Kasey Kahne keeps pace with teammates into Chase
HAMPTON, Ga. – Late Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway, they stood the same way they'll enter the Chase for the Sprint Cup – shoulder to shoulder.
After his Oral-B USA 500 win ensured Hendrick Motorsports four berths in the 10-race playoff for the third consecutive season, Kasey Kahne quickly was surrounded by teammates Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. They traded smiles, hugs and fist bumps, sharing in the obvious relief of Kahne, who ended a yearlong winless slump.
"That really was special to see all three of them come to victory lane to celebrate and congratulate Kasey," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "I think that shows the kind of chemistry we have with our drivers, and they want to beat each other, but they were pulling for Kasey to get in.
"I looked up and saw them all standing there, and I was really proud of the organization."
For longtime Hendrick personnel, it evoked memories of the last time the team's drivers assembled in Atlanta's victory lane for a postrace celebration nearly a decade earlier. In October 2004, Johnson won at the 1.54-mile oval one week after a Hendrick plane crashed and killed 10. Lost were the team's general manager, head engine builder and Hendrick's brother and son.
That ranks as the lowest point in the NASCAR powerhouse's 30-year history. Sunday might have been among its highest.
"I think that we have got a really good shot" at a championship, Hendrick said. "I think that it's the best balance that we have ever had with all the cars going into the Chase."
Hendrick's Chevrolets have been the class of the series this season, largely because of a clear edge in horsepower. With three victories apiece, Earnhardt, Gordon and Johnson are tied for the series lead (with the Team Penske Fords of Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano) and already were tabbed as championship threats.
But Kahne's No. 5 was a notable laggard. His 17th career victory was only his third top five in a season plagued by misfortune and the frustration of cars that weren't as fast as his teammates.
In early June, Kahne and crew chief Kenny Francis had a long sitdown to address their communication, and the driver openly wondered whether he needed to be more assertive by challenging his crew to improve his setups.
After back-to-back finishes of 16th at Michigan and 35th at Bristol Motor Speedway, making the Chase on points wasn't a viable option, so Kahne entered Atlanta needing a win there or in this Saturday's regular-season finale at Richmond International Raceway.
He hardly was a factor for most of Sunday's 335-lap race. He didn't crack the top five until there were fewer than 100 laps remaining and didn't move into first until seizing the lead from Denny Hamlin on a Lap 303 restart.
But once in front, Kahne virtually was unbeatable. He fended off several strong challenges by the dominant Chevy of Kevin Harvick (who led a race-high 195 laps) and was cruising toward a victory when a caution flew on what had been scheduled to be the penultimate lap, setting up an overtime ending.
Kahne lost the lead in the pits but benefited from another caution that scuttled the first attempt at a green-white-checkered finish. On the final restart, he roared through the middle lane, passed Matt Kenseth and breezed to his third career win at the track.
"It was just an unbelievable way to make the Chase," he said. "I just feel like for whatever reason, my restarts were good."
That poise has been lacking for Kahne during an admitted "downer" of a season that he has said was important to securing his future at Hendrick. While his teammates are on long-term deals, the Enumclaw, Wash., driver's contract runs through 2015 (though primary sponsor Farmers Insurance is signed beyond that).
The struggles took a toll on his psyche, and Sunday's Chase bid provides the chance to change the storyline's direction when the stakes are highest. Kahne hasn't placed higher than fourth in four previous Chase berths, but he has nothing to lose heading into an expanded field of 16 drivers that will feature three elimination rounds for the first time.
"There won't be as much pressure on us for a while now," he said. "It could be a little different this year with the way it's structured. But I've been in the Chase, and not felt near the pressure. (Sunday) was max pressure, and next week would have even been more."
Besides just a reprieve, Richmond now offers Kahne the opportunity of looking ahead with his teammates instead of playing catch up.
"It's been a rough year," Francis said. "We have had a lot of good cars and just seems like nothing goes our way. We haven't got many good breaks. You lose some confidence and you get a little dejected.
"Winning in such dramatic fashion, that is just a huge relief. And I think it's going to be a huge uplift for the whole team."