The Daytona 500 winner’s on a role! Jamie McMurray won the pole for Sunday’s Auto Club 500 at Auto Club Speedway!

photo credit: by Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR

“I am so amazed at the week I’ve had, and then to come here to be able to be on the pole,” McMurray said. “I really can’t believe it. It’s just pretty awesome.”

What a week for the Daytona 500 winner! After winning Sunday night, he was up early Monday morning for the Champion’s breakfast which also included watching his winning race car be put on display at the Daytona 500 Experience, where it’ll stay for the rest of the year. Following the day’s festivities at Daytona International Speedway, McMurray immediately flew to New York City for appearances on Late Night with David Letterman, Good Day New York, Live with Regis & Kelly, Fox Business Network and ESPN.

“I had to go buy some clothes,” McMurray said. “So did Christy [his wife], because we didn’t have any clothes with us. I was asked today at a luncheon why none of the NASCAR drivers bring a suit to Daytona with them, knowing if they win, they have to have a suit. I was like, That is a sure way to jinx of yourself of not ever winning the race if you come prepared.”

Next on the busy schedule for Jamie Mac was a trip to San Francisco on Wednesday for a Victory Tour cable car ride beginning at the Golden Gate Bridge before making a few sight-seeing stops around the city and more media obligations. photo credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Thursday, McMurray was in Los Angeles  for a double decker bus tour of the city and even more media obligations before making his way to Fontana.

“There will never be another victory like your first one, but the Daytona 500 is different,” McMurray said. “It’s so much different than winning any other race. You win any other race, you do Victory Lane, then you go home, but you win this race… and there’s just so much that goes along with it, so much attention. This is our race that people that don’t watch NASCAR every single weekend, this is the race they watch. You get like a whole different group of people that become your fan.”

Did you hear? McMurray’s father left the Daytona race track early Sunday on his motorcycle, so he could make it back to his hotel in time to beat the race traffic. That’s the reason why McMurray’s father didn’t join him in victory lane.

Racin’ resumes this weekend at Auto Club Speedway. You’ll hear the drivers tell you ‘every point counts’ – all season long.

Jamie Mac’s on top of the leaderboard going to Cali. It’s a track he has yet to win at and it’ll be just his second race for Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing.

“It will be important to run well this weekend,” McMurray said. “That’s honestly a really good track for me. I think average finish-wise that’s been one of my best tracks. I look forward to getting there. I haven’t been in one of their cars on a mile-and-a-half. With the testing we have done at Disneyworld and New Smyrna, we unloaded at both those places with the setup that the 42 team liked in their previous tests, and the car drove really well for me. I expect to get to Fontana, be able to unload with the setup that Juan ran last year and be really close. The 42 ran great there last year. I just don’t see any reason why we’re not going to be able to unload there and be really good.”

McMurray has posted 5 top-10 finishes at Auto Club Speedway in his 13 starts there with an average finishing average of 16.4

However, it is McMurray’s former Roush-Fenway Racing teammates that are the ones proven to beat at ACS.

Last year’s Daytona 500 winner, Matt Kenseth is the defending race winner. He won the first two cup races right out of the gate last year. He’s also won three of the last four February races at ACS. He’s posted 3 wins, 7 top-5 and 11 top-10 finishes at the track with an average finishing average of 9.3

Coming off a third-place finish Sunday, Greg Biffle has one win, 4 top-5′s and 4 top-10′s with an average finish of 17.3 at the Californian track.

And Carl Edwards also has posted one win, 6 top-5 and 10 top-10 finishes at ACS with an average finishing average of 6.6 Edwards’ wife, Katie, is due to deliver their first baby at any time.  “I’ve got fuel in the plane and I’m ready to go if she were to call me this evening,” Edwards said. Roush-Fenway driver, Erik Darnell, is on stand-by to fill in for Edwards this week in both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series races at ACS.

For the Auto Club 500 starting line-up, click here.

TV coverage of the Auto Club 500 starts at 2 on Sunday on FOX.

Look for Danica Patrick in Saturday’s Nationwide Series race. The Stater Bros. 300 starts at 5 on ESPN2.