Ambrose claims pole at the Glen

Marcos Ambrose strengthened his bid for a third straight victory at Watkins Glen by claiming the third NASCAR Sprint Cup pole position of his career.

He lapped the 3.4-mile circuit in 1m08.777s in his Richard Petty Motorsports Ford to deny Waltrip Toyota driver Clint Bowyer a first pole since 2007. Ambrose, whose only wins in the series have come at Watkins Glen, was one of a number of drivers to beat the previous qualifying record.

Everyone back to Matt Kenseth in 10th was under Juan Pablo Montoya's record from last year of 1m09.438s.

Sonoma polesitter Jamie McMurray, running in the fourth qualifying group, looked like he might claim another road course pole when the fifth group of drivers including points leader Jimmie Johnson failed to depose the Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet.

That scenario appeared even likelier when the following group, led by Kurt Busch, failed to impose themselves on the pole battle, prompting fears the circuit was getting slower. But as the session reached its climax, the top of the leaderboard changed.

First, Kyle Busch and AJ Allmendinger shuffled McMurray back, and then Bowyer looked to have snatched pole with a 1m08.929s.

Martin Truex Jr failed to beat Bowyer's benchmark as the final group began their effort, slipping into second, before Ambrose went 0.15s clear at the top.

Montoya and practice pacesetter Carl Edwards will line up 11th and 16th respectively after both drivers cut short underwhelming final efforts.