While road courses haven't exactly been Jimmie Johnson's strongest tracks to drive at, he didn't let this stop him from qualifying 3rd today in Sonoma. A very strong lap of 94.795 mph and 75.57 seconds moved him to the top of the board with 10 drivers to go; however, he was knocked out of the top spot by road Marcos Ambrose, who qualified on the pole. Johnson qualified ahead of Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Greg Biffle, the only three drivers ahead of him in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points standings.

Two additional practice sessions will be held on Saturday for Johnson and Team 48 to fine tune the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet even more. Race coverage will begin Sunday at 3 PM ET on TNT.