Martinsville, Va. ? Jeff Gordon finally beat Ryan Newman.

After getting knocked off the pole by Newman in last year’s fall Winston Cup race at Martinsville Speedway, then again last month at Bristol when Newman stunned even himself, Gordon turned the tables in impressive fashion Friday, winning the pole for Sunday’s Virginia 500.

“It’s just awesome when you show up and unload off the truck and you’re close, and you’ve got guys that trust and believe in you,” he said.

Gordon’s lap at 93.307 mph easily beat Newman’s at 93.678, and one at 93.863 by Dale Earnhardt Jr., giving Gordon the 43rd pole of his career, his fourth on the series’ shortest, tightest oval and first this season.

The lap also avenged a pole Gordon lost to Newman earlier this season at Bristol, when Newman obliterated Gordon’s year-old qualifying record.

“Now I know how Ryan Newman felt at Bristol,” Gordon said after beating everyone by .095 seconds, a huge margin in short-track qualifying.

Earnhardt’s time stood up for second, creating an all-Chevrolet front row.

LaJoie sets track record

Gladeville, Tenn. — Randy LaJoie won his first pole since last July, setting a track record in qualifying Friday for the NASCAR Busch series race at Nashville Superspeedway. The two-time series champion got his eighth career pole with a lap at 163.324 mph in a Chevrolet. He took the top spot for today’s Pepsi 300 by getting around the 1.33-mile concrete tri-oval in 29.382 seconds.

Musgrave wins truck pole

Martinsville, Va. — Ted Musgrave won his second consecutive pole for a NASCAR truck series race at Martinsville Speedway, turning a fast lap Friday at 91.297 mph in a Dodge. Musgrave became the first driver in nine races at the .526-mile oval to win more than one pole. He will try today in the 250-lap race to become the ninth different winner.

Tracy takes provisional pole

Long Beach, Calif. — Paul Tracy assured himself of another front-row start, taking the provisional pole Friday for Sunday’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

The winner of both CART Champ Car World Series races this season, the Canadian driver nipped Bruno Junqueira for the top spot with a lap of 1 minute, 9.079 seconds — or 102.561 mph — on the 1.968-mile, 11-turn downtown street circuit.

Dixon fastest in IRL practice

Motegi, Japan — New Zealand’s Scott Dixon posted the fastest lap in practice Friday for the first Indy Racing League event in Japan.

Dixon, who won the season-opening IRL race last month, turned a fast lap of 206.996 mph at the 1.52-mile Twin Ring Motegi oval.

Brazil’s Tony Kanaan, who won in Phoenix on March 23, was second at 206.484, and Sweden’s Kenny Brack was third at 205.571.

Fisichella declared winner

Paris — Jordan driver Giancarlo Fisichella was declared the winner of Formula One’s Brazilian Grand Prix Friday, five days after the race.

The sport’s governing body ruled that Fisichella was leading before the race was stopped because of numerous crashes and spinouts on the rain-soaked Interlagos track Sunday.