The Juan to beat?

Welcome to New Hampshire Motor Speedway on this brisk, breezy Saturday morning, when Juan Pablo Montoya has already begun to fortify the believe that he's got the car to beat in tomorrow's Sylvania 300.

Montoya followed up Friday's record-setting pole run by posting the fastest time in the morning practice, turning the 1.058-mile oval in 29.269 seconds. Next fastest was non-Chaser Martin Truex Jr., another who looks strong this weekend, while eight of the 12 playoff contenders posted speeds in the top 11.

One driver whose fast lap could be cause for alarm was Jeff Gordon, who was 25th fastest. His team put a big emphasis on qualifying in yesterday's practice, under the expectation they'd be able to dial it in with race trim today -- but with an hour left on track, it seems they've got a ways to go.

Here's how the Chase pilots finished today's first practice:

1. Montoya
3. Martin
5. Johnson
6. Hamlin
7. Busch
8. Biffle
10. Kahne
11. Newman
18. Stewart
21. Vickers
23. Edwards
25. Gordon