Carl Edwards set the fastest time in the first of two Nextel Cup practice sessions set for Saturday at the Homestead-Miami Speedway as his Roush-Fenway Racing team continue its quest for a fourth consecutive Homestead win.

After qualifying tenth for Sunday's Ford 400 Edwards turned a best lap of 31.365secs around the unique, variably banked 1.5-mile Homestead oval to briefly take the spotlight off championship protagonists Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon.

Ryan Newman was second fastest as the driver of the #12 Penske Racing Dodge tries to take his first win of the year at the final attempt while the three Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet's, Jeff Burton, Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick, completed the top five.

Continuing their unflinchable form Johnson and Gordon were once again well placed in the top ten with Bud Pole winner Johnson sixth fastest in the #48 Chevrolet and Gordon eighth in the #24 with the second Roush-Fenway Ford of Jamie McMurray sandwiching the pair.

Tony Stewart, who won the first two Cup Series races at Homestead in 2000 and 2001, and Martin Truex Jr completed the top ten with Matt Kenseth eleventh and Kurt Busch twelfth.

Kasey Kahne, who was involved in a confrontation with a security guard at the track on Friday evening, was 16th fastest one place ahead of Greg Biffle, whose recent dominance at this track has yet to translate itself into a strong run this time around.

Dale Earnhardt Jr finished the session in 20th place on the timesheets but his quest to end his DEI career on a winning note suffered a blow when his #8 team were forced to change the transmission, which means NASCAR's most popular driver will have to start from the rear of the 43 car grid on Sunday.