualifying segment, with Helio Castroneves following them to complete an all-Penske top three.
The team had already been fastest in all three practice sessions, and looks to be in great shape to close back in on the Ganassi drivers in the championship -- and to make up for last year's late defeat by Scott Dixon at Edmonton, when the eventual champion jumped the otherwise dominant Castroneves and Briscoe at the final stop.s
Dixon briefly got among the Penske trio before being edged back to fourth, while his Ganassi teammate Dario Franchitti made gains after a low-key time in practice and ended up sixth, behind Newman/Haas/Lanigan's Grahama Rahal.
Having been fast in practice and quickest of all in his round one qualifying group, Paul Tracy looked like he might pull off a shock top three result. But a spin early in round two and an error on his final lap of the segment left him ninth on the grid -- still his best starting position in the series. His KV Racing teammate Mario Moraes took seventh, ahead of top rookie Raphael Matos (Luczo Dragon).
12th-placed Hideki Mutoh was the only one of the struggling Andretti Green quartet who made it through to round two of qualifying. The currently drive-less Oriol Servia has joined the team in a coaching capacity this weekend, but had to watch Tony Kanaan, Marco Andretti and Danica Patrick take 13th, 18th and 20th places.
Watkins Glen winner Justin Wilson (Dale Coyne Racing) was a surprise early elimination and will start 15th. There was disappointment for Alex Tagliani, too, as the Conquest driver remained unhappy with his setup and could only manage 17th in the car that carries the Edmonton event's colors.
After his big crash in second practice, Panther's Dan Wheldon will start back in 22nd, behind the equally disappointed Ryan Hunter-Reay (Foyt), but there was encouragement for Richard Antinucci as he claimed 19th on the grid for what is currently his last confirmed appeareance for 3G.
TIMES:Pos Driver Team Time
1. Will Power Penske 1m01.0133s
2. Ryan Briscoe Penske 1m01.1232s
3. Helio Castroneves Penske 1m01.2033s
4. Scott Dixon Ganassi 1m01.2046s
5. Graham Rahal Newman/Haas/Lanigan 1m01.6952s
6. Dario Franchitti Ganassi 1m01.8344s
7. Mario Moraes KV 1m01.5337s
8. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon 1m01.5685s
9. Paul Tracy KV 1m01.6768s
10. Robert Doornbos Newman/Haas/Lanigan 1m01.6844s
11. Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold 1m01.9064s
12. Hideki Mutoh Andretti Green 1m02.1678s
13. Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 1m02.2723s
14. EJ Viso HVM 1m02.4240s
15. Justin Wilson Coyne 1m02.4009s
16. Tomas Scheckter Dreyer & Reinbold 1m02.4280s
17. Alex Tagliani Conquest 1m02.6459s
18. Marco Andretti Andretti Green 1m02.5059s
19. Richard Antinucci 3G 1m02.8364s
20. Danica Patrick Andretti Green 1m02.5184s
21. Ryan Hunter-Reay Foyt 1m02.9996s
22. Dan Wheldon Panther 1m02.8369s
23. Ed Carpenter Vision 1m03.4342s