Indianapolis, IN -- (Sports Network) - Jimmie Johnson edged Mark Martin for the pole in Sunday's 15th running of the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Johnson, the No.48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet driver and two-time defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, rounded the famed 2.5-mile track in 49.515 seconds (181.763 m.p.h.).

The pole victory was Johnson's second of the season and the 15th of his Sprint Cup career. He won the pole for the season-opening Daytona 500 in February.

"I had a great race car," Johnson said. "I was a little unhappy with myself after my qualifying lap and sat in front of the truck pretty nervous, knowing that Mark (Martin) was coming and some other good cars. I just got through one so well, I went into two and went into my normal mark. My car got tight and missed two, and you have such a long straightaway. I thought I was going to pay for it and really be behind."

It was Johnson's first pole in seven races at Indianapolis. He won the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard in 2006.

Martin, in the No.8 Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., posted the second-best time of 49.616

Dodge drivers Ryan Newman (49.732) and Kasey Kahne (49.776) will make up row two.

Points leader Kyle Busch qualified 19th. Busch comes to Indianapolis with a 262-point lead, and as good as he's been lately, Busch is surely a favorite to win. He has finished 10th or better in his first three races at Indy.

Busch's Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Tony Stewart, is another favorite to win at Indy. Stewart, from nearby Columbus, IN, has won two of the last three races there. He'll start 14th.

Last year, Stewart passed Harvick in the closing laps and held off Montoya at the finish for his second victory at Indianapolis. He made his final pit stop with 33 laps to go, taking on four fresh tires. After green-flag stops cycled through, Stewart reclaimed the lead with 31 laps remaining.

Stewart built a 3.8-second lead with 25 laps to go, but his margin was erased when the caution flag flew after Earnhardt, Jr.'s engine blew, spewing oil onto the track.

On the restart, Stewart and Harvick pulled ahead from the field and battled for the lead. Stewart took a look on the inside with 15 left but couldn't complete the move. He made the same attempt at the end of the backstretch with 13 remaining, but again, Harvick turned him away. The third time was the charm. After getting Harvick a little loose, he completed the pass with 10 to go.

Montoya moved up to the second spot, but could not catch Stewart in time. Stewart crossed the finish line 2.982 seconds ahead of Montoya for the win.

Montoya has a chance to become the first driver to win both the Indianapolis 500 and the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. He joined A.J. Foyt and Danny Sullivan as previous Indy 500 champs who have competed in a Cup race at Indy. Foyt finished 30th and Sullivan came in 33rd in the 1994 inaugural Brickyard 400.

Other drivers of note and their starting positions: Jeff Gordon (fifth), Carl Edwards (ninth), Matt Kenseth (10th), Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (11th), Juan Pablo Montoya (13th), Kevin Harvick (18th) and Jeff Burton (32nd).

Bill Elliott, Johnny Sauter, Tony Raines and Stanton Barrett are those drivers who failed to qualify.

The green flag is scheduled to drop on Sunday around 2 p.m. (et).