Latest news with #Kahne
Newsweek
04-05-2025
- Automotive
- Newsweek
Kasey Kahne Issues NASCAR Racing Return Update In Texas Appearance
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Former NASCAR star Kasey Kahne, who is serving as the honorary pace car driver during the Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway today, has shared an update on a future return to NASCAR racing. The 44-year-old driver stepped away from full-time NASCAR competition in 2018. However, after making a racing return at Rockingham Speedway on April 19 in the Xfinity Series, the driver has now indicated that he would be keen to make another comeback. In the lead up to the NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway, FOX Sports reporter Bob Pockrass shared: "Kasey Kahne, who is driving the pace car prior to the start of the race today, said he enjoyed doing Rockingham and would like to do another Xfinity race in the future, maybe that race again next year." Kasey Kahne, who is driving the pace car prior to the start of the race today, said he enjoyed doing Rockingham and would like to do another Xfinity race in the future, maybe that race again next year. — Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 4, 2025 Kahne managed a 14th-place finish in Rockingham after a Stage 1 incident. While speaking to the media following the race, Kahne explained: "That was definitely a handful once the car was tore up," Kahne said. "I think we were an easy top-five car prior to that, maybe even better. But yeah, once the front end was tore off the right side, and then just the damage, it was just a battle from that point on. Honorary pace car driver, Kasey Kahne speaks to the media during a press conference prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Würth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway on May 04, 2025 in Fort Worth, Texas. Honorary pace car driver, Kasey Kahne speaks to the media during a press conference prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Würth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway on May 04, 2025 in Fort Worth, Texas."The guys did good — like I thought we did a good job of getting back to the lead lap and just avoiding wrecks, just kind of salvaged the best we could at that point." He added: "Long day. I was hot on Lap 60," Kahne said, referencing the end of Stage 1. "And then we got some ice bags and started drinking more water. Went fine from there, but yeah, I haven't been that hot in a long time. Seven years." Speaking ahead of the race, Kahne noted: "As far as my health, I'm in a good place right now because I don't do this all the time," Kahne said Friday. "I don't do the long races, the (heat). It got worse as soon as the summer months came, and then every week after that just was draining me, those last couple years I did it. I think going into this, it's good." Carson Hocevar has secured pole position for the NASCAR Cup Series Wurth 400 Presented By LIQUI MOLY at Texas Motor Speedway. He reacted to the achievement, stating: "Having the cowboy outfit — what better place to be on the pole. I'm normally so hard on myself, and I didn't think I nailed that lap at all, but I'm super proud of this team. "I'm so proud, because I've never had the No. 1 pit stall, and I've had a lot of issues with pit road and we've had a lot of bad luck. So I finally get the No. 1 pit stall and I'm pumped about that."
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Kasey Kahne relishes Rockingham return, salvages top-15 finish
ROCKINGHAM, N.C. — Kasey Kahne experienced a little bit of everything and then some in his return to stock car racing. Named one of the 75 Greatest Drivers in 2023, Kahne came back to NASCAR Saturday to compete in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway, his first appearance across the sport's national touring series since 2018. Advertisement RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Rockingham Driving the No. 33 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing, Kahne qualified fourth and was steadily toward the front of the field until he suffered damage in a Stage 1 crash that hindered his car for the remainder of the 256-lap event. Nonetheless, Kahne trudged through the day and rebounded for a respectable, hard-fought 14th-place finish in the North Carolina Education Lottery 250. 'That was definitely a handful once the car was tore up,' Kahne said. 'I think we were an easy top-five car prior to that, maybe even better. But yeah, once the front end was tore off the right side, and then just the damage, it was just a battle from that point on. The guys did good — like I thought we did a good job of getting back to the lead lap and just avoiding wrecks, just kind of salvaged the best we could at that point.' It was nearly impossible to tell it had been seven years since Kahne's last time driving a stock car. At 45 years old, Kahne continues to race sprint cars through his team, Kasey Kahne Racing, and is competing full-time in the Kubota High Limit Racing series in 2025. His departure from NASCAR, though, was medically necessary. Then 38 years old, Kahne would regularly overheat in the race car and become dehydrated more quickly, he explained in a February episode of Dirty Mo Media's 'Dale Jr. Download.' Advertisement Away from the intense heat and duration of a stock-car cockpit for numerous years, Kahne felt ready to get back behind the wheel, this time with Richard Childress Racing. 'As far as my health, I'm in a good place right now because I don't do this all the time,' Kahne said Friday. 'I don't do the long races, the (heat). It got worse as soon as the summer months came, and then every week after that just was draining me, those last couple years I did it. I think going into this, it's good.' Kasey Kahne races at Rockingham. Good it was for Kahne, who soldiered through the 2 hours, 59 minutes and 38 seconds of Saturday's event with little to no issues despite two red flags and 14 caution periods slowing the race's average speed to 80.377 mph. Advertisement 'Long day. I was hot on Lap 60,' Kahne said, referencing the end of Stage 1. 'And then we got some ice bags and started drinking more water. Went fine from there, but yeah, I haven't been that hot in a long time. Seven years.' Yet Kahne returned to competition just as naturally as he entered it in 2004, when he finished second in a thrilling photo finish at Rockingham behind Matt Kenseth in just Kahne's second career Cup start. 'It's been a long time, and as long as I drove these cars, it was really cool to get back in one and feel it (and) do that whole race weekend because it's just so much different,' Kahne said. 'The sprint car stuff I'm doing now I love, and things happen quick and the night's over and you move on to the next one. But this is just a different type of racing, different type of race weekend. I enjoyed it. I'm glad I did it.' Ultimately, the 18-time Cup Series winner walked away satisfied with his entire experience. Whether Kahne returns for another crack at NASCAR racing — Cup? Xfinity? Trucks? — remains yet to be determined. But the process of being back in the throes of a NASCAR team for a January test, simulator prep work and the motions of a practice, qualifying and race was heartily welcomed by the 2017 Brickyard 400 winner. 'I enjoyed it,' Kahne said. 'I've really looked forward to it and put a lot into it. It was really fun working with the RCR group, going up to their shop, just being part of a NASCAR team again — that was really cool. And all the people at RCR were great. So, yeah, I mean, I enjoyed it. I don't know about more in the future, but I'm really glad I did this. I wish it would have went much different, but I think we were very competitive and had a shot at being somewhere in that top five if things go our way throughout.'
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Drivers praise return to Rockingham, hoping it stays on the schedule
The NASCAR Cup Series' season-opening Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium left race fans clamoring for more. Last weekend's NASCAR Xfinity and Craftsman Truck Series doubleheader at Rockingham Speedway had the same effect. Advertisement The enthusiastic turnout engendered hopes that perhaps the Cup Series might someday join its national series brethren at the rejuvenated 'Rock.' After winning the Black's Tire 200 Truck Series race on Friday, Tyler Ankrum got right to the point. 'It's really, really cool,' Ankrum said. 'When we get to bring back these old tracks, it's really cool. You can tell the fans are excited. Even on pit road, the fans are going crazy all the time, and they're talking so loudly you can hear 'em from pit road. 'You kind of get the feeling of what I imagine as a kid what Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon felt like. They're here for us — they're not here for the Cup guys. It's cool to see racing like this come back to North Carolina. Advertisement 'I was really surprised at how wide the track had gotten, how much fall-off there was, especially there at the end of the race. … I hope Rockingham stays on the schedule for a long time.' RELATED: Recap Truck race | Xfinity Series race recap Kasey Kahne, the only driver in the Xfinity Series field who had raced at Rockingham before the series left the track in 2004, made a return of his own after an absence from NASCAR racing of nearly eight years. Kahne thought the Cup Series would be a viable option at the 0.94-mile speedway. 'I think a Cup race could probably be really good here,' said Kahne, who also won a Truck race at the track in 2012. 'I used to enjoy watching it and being a part of it the one year I was. Advertisement 'It could make a great race.' Kahne's point is hard to argue against. The racing surface, which was repaved in late 2022, readily took rubber in both practice and the races themselves. The result was a viable second groove that lent itself to compelling racing. 'It's been cool to go back to some of the venues that may not be as big places but the history, I think, of NASCAR and great racing is at some of those tracks, Rockingham being one of those as well,' Kahne said. 'I like where some of that stuff seems to be headed.' NASCAR Xfinity Series racing at Rockingham. Jesse Love, disqualified as the ostensible winner of Saturday's Xfinity Series race, nevertheless waged intense battles at the front of the field against both Carson Kvapil and Ryan Sieg. Advertisement Drivers found creative lines around the track, running higher in the corners to gain momentum and dropping down to try to make passes on the inside. It wasn't uncommon to see competitors swap positions more than once within the same lap with slide jobs and crossover moves. As Ankrum indicated, fan reception was exceptional. The grandstands were packed, and likewise, the hospitality suites were sold out. As both the Clash at Bowman Gray and the move of the NASCAR All-Star Race to North Wilkesboro Speedway have proven, there's an appetite within the fan base for the traditional venues that are an integral part of NASCAR's past. Yes, bringing a Cup race to Rockingham would require improvements to the track's infrastructure, but that was also the case at Bowman Gray and North Wilkesboro. MORE: At-track photos | Rockingham through the years Though not yet three years old, the pavement at 'The Rock' already is showing some age, and the racing — already compelling — will only improve as the asphalt continues to degrade. Advertisement There was no issue with access to the speedway. It's a straight shot up U.S. Highway 1, with multiple entrances and ample parking. Even at expected peak times, the traffic flowed. The bottom line? There's no reason a Cup race can't be a viable option at Rockingham, but even if the schedule doesn't allow such an option in the immediate future, the Truck/Xfinity national series doubleheader — with an ARCA Menards Series East race thrown in for good measure — is well worth the price of admission. That was certainly the case during NASCAR's long-awaited return.
Fox Sports
21-04-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Rockingham weekend rocked ... but NASCAR needs to be careful on next steps
ROCKINGHAM, N.C. — Jeff Burton walked through Rockingham Speedway on Saturday. This was the same Rockingham Speedway where he celebrated winning the October 1999 race at the one-mile oval a couple of hours east of Charlotte. He's retired now but has dual roles as a television analyst and as the leader of a drivers' group that helps work with NASCAR on ideas to better the sport. So Burton knows the philosophy that took NASCAR away from some of the smaller venues in the Southeast and brought it to newer racetracks in markets across the nation. "I don't think trying to grow the sport was wrong," Burton said. "If you look at quotes from me 30 years ago, I'd say I think we need to be at as many places as possible but not run as many races as possible. ... I don't think the way forward is to go back in the past and try to do it all like it used to be. "But going back and connecting to our hardcore fans that were with us forever? That's not wrong. You've got to find a way to do both." NASCAR returned to the track on the Friday and Saturday of Easter weekend for national series events for the first time in 12 years. The years 2012 and 2013 saw the first revival of the track, with truck series races on a Sunday after a Saturday night Cup race at Texas. The attendance waned in the second year and since then, Rockingham has sat dormant as far as NASCAR races. It last had a Cup race in 2004, when it was shuttered by Speedway Motorsports after it obtained the track as part of the settlement of the Ferko lawsuit where an SMI shareholder sued NASCAR to get a second race at Texas. Rockingham's lone remaining date went to Texas, and the track has gone through a few different owners over the last couple of decades. Its current ownership group is headed by Dan Lovenheim. Track Enterprises, a track promotion company that counts Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway racing and the former truck races at The Milwaukee Mile among its events, landed the deal to get the track ready and promote a weekend of truck and Xfinity racing in 2025. The fans responded. Attendance figures were not announced, but approximately 16,000 attended on Friday and then a sold-out crowd of approximately 25,000 attended the race on Saturday. The buzz was real. And Kasey Kahne was one driver who noticed. Kahne finished second in the last Cup race in 2004, won the 2012 truck race at the track and made his first NASCAR start since 2018 over the weekend. Kahne, who races sprint cars regularly across the country, was in an early wreck and finished 15th in his return. "There was a lot going on that weekend and I remember having a blast driving and it was a really cool race to be part of," Kahne said when comparing Saturday to 2012. "I feel like there was way more people here today and there was a lot more excitement this weekend than what I remember then." A repave of the track certainly impacted the racing. Drivers didn't have to lift off the throttle much, especially in the trucks. The truck race didn't have as much back-and-forth passing as this track has traditionally seen. But the Xfinity race turned into a chaotic event, with several late cautions. Drivers jockeyed for position, all while facing the possibility (and for some, the reality) of running out of fuel. The infrastructure was certainly tested to the hilt. Part of that was having a facility that hadn't seen a crowd as big as Saturday's in 21 years. The main scoreboard wasn't operational (but the track did bring in big video screens) and fans had stories of long waits to get into parking lots. But this felt like another win for NASCAR. It was similar to the rejuvenation of the All-Star race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, similar to taking the preseason clash to Bowman Gray Stadium. Both of those historic short tracks are in North Carolina. And currently, NASCAR holds 11 of its 38 Cup events in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee or Virginia. So the question begs: If NASCAR brings the Cup Series back to Rockingham, will NASCAR oversaturate the market? "When we thought it was too much concentration at one place, what did that get us?" Burton said. "I'm not saying we need to be at all those racetracks twice. I'm not saying that. "But look at where all your highest TV ratings are locally [in North Carolina]. To build, we've got to take care of our current fans. That's how we get new fans." That also brings up another question: Does Rockingham need to have Cup races? A Cup race can be an approximately $10 to $15 million payday for a racetrack, and that's just from the television money that comes with it. That's compared to $1 to $2 million for an Xfinity race. The costs to host a Cup race, with sanction fees and other necessary safety and infrastructure requirements, will also run into the millions. It would likely require lights at the facility. And more grandstands. And then higher ticket prices to cover the costs in an area where many of the locals have limited discretionary income. But if NASCAR wants to bolster its developmental series, they might have found the perfect venue in Rockingham. "They're here for us," said truck series winner Tyler Ankrum. "It's really cool. ... I hope this stays on the schedule." Ankrum and Xfinity driver Jesse Love both hail from California and celebrated in victory lane (Love was later disqualified for having a rear suspension that wasn't in compliance with NASCAR rules). Love was born in 2005, so he obviously has no memory of Rockingham as a Cup track. Ankrum was born in 2001, so he had no great stories of visiting it or watching it as a kid. "It was definitely really cool," Love said. "The only thing that I could compare it to on an oval track was the Bristol night race. ... For a racetrack atmosphere, this was one of the coolest short-track events I've ever been to. "I'm just blessed to win at a place with a lot of history and a lot of eyeballs on us." Love couldn't always say he had a lot of eyeballs watching him. And rarely are the trucks and Xfinity teams the stars of the show. The only other track where Xfinity will run without Cup this year will be Portland International Raceway. The trucks have a couple more scheduled for this year, at Lime Rock (Conn.) Park and Indianapolis Raceway Park. None are tracks where Cup once raced. Rockingham stands alone in that regard. So when evaluating the weekend races, there will be clamoring for a big Cup event. But NASCAR had a great thing going last weekend. And to build on that, NASCAR needs to focus on making the current weekend great before biting off maybe more than it can chew. Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass. recommended Get more from NASCAR Cup Series Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Kasey Kahne's return hindered by early wreck with Katherine Legge
Motorsport photo Kasey Kahne's anticipated return and Katherine Legge run ended early, and quickly Satuday as the two came together just over 50 laps into Saturday's NASCAR Xfinity race at Rockingham, leaving both with significant damage. Advertisement Kahne, a highly successful Cup driver who was making his first NASCAR start in nearly seven years, ran near the front of the field from the drop of the green flag. He briefly fell back to eighth but steadily marched forward in the first true green-flag run of the race. Legge was hoping to gain more NASCAR experience on ovals, but she actually missed the show in qualifying with the Jordan Anderson Racing team. She was able to find a new ride for the race after failing to qualify. She replaced J.J. Yeley at Joey Gase Motorsports (a fellow Chevy team), who scrambled to swap out the seat and add e.l.f. Cosmetics decals to the No. 53 car before the green flag. Katherine Legge, Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet Katherine Legge, Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet James Gilbert / Getty Images James Gilbert / Getty Images Advertisement Kahne was battling for William Sawalich for fourth on track when the pair came upon Legge. Running at a slower pace, Sawalich didn't anticipate her entry speed and ran directly into the back of her. Legge spun to the inside, slamming into the right-front fender of Kahne before spinning back up the track and colliding with the outside wall. Legge's race was over, finishing 38th. Her Cup debut at Phoenix earlier this year also ended in an unfortunate DNF. She later placed blame on Sawalich, telling FOX's Bob Pockrass: "I got taken out ... I don't have a disappear button on my steering wheel." Meanwhile, the Richard Childress Racing team lost a lap making extensive repairs to Kahne's No. 33 Chevrolet. He remains in the race and has met minimum speed. Kahne finally got back on the lead lap at the start of the final stage after Sawalich was part of another caution. Kahne soldiered on to finish 15th, even after getting involved in another incident near the end of the chaotic race. Advertisement Legge later posted on social media: "I'm so proud of this team!! We were able to run a fast enough lap time in qualifications to put me comfortably in the race if not for Owner Points provisional. So that's why my sponsors & partners were on board to help me get the track time I promised everyone we would get. They meant it when they said they support me, and believe in our program. Unfortunately, there was nothing I could do about Sawalich getting right up under the back of the car and taking me and subsequently others out of the race. "Thank you Joey Gase Racing, Jordan Anderson, JJ Yeley, e.l.f. Cosmetics, and Team Chevy for having my back. See you all at Talladega!' Read Also: Katherine Legge fails to qualify, but will still run NASCAR Xfinity race Kasey Kahne eyeing more NASCAR races if Rockingham goes well To read more articles visit our website.
