WEST ALLIS, Wis. -- Dario Franchitti was 18th on the IZOD IndyCar Series practice time sheet that preceeded qualifications for the Milwaukee IndyFest Presented by XYQ. He must have found something in the hour break.

Franchitti will start from the pole for the second consecutive year at the Milwaukee Mile after recording a two-lap average speed of 168.737 mph (43.3100 seconds) in the No. 10 Cottonelle car for Target Chip Ganassi Racing. He tied Al Unser for seventh on the all-time list with 27 poles.

Click it: Milwaukee IndyFest Presented by XYQ qualifying results

Franchitti, who posted the quickest lap of the session at 169.156 mph, could make a significant advancement in the championship standings with his second consecutive victory at the historic track as seven drivers will incur 10-grid spot penalties for unapproved engine changes -- including front-runner Will Power and teammate Scott Dixon. Franchitti will enter the 225-lap race 63 points behind Power.

"I am very pleased as much as I am surprised," said Franchitti, who was 11th on the time chart in the morning practice session. "That’s quite a turnaround from practice. Practice is one thing, qualifying is another and then there is the race. For as warm as it it people are fighting the car and everyone wants the same line. I expect (the race) is going to be tough, especially at the end of a full stint on those Firestone tires.

"It’s going to be a long, exciting day and hopefully the Cottonelle car will be up front at the end of the afternoon. This is always an interesting track and we’ll see if we can get it done."

Among the others receiving the grid penalty is Justin Wilson, who followed his first oval victory June 9 at Texas Motor Speedway with a front-row qualifying effort in the No. 18 Sonny's BBQ car for Dale Coyne Racing. His spot will be taken by Ryan Hunter-Reay in the No. 28 Team DHL/Sun Drop Citrus Soda car for Andretti Autosport (167.911 mph). 

"The guys did a great job on the car. We were all over the sixth-gear limiter on our last lap or I think we would have been quick enough for pole," said Hunter-Reay, whose previous best oval start was the pole at Milwaukee for the 2004 CART race. "We couldn't have predicted we would be that quick though; it's the quickest we've been all weekend. It's tough for the crew, especially the engineers, trying to pick which gears to go with. It's like shooting with a blindfold on sometimes."

Power qualified fourth in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske car, but will relinquish that position to Rubens Barrichello, who is making his debut at Milwaukee in No. 8 BMC/Embrase/KV Racing Technology car. He'll be joined on Row 2 by Helio Castroneves (166.763) in the No. 3 Penske Truck Rental car.

KV Racing Technology teammates E.J. Viso and Tony Kanaan will share Row 3.

Also receiving grid penalties will be rookie Josef Newgarden (who tied his best qualifying effort at seventh), Takuma Sato, Ryan Briscoe and Mike Conway.

"Knowing that we had the penalty coming here wasn’t too bad because it’s been a cycle this year," said Newgarden, driving the No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing car. "Everyone’s had to go through it at some point and it’s just our turn. That’s the whole thing with engine manufacturer competition coming back to the series. I think it’s great that we have that competition because that’s what racing is really about. We want to see them duking it out with each other, and I’m really proud to be backed by Honda power."