Long Pond, PA ? Sterling Marlin should have no reason to worry about his car not being fast at Pocono Raceway, where the track dried enough Saturday to permit the first NASCAR practice of the weekend.

The Winston Cup points leader was awarded the pole Friday, when water seeping through seams and cracks on the 21/2-mile triangle prevented practice and qualifying. The starting grid for today’s Pocono 500 was set according to series points.

Marlin, who hasn’t driven to a pole and has been a poor qualifier this season, posted the fastest lap Saturday, going 166.636 mph in a Dodge. He said both his car and the track are ready to race.

“The car runs good and drives good, and it’s got a good feel to it,” Marlin said. “I didn’t see any wet spots out there.”

The problem with the track came after 3 inches of rain fell Thursday, bringing the total for the last week to 8.

NASCAR spokeswoman Danielle Frye said trenches were dug near the second and third turns, and just off pit road. Also, some patch was applied to the asphalt off the racing surface near the end of pit road.

Some minor seepage was visible after practice, but NASCAR president Mike Helton was confident that work performed over the preceding 24 hours would ensure that the race go on as scheduled.

“There are a few wet spots out there that are not in the racing area,” Helton said. “All the effort was put into fixing the areas where the cars had to go through.”

He said areas where seepage continued would be worked on further. But work could not begin immediately after the final practice because of the ARCA Series race Saturday afternoon.

The track said there was little it could do. The water table in the area, where there have been some road closures, is reported to be about 17 inches above normal.