Kasey Kahne
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Kasey Kenneth Kahne (; born April 10, 1980) is an American
dirt track racing Dirt track racing is a form of motorsport held on clay or dirt surfaced oval race tracks often used for thoroughbred horse racing. Dirt track racing started in the United States before World War I and became widespread during the 1920s and 1930s ...
driver and former professional
stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It or ...
driver. He last competed in the
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...
in 2018, driving the No. 95 Dumont Jets/ Procore Technologies Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Leavine Family Racing. Currently, Kahne competes in the
World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series The World of Outlaws (often abbreviated WoO) is an American motorsports sanctioning body. The body sanctions two major national touring series. It is best known for sanctioning the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Lat ...
, driving the No. 9 sprint car for his own team,
Kasey Kahne Racing The Kasey Kahne owned Kasey Kahne Racing with Mike Curb team originated in Mooresville, North Carolina. The N.C based company was formed in 2005 and employs over 15 people dedicated to sprint car racing. KKR fields two full-time entries in the W ...
. Off the track, Kahne is active in charitable work and is a member of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation. He also owns his own race team,
Kasey Kahne Racing The Kasey Kahne owned Kasey Kahne Racing with Mike Curb team originated in Mooresville, North Carolina. The N.C based company was formed in 2005 and employs over 15 people dedicated to sprint car racing. KKR fields two full-time entries in the W ...
, which competes in the
World of Outlaws The World of Outlaws (often abbreviated WoO) is an American motorsports sanctioning body. The body sanctions two major national touring series. It is best known for sanctioning the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Lat ...
series, fielding two World of Outlaws sprint cars for himself, and
Brad Sweet Bradley Sweet (born December 31, 1985) is an American professional race car driver and a veteran of the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, driving the No. 49 for Kasey Kahne Racing, where he has earned the nickname 'The Big Cat'. Sweet was form ...
. Kahne is a 2-time Skagit Speedway winner of the Annual Jim Raper memorial Dirt Cup (2002 and 2003) and currently holds the fastest lap record there. Kahne scored 18 career wins in the Cup Series, including three Coca-Cola 600s in 2006, 2008, and 2012, and the Brickyard 400 in 2017. He also was the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Rookie of the Year in 2004. He retired from racing before the end of the 2018 Cup Series season due to health reasons and was replaced at Leavine Family Racing by Regan Smith.


Racing career


Beginnings

Kahne began racing open wheel sprint cars at Deming Speedway at 17 in Deming, Washington, before moving up to Skagit speedway in Alger, Washington, and then he moved to USAC. In 2000, Kahne made a trip to Pennsylvania where he won the season opener at the historic
Williams Grove Speedway Williams Grove Speedway is a half-mile automobile dirt racing track located in Mechanicsburg , Pennsylvania, USA. The speedway opened on May 21, 1939, it has been owned by the Hughes family for over 50 years and has hosted many of the most nota ...
. He was hired by Steve Lewis, who had also employed future NASCAR drivers
Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...
, Jason Leffler,
Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
and
Kenny Irwin Jr. Kenneth Dale Irwin Jr. (August 5, 1969 – July 7, 2000) was an American stock car racing driver. He had driven in all three NASCAR national touring series, and had two total victories, both in the Craftsman Truck Series (today Camping World Truck ...
In his first year on the circuit, he was named Rookie of the Year, as well as winning the national midget championship. He continued to run USAC, as well as the Toyota Atlantic Series and the
World of Outlaws The World of Outlaws (often abbreviated WoO) is an American motorsports sanctioning body. The body sanctions two major national touring series. It is best known for sanctioning the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Lat ...
.


Xfinity and Truck Series

In 2002, Kahne made 20 starts in the
Busch Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
driving the No. 98 Channellock-sponsored
Ford Taurus The Ford Taurus is an automobile that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company in the United States from the 1986 to 2019 model years. Introduced in late 1985 for the 1986 model year, six generations were produced over 34 years; a brief hiat ...
for Robert Yates Racing. His best finish was a tenth-place finish at Cabela's 250. A year later, he moved to the No. 38
Great Clips Great Clips is an American hair salon chain with over 4,100 locations across the United States and Canada. It is headquartered in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. In 2013, it had system-wide sales of $1.03 billion. History The ...
-sponsored Ford for
Akins Motorsports Akins Motorsports, formerly Akins-Sutton Motorsports was a NASCAR team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, which is near Charlotte. The team was formed in 1992 by Brad Akins, owner of several car dealerships in Georgia and team pit crew member, ...
full-time. He won his first pole at Michigan International Speedway and his first Busch Series race at the Ford 300. Kahne finished 7th in the points standing. With his move to full-time competition in the Cup Series in 2004, he also drove 30 races for Akins in the Busch Series, finishing 13th in points. In 2005, he made 22 starts in the
Busch Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
, splitting time with Akins and Evernham's new No. 6 team. He won the O'Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway and the United Way 300 at
Kansas Speedway Kansas Speedway is a tri-oval race track in the Village West area near Kansas City, Kansas, United States. It was built in 2001 and it currently hosts two annual NASCAR race weekends. The IndyCar Series also held races at the venue until 20 ...
. On May 26, 2007, Kahne won the Busch Series'
Carquest Auto Parts 300 The Alsco Uniforms 300 is an annual 300-mile (482.803 km) NASCAR Xfinity Series race held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina during Memorial Day weekend as a support race for the Coca-Cola 600. The race's origins tra ...
race at
Lowe's Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including ...
for his first win of 2007. On August 24, 2007, Kahne won the pole for the Cup Series' Sharpie 500 at
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...
, his second pole of the 2007 Nextel Cup Series season. Later that night, during the Busch Series' Food City 250, Kahne passed Ryan Newman on the top side in a 3-wide pass that included Jason Leffler on the bottom. He held off the hard-charging Leffler to score his seventh career Busch win and his second of 2007. In 2009, Kahne ran fewer events in other NASCAR series than previous seasons, only seven (four in the Nationwide Series, three in the Whelen Modified Tour). With less distractions, Kahne's Sprint Cup stats slightly improved that year. During the 2014 Nationwide season, Kahne scored an upset win at the Nationwide Series' Subway Firecracker 250 passing teammate Regan Smith on the final lap. The margin was 0.021 seconds. Kahne has six career starts in the
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of ...
, winning five of them; his lone non-victory is a second-place run at
Pocono Raceway Pocono Raceway (formerly Pocono International Raceway), also known as ''The Tricky Triangle'', is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. It is the site of three NASCAR national series races and an AR ...
in 2010. In 2004, he made a pair of starts in the series at Darlington Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway, driving the No. 2 Team ASE Racing Dodge Ram for Ultra Motorsports, winning both races. At the 2015 Charlotte Truck race, he held off Erik Jones for the win by .005 seconds, the second-closest margin in Truck Series history.


Cup Series

Kahne replaced
Bill Elliott William Clyde Elliott (born October 8, 1955), also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, Million Dollar Bill, or Wild Bill is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racin ...
in the No. 9 Dodge for Evernham Motorsports at the end of the 2003 season when Elliott announced a part-time schedule starting with the 2004 season. Since Kahne was still under contract with Ford, the manufacturer filed a lawsuit against him after he joined Evernham Motorsports. U.S. District Judge Robert Cleland ruled in favor of Kahne; citing a clause in his contract with Ford that stipulated that the manufacturer had to provide Kahne with a full-time ride on a Ford team that both parties mutually agreed upon. That clause also stipulated, that if an agreement could not reached by either party, then Kahne could seek a ride with a different manufacturer, without breaking the terms of his contract with Ford.


Evernham Motorsports (2004–07)

In 2004, Kahne surprised many by nearly winning several races (including five second-place finishes and 13 Top 5’s), winning four poles, and captured the Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award. He narrowly missed the
Chase for the Nextel Cup The NASCAR playoffs is a championship playoff system used in NASCAR's three national series. The system was founded as 'The Chase for the Championship' on January 21, 2004, and was used exclusively in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2004 to 2015. S ...
after Jeremy Mayfield, his teammate, claimed the final spot. In 2005, Kahne scored his first career Nextel Cup victory in his sophomore season of 2005, after a dominating performance in the Chevy American Revolution 400 at Richmond International Raceway. It was also the first win for the Dodge Charger, which returned to NASCAR that year. It was the first time a Dodge won a race at Richmond International Raceway since Richard Petty did so in 1975. In addition, he became the first driver born in the 1980s to win a race in NASCAR's premier series. He also scored two poles in back-to-back weeks at
Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underw ...
and
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, Californi ...
during the same year. Despite this, he was plagued with inconsistency and slumped to 23rd in the points. On March 20, 2006, Kahne won the rain-delayed Golden Corral 500 at
Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly known Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a 1.54-mile entertainment facility in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Cup Series s ...
. Nearly three weeks later, he won the
Samsung/Radio Shack 500 The O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 was a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS) in Fort Worth, Texas. Even though it is advertised as a "500-mile" race, because TMS is a track that is in length, the actual race distance is ...
at Texas. After that, he won four more races — a season sweep at
Lowe's Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including ...
in the Coca-Cola 600 and in the Bank of America 500 holding off
Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. A seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, he competes part-time in the series driving for Petty GMS Motorsports. Johnson's seven Cup championships, t ...
(who finished second in both races) and victories at California and Michigan. On September 9, 2006, Kahne successfully raced his way into the Chase for The Cup after finishing third in Richmond. He was the 10th and last qualifier to make the Chase. He edged defending Nextel Cup Champion
Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
out by 16 points, but a disappointing 16th-place finish at New Hampshire, a crash at
Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maids ...
, and running out of gas at Kansas ended his hopes for his first championship title. Kahne finished strong with five Top 10’s in the remaining seven races including a winning the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. On November 27, 2006, Kahne was honored by being invited to raise the traditional 12th Man flag prior to the
Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...
Monday Night Football ''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, ...
game against the
Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. It is the t ...
at Qwest Field in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region o ...
. The ceremony has been ongoing since 2003, and involves a different Seattle-area sports hero and/or beloved member of the community kicking things off before every Seahawks home game. The Seahawks beat the Packers 34–24. During the qualifying for the
2007 Daytona 500 The 2007 Daytona 500, the 49th running of the event, was the first race of the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season, taking place on February 18, 2007, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Kevin Harvick won the race by ...
, officials found holes in the wheel-wells of his
Dodge Charger The Dodge Charger is a model of automobile marketed by Dodge in various forms over seven generations since 1966. The first Charger was a show car in 1964. A 1965 Charger II concept car resembled the 1966 production version. The Charger has ...
. A crew member said it was just tape that had fallen off of a hole in the tire. Officials said that the tape had been cut. He was one of the four drivers among Matt Kenseth and his two teammates, Scott Riggs and Elliott Sadler, whose cars had been found with aerodynamic-improving modifications. His team was one of the six teams found with illegal modifications in the Daytona festivities. At the Sharpie 500, a day after winning the pole and the Busch race, Kahne dominated most of the race leading 305 out of 500 laps and finished second to Carl Edwards. This was his best finish of the 2007 season. After a disappointing 2007 season, Kahne finished 19th in points with zero wins, one Top 5, eight Top 10’s, and an average finish of 22.2.


Gillette Evernham Motorsports and Richard Petty Motorsports (2008–10)

With the new sponsor Budweiser, Kahne started off the 2008 season strong by finishing in the Top 10 in both the Budweiser Shootout and the Gatorade Duel. As a result of fourth-place finish in the duel, Kahne started 10th in the 50th Daytona 500 on February 17, 2008. He finished seventh behind teammate Elliott Sadler in the 2008 Daytona 500, was a repeat of the 2007 race where they both also finished sixth and seventh respectively. In the early laps of the Auto Club 500, Kahne worked his way from 20th to 14th, but brushed the wall on lap 7. However, he was able to finish ninth after the race went under a long rain delay. Kahne had to start in the back due to an engine change in the UAW-Dodge 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but he did go on to finish sixth. On May 17, 2008, Kahne was voted into the Sprint All-Star Race XXIV by his fans via cell phone
text messaging Text messaging, or texting, is the act of composing and sending electronic messages, typically consisting of alphabetic and numeric characters, between two or more users of mobile devices, desktops/laptops, or another type of compatible comput ...
and online voting. After making a required "stop-and-go" pit stop, Kahne began the fourth segment second on old tires. He went on to win the race and earn $1,012,975. Kahne became the first driver to win the race from the fan vote and the third driver to race in the Sprint Showdown and go on to win the All-Star race. On May 25, 2008, he won his second Coca-Cola 600 passing
Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
with two laps to go, as Stewart had a flat tire going into turn 1. This was Kahne's first points-paying win of the season. He also became the sixth driver to win the 600 and the Sprint All-Star Race in the same season. On June 6, 2008, Kahne won the Pocono 500 from the pole despite being 38th at one point during the race after a miscue in the pits. On June 20, 2008, he won another pole for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway, his second pole in three races. However, after handling issues early in the race, Kahne fell victim to pit road, went a lap down, and finished 33rd. Following two consecutive 40th-place finishes (a
Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Bristol is among the m ...
wreck caused by miscommunications between Casey Mears and his spotter, and an engine failure at Michigan International Speedway), Kahne found himself sitting outside of the Top 12, out of contention for the Chase. At the start of the last regular season race, at Richmond International Raceway, he, David Ragan, and Clint Bowyer were vying for that 12th spot. Unfortunately for him, Kahne was not able to make up enough points to put him into the Chase for the Sprint Cup. He missed the 2008 Chase by 69 points and ended the season finishing 14th. Kahne's new team for 2009, Richard Petty Motorsports, was the result of a
merger Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of companies, other business organizations, or their operating units are transferred to or consolidated with another company or business organization. As an aspec ...
between his team's previous incarnation, Gillett Evernham Motorsports and
Petty Enterprises Petty Enterprises (formerly Lee Petty Engineering) was a NASCAR racing team based in Level Cross, North Carolina, USA. It was founded by Lee Petty with his two sons Richard Petty and Maurice Petty. The team was later owned by Richard Petty, h ...
. The year started off inconsistent for Kahne, with early Top 10 finishes at Atlanta and Bristol. Kahne won the Toyota/Save Mart 350 event on June 21, 2009, for his first road course win. After a hot summer streak that saw three top 10s in a row, Kahne climbed into Chase contention. During the
Pep Boys Auto 500 The Ambetter Health 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. William Byron is the defending race winner. This race was originally Atlanta's second race of the season and was run as a late-s ...
on September 6, 2009, Kahne made a late race pass and held off Kevin Harvick for his second win of the season. Following the first 26 races of the season Kahne was in the Top 12 in points, earning him a place in the Chase for the Championship. He was seeded fourth in points. After suffering an engine failure at New Hampshire and a crash in California, Kahne struggled to get back into contention for the championship and finished 10th in the final season standings, despite finishing 2nd at the AMP Energy 500 at
Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “'Dega”, and formerly named Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS) from 1969 to 1989, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base ...
. On September 10, 2009, it was announced that Richard Petty Motorsports would merge with Yates Racing. Kahne would remain as one of four drivers of RPM alongside his current teammates Sadler and Allmendinger, as well as Yates Racing driver
Paul Menard John Paul Christian Menard (born August 21, 1980) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver who last competed part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 66 Toyota Tundra for ThorSport Racing. Men ...
. The team changed manufacturers to Ford and received Roush-Yates engines and other equipment from Roush Fenway Racing. Driving the new Ford Fusion car, Kahne won the Gatorade Duel No. 2 at Daytona International Speedway on February 11, 2010. He also finished in second position in the 2010 Budweiser Shootout. Kahne ended up 30th in the Daytona 500 after being wrecked late in the race. He had been running up front for most of the race and had the fastest lap of the race. Kahne had a strong car at the Auto Club 500; however he spun late in turn 4. Kahne had a good run at Atlanta a few weeks later where he led the most laps in the race, and finished inside the Top 5. During the following couple of months, Kahne would be unable to compete for race wins as mistakes and wrecks put a dent into the team's Chase hopes. During the
Gillette Fusion ProGlide 500 Gillette is an American brand of safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies, owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G). Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was owned by The G ...
at
Pocono Raceway Pocono Raceway (formerly Pocono International Raceway), also known as ''The Tricky Triangle'', is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. It is the site of three NASCAR national series races and an AR ...
he had a top-five car all race long, but due to a late race caution, some teams stayed out on track instead of joining the leaders on pit-road. This put Kahne in the back end of the Top 20, and during the green-white-checkered finish Kahne tried to make it three-wide while battling for tenth place. However, he was blocked and ran down into the wet grass by his teammate
A. J. Allmendinger Anthony James "A. J." Allmendinger (born December 16, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Kaulig Racing. Allmendinger's professio ...
. Kahne spun back into the racing surface and was hit by
Greg Biffle Gregory Jack Biffle (born December 23, 1969) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 44 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for NY Racing Team and full-time in th ...
and Mark Martin. The No. 9 car took off and landed on top of the outside wall, hit a tree behind the wall and span back onto the track on all four wheels. Kahne and Biffle both put the blame on Allmendinger for causing the huge crash. Kahne rebounded from the disappointment at Pocono by leading laps in the following race at Michigan and finishing second, behind the dominant Denny Hamlin. He also qualified on pole for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway the following week; and converted the pole position into a solid fourth-place finish; after bouncing back from a poor first stint, to post back-to-back Top 5 finishes. In qualifying for the 2010 Carfax 400 at Michigan International Speedway, Kahne earned his second pole position of the season. On October 3, 2010, Kahne started the
Price Chopper 400 The Hollywood Casino 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas. This race is the second of ten races in the Cup Series playoffs; since 2022, it is the second race of the Round of 16. NBC has the ...
at
Kansas Speedway Kansas Speedway is a tri-oval race track in the Village West area near Kansas City, Kansas, United States. It was built in 2001 and it currently hosts two annual NASCAR race weekends. The IndyCar Series also held races at the venue until 20 ...
from the
pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the rac ...
. On October 20, 2010, Kahne was released from the remainder of his contract with Richard Petty Motorsports. The next day, it was announced that Kahne would drive for
Team Red Bull Red Bull Racing Team, also known as Team Red Bull, was a NASCAR team owned by Red Bull founders Dietrich Mateschitz and Chaleo Yoovidhya. The team was based in Mooresville, North Carolina in the United States and was managed by Jay Frye. The te ...
for the remainder of the season as well as the full 2011 season starting with the TUMS Bring It On 500 at Martinsville Speedway. After the 2010 season finale in Homestead, Kahne went in for knee surgery due to discomfort and pain caused by plica syndrome.
November 19, 2010.


Red Bull Racing (2011)

On April 13, 2010, Kahne announced that he would be leaving Richard Petty Motorsports at the end of the 2010 season to race in 2012 with
Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup S ...
, driving the No. 5. On August 10, 2010, Team Red Bull officially announced that Kahne would drive one of their cars for the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup season, a tenure that would start in the 2010 season after Kahne was released from RPM. Kahne used the number 4 for his Red Bull Toyota, a homage to the number he used in Sprint Cars. Prior to the acquisition, the No. 4 was made famous by Morgan-McClure Motorsports. Kahne won his first pole for Red Bull Racing the year prior at the 2010 season finale at Homestead driving the #83. On June 9, 2011, it was announced that Farmers Insurance Group would sponsor Kahne for 22 races in 2012. It was also announced that his current crew chief
Kenny Francis Kenneth Francis (born December 1, 1969) is an American NASCAR crew chief. He began his racing career at the age of eight, racing go-karts. He continued to drive the race car until 1996 when he began working on engines for Butch Mock Motorsports ...
will join him at Hendrick. Kahne dominated the early stages of the Brickyard 400, but spun late in the race and had to settle for 18th position. He led 48 laps, a race-high. He did not make it into the 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup, resting at 21st in points following the cut-off race, the Wonderful Pistachios 400 at Richmond International Raceway on September 10. On November 13, 2011, at the newly configured
Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix Raceway is a 1-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona, near Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually including the final championship race since 2020 ...
, Kahne held off Carl Edwards in the closing laps to take his first victory of the season, his first victory for Team Red Bull, and Kahne's first victory in over two years. Kahne only led the final 14 laps of the race. Kahne finished the 2011 season 14th in points behind Clint Bowyer.


Hendrick Motorsports (2012–17)

In 2012, Kahne drove the No. 5 Farmers Insurance/ Quaker State/HendrickCars.com-sponsored Chevrolet for
Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup S ...
, consequent with Mark Martin's move to
Michael Waltrip Racing Michael Waltrip Racing Holdings LLC, doing business as Michael Waltrip Racing ("MWR"), was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed full-time in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The company was as a 50–50 partnership betw ...
. In the Budweiser Shootout, he was involved in an early accident in the first segment. His teammates
Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...
,
Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. A seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, he competes part-time in the series driving for Petty GMS Motorsports. Johnson's seven Cup championships, t ...
, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. were eliminated in crashes during the second segment. Kahne qualified and ran well in his Gatorade Duel, but in the
Daytona 500 The Daytona 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series motor race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the first of two Cup races held every year at Daytona, the second being the Coke Zero Sugar 400, and one of thre ...
was taken out in a crash on lap 188 involving Jamie McMurray, Regan Smith, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski,
Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
, and
Aric Almirola Aric Michael Almirola (born March 14, 1984) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 10 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing. A graduate of Hillsborough High School in T ...
. He finished 29th. Kahne announced in late-March that he would compete for Turner Motorsports in the Camping World Truck Series at
Rockingham Speedway Rockingham Speedway, formerly North Carolina Motor Speedway and later North Carolina Speedway is a racetrack located near Rockingham, North Carolina. It is also known as The Rock and previously hosted NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series ...
in April, driving the No. 4 in the Good Sam Roadside Assistance 200. In that race, he led 47 laps and went on to win. Kahne had a rough start to 2012, finishing no better than 14th in the first five races. However, he rebounded with seven straight Top 10 finishes, including a win in the 2012 Coca-Cola 600 in his 300th Sprint Cup Start. This was also his first win with
Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup S ...
. On July 15, 2012, Kahne won the
Lenox Industrial Tools 301 The Crayon 301 is a 301 lap ( annual NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire. Christopher Bell is the defending winner, having won it in 2022. History The race has been traditionally ...
at Loudon, and along with teammate
Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...
made the Chase through the two Wild Card spots. During the Chase, Kahne won poles at Talladega and Kansas. He ended the season a career-best fourth place in the points, with two wins, four poles, 12 Top 5’s and 19 Top 10’s. Kahne had a slow start to 2013, finishing 36th and 19th at Daytona and Phoenix, respectively. However, at Las Vegas, he led 114 laps (which was almost twice the number of laps he had led in all of his previous Vegas starts) and finished second to Matt Kenseth despite an impressive charge in the last laps. Kahne was able to redeem himself for this near-miss the following week by winning at Bristol. After Bristol, he had a strong run at
Auto Club Speedway Auto Club Speedway, originally opened as California Speedway, is a , low-banked, D-shaped oval superspeedway in unincorporated San Bernardino County, California, near Fontana. It has hosted NASCAR racing annually since 1997. It was also prev ...
in which he finished ninth—he then had an even stronger run at Martinsville, where he had one of the best cars and finished fourth. He then finished eleventh at Texas. At Kansas, Kahne again finished second to Kenseth in a finish very similar to the finish at Las Vegas. Kahne's season also started with a number of run-ins with
Kyle Busch Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and part-tim ...
, who wrecked him in three of the first 11 races: at the Daytona 500, Kahne was running in the Top 5 when Busch turned him approaching turn 1 on lap 33, resulting in a seven-car wreck also collecting
Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
, Juan Pablo Montoya, Jamie McMurray, and other cars. At Talladega, on lap 43, Kahne was in the outside lane when Busch turned him into the wall again heading towards turn 1. Kahne bounced off the wall and back into Busch and collected an additional 14 cars, including Kevin Harvick, David Reutimann, Brian Vickers,
Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
, Marcos Ambrose,
Greg Biffle Gregory Jack Biffle (born December 23, 1969) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 44 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for NY Racing Team and full-time in th ...
, Jeff Burton, Casey Mears, Jamie McMurray,
Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...
,
Kurt Busch Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American professional auto racing driver. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. He is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion and th ...
, David Stremme, and
Scott Speed Scott Andrew Speed (born January 24, 1983) is an American race car driver who has competed in numerous disciplines, including open-wheel, stock car, and rallycross racing. In , Speed became the first American driver to race in Formula One sin ...
. Later, at Darlington, another incident happened when Busch sent Kahne into the wall while being challenged for the lead late-race, causing a caution. At the Coca-Cola 600, Kahne had
influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptom ...
and there was doubt he could finish the race. This didn't stop him from leading the most laps and nearly winning the race, but Kevin Harvick got by him on a restart with 11 laps to go. At Michigan, Kahne led the race, but slid into the turn 2 wall, and the car caught fire. Kahne finished 38th, and dropped down four spots in the points standings to 12th. Following the DNF at Michigan, Kahne rebounded with a sixth-place finish at Sonoma and an 11th-place finish at Kentucky. At Daytona, Kahne was running behind
Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. A seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, he competes part-time in the series driving for Petty GMS Motorsports. Johnson's seven Cup championships, t ...
for most of the race until he got tagged by Marcos Ambrose on a late restart, sending him into the inside wall on the back straightaway and relegating him to a 32nd-place finish. This was followed by an 11th-place finish at New Hampshire, and a third-place finish at Indianapolis. At Pocono in August, Kahne started 18th. He led 66 laps of the race and was involved in a tight battle with Tony Stewart for the lead in the final laps. A decision by Gordon to take the final restart on lap 158 on the inside lane gave Kahne the opportunity to draft past Gordon in turn 1 and then sail away to his second career Pocono race victory and second win of the 2013 season, bringing him up to eighth place in the points. His form didn't carry to Watkins Glen, though, where he was wrecked by Matt Kenseth on a late restart that saw him collide with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and finish 34th. Kahne then had a seventh-place finish at Michigan, and then a runner-up finish at Bristol behind Kenseth for the third time in 2013. He qualified for the Chase, but any chance of him winning ended with a crash at Loudon. Early in the 2013 Sylvania 300, Kahne got loose, wheel-hopped and hit a barrier extremely hard. Kahne was uninjured but caused controversy when he acted like he could not hear a reporter in his interview which led many to speculate that Kahne suffered a head injury. Kahne apologized for causing the false alarm and said he was too angry to talk about it and that he was not injured. Kahne struggled in the first half of the 2014 season. He came close to a win at Pocono in June but hit the outside barrier late in the event, costing him his shot at the win. Kahne said that Kyle Busch was yet again responsible for the crash and Busch himself took responsibility that night. When Kahne heard that Busch apologized for the wreck he shrugged it off and said "I don't care to talk to him anymore about our wrecks. Tired of his aggressiveness and the fact that his performances are affecting my own results." Kahne began ending rumors of his departure from Hendrick Motorsports with a sponsorship extension with Farmers Insurance for 12 races in the 2015–2017 seasons. At the Brickyard 400, Kahne led 70 laps due to great track position but lost the lead on a restart with 17 laps left to
Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...
and ended up sixth. At Atlanta, Kahne controlled the final 15 laps of the race. With three laps to go, it seemed like he lost it when a caution came out. He lost four spots on pit road, but after two more cautions, sped by Matt Kenseth and won the race to clench a spot in the Chase. It was his first only win of 2014. He finished 15th in the standings being eliminated from round 2 of the Chase. Kahne received a three-year contract extension with HMS in November, which would run until the conclusion of the 2018 season. It was announced a day earlier that long time engineer and Jamie McMurray's 2014 crew chief, Keith Rodden, would return to HMS and replace Kenny Francis as Kahne's crew chief. Francis had been Kahne's crew chief since the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Replacing Francis ended the second-longest driver/crew chief pairing in NASCAR in the first two decades of the 21st century. Kahne made his return to the Camping World Truck Series driving the No. 00 Haas Automation-sponsored Silverado for
JR Motorsports JR Motorsports (pronounced "Junior Motorsports") is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, CARS Tour, and occasionally in the NASCAR Advance Auto Pa ...
at Charlotte. Kahne beat 18-year-old Erik Jones by 0.005 seconds which was tied for the second closest finish in NASCAR Truck Series competition. The win was Chevrolet's 200th win in the Camping World Truck Series. In the Cup series, Kahne would start off with a 9th-place finish in the Daytona 500. He would struggle throughout most of the year, and would only get 10 Top 10’s and three Top 5’s, his best finish being fourth at Phoenix, Dover, and the Kansas Chase race. Kahne finished the season in 18th place in the final points standings. Kahne experienced a difficult 2016 season as he finished 17th in the final points standings with only three Top 5’s and 13 Top 10’s. During the season, Kahne did not lead a single lap in any race despite completing the most laps in the series. Kahne's 2017 Season started off similar to previous years, but did manage to lead laps over compared to the previous year. After disappointing races at the beginning of the year, things began to look up. In July 2017, Kahne returned to Victory Lane at the Brantley Gilbert Big Machine Brickyard 400, surviving a crash-laden race that took out many contending cars, including holding off Brad Keselowski on an overtime restart that ended under caution. It was Kahne's 18th win in the Cup Series and first in 102 races. The race was also the reason that the NASCAR sanctioning body eliminated the Overtime Line. On August 7, 2017, Hendrick Motorsports announced Kahne would not be returning to the team for the 2018 season, and two days later, William Byron was announced as Kahne's replacement. It was simultaneously announced that the No. 5 car, Hendrick's original entry in NASCAR, would disappear from Hendrick Motorsports going forward. In 2020, the No. 5 car returned when it was assigned to Kyle Larson. After the opening race in the chase at Chicagoland Speedway, crew chief Keith Rodden was replaced with Darian Grubb after many lackluster finishes. Right away, Kahne was one of the fastest cars at Loudon, but bad luck plagued the 5 team in the Playoffs and had an early playoff exit. At the end of the season, he ended up with a career low in Top 10's with six and tied his career low of Top 5's with three. He also led 41 laps in 2017, his second career lowest after the aforementioned 2016 season where he didn't lead a lap at all. Kahne announced he would drive the 95 Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in 2018, replacing Michael McDowell.


Leavine Family Racing (2018)

On September 19, 2017, Kahne announced he would be driving the No. 95 for Leavine Family Racing in 2018. In the offseason, Leavine announced he would pair up with Hendrick Motorsports team engineer Travis Mack who previously substituted for Greg Ives when he Crew Chiefed for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to his best run in 2017. Kahne finished 10th in the All Star race after going four laps down from a wreck. After a very disappointing first half, that included his best run of 17th place on three occasions and a firing of crew chief Travis Mack for lead engineer John Leonard. He led a season high 17 laps and scored the most points at the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona, on the final restart, Kahne tried to make a move to the lead but stalled out due to not getting help. He fell back in line and finished fourth, a season best for him, tying the team's best finish as well as moving up three spots in the standings to 25th. On August 16, 2018, Kahne stated his intention to step away from full-time competition at the end of the year. On September 6, 2018, after heat exhaustion from the race before at Darlington, Kahne announced that he would sit out the 2018 Brickyard 400 at
Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
and be replaced by Regan Smith, which would be the first race Kahne had not raced in since he began his full time career in the Cup Series. Following the Brickyard race it was announced that Kahne would continue to sit out for the next three races with Smith still filling in. On October 9, 2018, he announced on Twitter that he will sit out for the remainder of the year, ending his 15-year career prematurely.


Return to dirt racing

On March 29, 2019, Kahne was injured in a hard sprint car accident at
Williams Grove Speedway Williams Grove Speedway is a half-mile automobile dirt racing track located in Mechanicsburg , Pennsylvania, USA. The speedway opened on May 21, 1939, it has been owned by the Hughes family for over 50 years and has hosted many of the most nota ...
, and Australian driver James McFadden replaced him. Kahne did not race again for over a year, with his first race back coming at Knoxville Raceway on May 8, 2020; he finished 11th in the last chance qualifier. On December 22, 2021, Kahne announced that he would compete full-time with the World of Outlaws in 2022 driving the Kasey Kahne Racing No. 9 car.


Personal life

Kahne and his former girlfriend Samantha Sheets became parents on October 13, 2015, to a son named Tanner. The couple is known to have an amicable relationship following their split sometime before 2018. Kahne began dating Amy Long, a former reporter, in 2020.


Film and television

Kahne was featured in the premiere episode of the 2006 Biography Channel series ''Driven to Win''. This 30-minute program covered Kahne's childhood and entry into NASCAR, as well as his 2004 Rookie of the Year season and his first win in 2005. He was also featured in two episodes of the second season of '' NASCAR 360'' on the
FX Network FX is an American pay television channel owned by FX Networks, LLC, a subsidiary of the Disney General Entertainment Content unit of The Walt Disney Company. It is based at the Fox Studios lot in Century City, California. FX originally launch ...
. Kasey Kahne Racing, NASCAR Media Group and Motorsports Management International partnered to produce the 2009 release, "''The Rise of Kahne''." This 90-minute biographical profile features interviews with Kahne, his family and other NASCAR personalities. Footage covers the
stock-car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
racer's open-wheel roots and successes leading up to his June 2009 win at Infineon Raceway, his first for Richard Petty Motorsports. The DVD also shows his work with the Kasey Kahne Foundation and his own sprint car race team. Kahne's No. 9 Dodge Dealers car appeared in the 2005 Disney film '' Herbie: Fully Loaded'', with Kahne as one of the four drivers who boxed Herbie in and pummeled him in the final race. He is mentioned by name by one of the race announcers. In 2010, Kahne made a brief appearance in the music video " Smoke a Little Smoke" by
Eric Church Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's '' Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billboar ...
.


Motorsports career results


NASCAR

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)


Monster Energy Cup Series


=Daytona 500

=


Xfinity Series


Camping World Truck Series


K&N Pro Series East


Whelen Modified Tour

Season still in progress
Ineligible for series points


ARCA Re/Max Series

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)


References


External links

*
Kasey Kahne Racing
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kahne, Kasey Living people 1980 births American people of German descent People from Enumclaw, Washington Racing drivers from Washington (state) NASCAR drivers Atlantic Championship drivers World of Outlaws drivers Motorsport team owners Robert Yates Racing drivers Evernham Motorsports drivers Hendrick Motorsports drivers USAC Silver Crown Series drivers Kyle Busch Motorsports drivers JR Motorsports drivers