The term "pole position", as used in motorsports is the position of the motor vehicle and its driver at the front of the grid in the starting lineup. This driver is referred to as the polesitter. Grid position is usually either determined by a separate qualifying session where drivers try to set the fastest lap, or based on their position in the previous race(s). Different motorsports series use different formats for determining which driver has the opportunity to start from pole position.
Read more about Pole Position: Origin, Formula One, Indianapolis 500, IndyCar, MotoGP, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Famous quotes containing the words pole and/or position:
“Not because Socrates has said it, but because it is really in my nature, and perhaps a little more than it should be, I look upon all humans as my fellow-citizens, and would embrace a Pole as I would a Frenchman, subordinating this national tie to the common and universal one.”
—Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592)
“One reason—perhaps the chief—of the virility of the Roosevelts is [their] very democratic spirit. They have never felt that because they were born in a good position they could put their hands in their pockets and succeed. They have felt, rather, that being born in a good position, there is no excuse for them if they did not do their duty by the community.”
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)