DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Josh Scobee Elite Jersey Womens . -- With the famed No. 3 on his car and memories of the late Dale Earnhardt fresh in his mind, Austin Dillon took the fabled number out of hibernation and straight to the top at Daytona. Dillon reawakened the days of The Intimidator and proved he can handle the spotlight thrust on his ride in the 3, winning the pole Sunday for the season-opening Daytona 500. He took the top spot with a lap at 196.019 mph in NASCARs season opener in a car Richard Childress has refused to field at NASCARs top level since Earnhardts fatal accident on the last lap of the 2001 race. But with his 23-year-old grandson ready to move to the Sprint Cup Series, Childress allowed Dillon to use the number widely associated with the seven-time champion. Earnhardt won 67 races, six championships and the 1998 Daytona 500 driving the No. 3. Dillon was a kid when he posed for a picture with Earnhardt in Victory Lane following his breakthough 1998 win. Hell have many more memories from this milestone, like the congratulatory handshake he received from Richard Petty when qualifying ended. NASCARs family roots run deep, so Childress never had to leave the family tree to find the right driver for the number. Dillon has been using it in NASCAR national competition since 2009, when he made his Truck Series debut in the No. 3. He won the Truck championship in 2011 driving the No. 3 for Richard Childress Racing, and the Nationwide title last season in the same number. So Childress knew -- he always knew and has insisted that Earnhardt gave his blessing long before his death -- that Dillon could use the number if he ever made it to Cup. Dillon doesnt take the responsibility lightly. "Everybody wants to see this number perform well, and thats what my goals are," Dillon said. "I love getting in that race car and driving it. I think once we get through some of these races here at the beginning of the year, everything will sink in and Ill get comfortable and be able to have some fun." Its the fourth time the No. 3 has won the pole for the Daytona 500. Buddy Baker did it in 1969, Ricky Rudd in 1983 and Earnhardt in 1996. Martin Truex Jr., driving a Chevrolet for Furniture Row Racing, qualified second with a lap at 195.852 mph. Truexs engine is built by Earnhardt-Childress Racing, giving the company a sweep of the Daytona 500 front row. "Obviously, without that thing under the hood, we wouldnt be where we are," said Truex, who won the Daytona 500 pole in 2009 with an ECR engine when he drove for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. The rest of the field is set Thursday through a pair of qualifying races, but Childress and the ECR engines are strong: They had five cars in the top 12 on Sunday. Childress knew he had a shot at the pole, if not with Dillon then from another one of his four Richard Childress Racing entries. All were fast in January testing, and again in two Saturday practice sessions. But it was Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., the first driver to make his qualifying attempt, who set the pace early and held down the provisional pole for most of the session. RCR drivers Brian Scott and Paul Menard failed to bump Earnhardt, and it was surprisingly Ford driver Greg Biffle who finally did it as the 33rd driver to take his turn. Ryan Newman then took his shot for RCR and missed, and Dillon was the next driver out. He shot to the top of the board and his grandfather pumped his fist in celebration. He then nervously watched as the final 10 drivers made their runs, and gave another fist-pump in celebration. "We wanted to come down here and put on a good show with the 3, and to have another ECR engine with Furniture Row on the front row, we couldnt be more proud," Childress said. So could he finally relax? "The pressure is always on when youve got grandsons racing for you," said Childress, who thanked all the sponsors who "believed in this young kid, who took a chance on him." Toby Gerhart Elite Jersey Womens . The Kings have gone 6-0-3 over their last nine games despite having been held to three goals or fewer in eight of 10 contests this month. Los Angeles has failed to score more than two goals six times in that span. Blake Bortles Elite Jersey Womens .C. -- Bobcats centre Al Jefferson says hell play in Game 3 Saturday night against the Miami Heat.Toronto Rock General Manager Terry Sanderson announced the signing of goaltender Brandon Miller to a two-year agreement on Thursday. Along with the last line of defence being under contract, Toronto has re-signed defencemen Damon Edwards to a three-year deal, Rob Marshall to a two-year contract and Ethan OConnor to a one-year pact. The signings are pending league approval. Miller was acquired at the 2014 NLL trade deadline in March and won three of his four starts down the stretch as the Rock rallied from four games below .500 at the end of March to finish 9-9 and earn the second seed in the East Division. The 35-year old Orangeville, ON native is a veteran of 14 NLL seasons with stops in Albany, San Jose, Chicago, and of course Philadelphia, before landing in Toronto last season. "Brandon came in last season and was a big part of us making the playoffs," said Sanderson. "We have great depth in goal with Nick Rose and Steve Fryer alongside Brandon. That depth sets us up very nicely tto compete with the top teams in the league. Sen Derrick Marks Elite Jersey Womens. " The other three players signed will be keys to the Rock defence that plays in front of Miller in 2015. Rob Marshall is the second longest tenured athlete on any Toronto pro sports team behind Blue Jays pitcher Dustin McGowan. The nine-year NLL veteran, all with the Rock, was a member of the 2011 Toronto Rock championship team and has been one of the teams most reliable defenders for years. A veteran of five NLL seasons, defenceman Damon Edwards had a career year offensively transitioning the ball from the back end. He scored 7 goals and added 15 assists for 22 points in 2014, shattering his previous career high of 4 points established in 2011 and 2012. 2013 first round draft pick Ethan OConnor had a tremendous rookie season in 2014, leading the team and all NLL rookies in loose balls with 133. That total ranked him 9th overall in the league. He scored 5 goals and added 4 assists in 17 games for the Rock last season. ' ' '
