Capsules for the top 20 drivers in the
Sprint Cup standings, plus five additional drivers of note.
By Jerry Bonkowski and Bob Moore
24 JEFF GORDON, Chevrolet
Team: Hendrick Motorsports
WHERE HE STANDS: Jeff Gordon remained in first place for the sixth
consecutive week after New Hampshire and for 12 of the last 13
weeks. Gordon leads second-ranked Dale Earnhardt Jr. by just 12
points (was 27 points last week).
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 20 career starts, 4 wins, 11 top-5s, 16
top-10s, 3 poles. Best career finish: First in 1994, 1998, 2001 and
2004. Finished seventh in this race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: Gordon is still looking for his second win of the
season, and is also looking for his first win at Indy since 2001.
"Yeah, every time it's something special when you go to
Indianapolis," Gordon said. "It's just such a cool place, so much
history, and obviously a lot of great memories for me and
confidence. As a driver when I go there, of course it takes a great
car and a great team to win that race, but it seems like most years
that we've been there, we've had a car that's capable of winning.
With the type of season that we're having, I'm extremely excited
about going to Indianapolis. I think that the way that our cars are
performing, the way our engines are performing, Indianapolis is a
track that we certainly can win at. It's hard to believe it's been
20 years, but looking forward to celebrating those 20 years
hopefully with another win."
LOOKING BACK: Gordon led 19 laps at New Hampshire, but his car faded
and he eventually wound up with a disappointing 26th-place finish,
the last car on the lead lap.
ETC.: Gordon has completed 96.2 percent (3,079) of the 3,201 total
laps contested in 20 career starts at Indianapolis. His average
start there is 12.2 and average finish is an outstanding 8.8. He has
one DNF there.
88 DALE EARNHARDT JR., Chevrolet
Team: Hendrick Motorsports
WHERE HE STANDS: Former points leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. remained in
second place for the second week. Earnhardt trails points leader and
Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon by 27 points and is 24
points ahead of third-ranked Brad Keselowski.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 14 career starts, 0 wins, 1 top-5s, 4 top-10s,
0 poles. Best career finish: Fourth in 2012. Finished sixth in this
race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: Earnhardt has never won at Indianapolis, but he's
coming off his two best showings there in 2012 (fourth) and last
year (sixth, tying his earlier previous best in 2006).
LOOKING BACK: Earnhardt had a decent run and finished 10th at New
Hampshire. Although after the race, he complained about how he and
his team should have finished higher than they did. "I think we
worked real hard to finish where we finished," Earnhardt said after
the race. "The guys worked their guts out every practice. We changed
a lot of stuff on the car. It was real disappointing not to have the
speed a lot of those other guys had. The No. 2 (Brad Keselowski) and
the Gibbs guys they were all real fast. Hats off to them because
they surely got their cars figured out. It's just real frustrating
all day long to be playing second fiddle. We worked really hard all
day to finish 10th. Pretty disappointing we will go home and work on
it and try to do better."
ETC.: Earnhardt has completed 93.0 percent (2,084 laps) of the 2,241
total laps contested in 14 career starts at Indianapolis. His
average start there is 16.9 and average finish is 19.3. He has three
DNFs there.
2 BRAD KESELOWSKI, Ford
Team: Penske Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: After two weeks in fourth place, Brad Keselowski
moved up to third place after New Hampshire. He trails points leader
Jeff Gordon by 36 points (was 65 points prior to Loudon), is 24
points behind second-ranked Dale Earnhardt Jr. and leads
fourth-ranked Matt Kenseth by 13 points.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: Four career starts, 0 wins, 0 top-5s, 2
top-10s, 0 poles. Best career finish: Ninth in 2011 and 2012.
Finished 21st in this race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: Keselowski is looking for his first top-five, if not
his first win, at the legendary Brickyard. He's also looking for his
second straight win after his triumph this past Sunday at New
Hampshire (and third win in the last four races).
LOOKING BACK: After finishing 18th at Daytona, Keselowski bounced
back to earn his second win in three races, adding New Hampshire to
his win three weeks ago at Kentucky. "Where do I start? The team was
just really on it today," Keselowski said after the race. "It really
feels like we've hit our stride, and I'm kind of quiet and somber
because I want to soak it all in. I don't want this moment to go
away so quick. It seems like you get in Victory Lane and you're
rushed around left and right you don't really get a chance to soak
it in. This was just such a phenomenal weekend, and these don't
happen that often, and that's what makes it special. You try to
appreciate them and enjoy them and hope that there's more but not
count on it, because these are big deals, winning races at the
Sprint Cup level - sweeping a weekend, and it's all possible because
of the hard work and effort from everyone at Team Penske. I can
drive the heck out of a car, but you can only do so much. You've got
to have a good horse, and we had that today. I'm just really, really
thankful and happy with the form we have."
ETC.: Keselowski has completed a perfect 100 percent (640) of the
640 total laps contested in four career starts at Indianapolis. His
average start is 12.5 and his average finish is 14.5. He has zero
DNFs there.
20 MATT KENSETH, Toyota
Team: Joe Gibbs Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: After two weeks in fifth-place, Matt Kenseth moved
up to fourth-place after Loudon. He trails points leader Jeff Gordon
by 49 points (after being 71 points behind prior to Loudon), is 13
points behind third-ranked Brad Keselowski and leads fifth-ranked
Jimmie Johnson by 23 points.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 14 career starts, 0 wins, 6 top-5s, 8 top-10s,
0 poles. Best career finish: Second in 2003 and 2006. Finished fifth
in this race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: Kenseth is still looking for his first win of the
season - not to mention his first career win at Indianapolis.
LOOKING BACK: Kenseth led 12 laps at New Hampshire and finished
fourth. "Green-white-checkers on 80 lap tires are always exciting,"
Kenseth said. "I got a good move in (turns) one and two and got a
couple of those there and Kyle (Larson) and I got racing. I had a
good run off of (turn) two and was going to try to go in the corner
and use him up as much as I could -- and he got up in the third
groove and grabbed that sticky stuff and raced it off the corner.
So, we both raced as hard as we could there without wrecking. That
was fun, except for him beating me -- that part was no good. The
rest was fun. Overall, it was a good day. ... I feel like we're
definitely moving in the right direction."
ETC.: Kenseth has completed just 90.9 percent (2,038) of the 2,241
total laps contested in 14 career starts at Indianapolis. His
average start is 19.2 and his average finish is 15.1. He has two
DNFs there.
48 JIMMIE JOHNSON, Chevrolet
Team: Hendrick Motorsports
WHERE HE STANDS: After dropping from second to third after Daytona,
Jimmie Johnson dropped two more spots to fifth place after New
Hampshire. He trails points leader and teammate Jeff Gordon by 72
points (was 55 before Loudon), is 23 points behind fourth-ranked
Matt Kenseth and leads sixth-ranked Carl Edwards by 24 points.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 12 career starts, 4 wins, 5 top-5s, 6 top-10s,
1 pole. Best career finish: First in 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2012.
Finished second in this race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: After coming up one spot short in last year's race,
Johnson looks to once again become the winningest NASCAR driver at
Indianapolis - he and teammate Jeff Gordon are tied among all
drivers with four wins each.
LOOKING BACK: Johnson completed just 11 laps before he was involved
in a race-ending wreck, resulting in his second consecutive
42nd-place finish of the season, first at Daytona the week before
and then at Loudon. "The first one (tire issue he had just a few
laps into the race), I was able to drive the car all the way through
Turns 1 and 2. I knew I had a flat and then got down the back and
came in. The other one just blew on the straight as soon as I hit
the brakes. I'm not sure what caused it. I'm sure there will be a
lot of speculation and I'm sure finger pointing back to the teams or
our team. But we saw some issues here especially with that
particular tire the last couple of days. We will try to dig in and
learn more, but I can promise you one thing is wasn't low tire
pressure. I've been out here for two days running around and haven't
had a flat."
ETC.: Johnson has completed 90.1 percent (1,731) of 1,921 total laps
in 12 career starts at Indianapolis. Even with four wins there, his
average start is 12.6 and his average finish is 15.6. He also has
three DNFs there.
99 CARL EDWARDS, Ford
Team: Roush Fenway Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: Carl Edwards climbed one spot, from seventh to
sixth, after New Hampshire. He is now 96 points behind series leader
Jeff Gordon (was 108 points back prior to Loudon), is 24 points
behind fifth-ranked Jimmie Johnson and leads seventh-ranked Ryan
Newman by one point.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: Nine career starts, 0 win, 1 top-5, 3 top-10s,
0 poles. Best career finish: Second in 2008. Finished 13th in this
race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: Edwards will be making the 10th career start of his
Sprint Cup career next Sunday at Indianapolis and is still in search
of his first career win there (and his second career top-five, for
that matter).
LOOKING BACK: Edwards had a relatively uneventful race at New
Hampshire, finishing 13th.
ETC.: Even though he has never won a Sprint Cup race there, Edwards
has completed an almost perfect 99.7 percent (1,436) of 1,440 total
laps contested in nine career starts at Indianapolis. His average
start there is 19.9 and his average finish is 13.2. He has zero DNFs
there.
31 RYAN NEWMAN, Chevrolet
Team: Richard Childress Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: After three straight weeks in eighth place, Ryan
Newman moved up one spot to seventh after New Hampshire. He trails
points leader Jeff Gordon by 97 points (was 117 points behind before
Loudon), is one point behind sixth-ranked Carl Edwards and leads
eighth-ranked Kyle Busch by six points.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 13 career starts, 1 wins, 2 top-5, 3 top-10, 1
pole. Best career finish: First in 2013. Finished first in this race
last year (after starting from the pole).
LOOKING AHEAD: Newman hopes to win a second straight Brickyard 400
on July 27. His win in last year's race all but equaled Newman's
Daytona 500 victory several years ago, with significant importance
due to being an Indiana native.
LOOKING BACK: Newman had a good, strong run at Loudon, which is one
of his favorite tracks regardless, finishing fifth. "We just finally
got to where we should have been running all day in the last little
bit there," Newman said after the race. "Good run for the
Caterpillar Chevrolet team. The guys did a good job today. Thank all
the fans for coming out. I enjoyed the modified races as well as
this Cup race. We had a really good long run car we just never got
the track position we needed to really show it. The longer runs
there at the end paid off and that restart was obviously to our
advantage."
ETC.: Newman has completed 92.8 percent (1,931) of the 2,081 total
laps contested in 13 career starts at Indianapolis. His average
start there is an outstanding 7.4 and his average finish is 17.7. He
has two DNFs there.
18 KYLE BUSCH, Toyota
Team: Joe Gibbs Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: After climbing from 10th to ninth after Daytona,
Kyle Busch jumped up one more spot to eighth after New Hampshire. He
trails points leader Jeff Gordon by 103 points (was 127 points back
prior to Loudon), is six points behind seventh-ranked Ryan Newman
and leads ninth-ranked Joey Logano by 16 points.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 9 career starts, 0 wins, 2 top-5s, 7 top-10s, 0
poles. Best career finish: Second in 2012. Finished 10th in this
race last season.
LOOKING AHEAD: Busch makes his 10th career start next week at
Indianapolis and is still in pursuit of his first Sprint Cup win
there.
LOOKING BACK: Busch gave it everything he had but came up short to
Brad Keselowski at New Hampshire, finishing a close second. "The
guys did a great job today," Busch said after the race. "This
Interstate Batteries Camry was good. Should have been anywhere from
fourth to sixth, but we made a gutsy call there at the end to stay
out and see if we can make it on fuel -- barely made it, ran out
right at the start-finish. Couldn't have timed it more perfect. That
was good. Solid effort for our team. We still know we got a little
bit of work to do trying to get better and be able to catch up with
some of our other competitors. All in all, a decent day to be coming
home second for our Interstate Batteries Camry."
ETC.: Busch has completed 96.7 percent (1,392 laps) of the 1,440
total laps contested in nine career starts at Indianapolis. His
average start there is a mediocre 20.9, but has a much-better
average finish of 11.6. He has zero DNFs there.
22 JOEY LOGANO, Ford
Team: Penske Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: After moving up to sixth following Daytona, Joey
Logano dropped three spots to ninth after New Hampshire. He trails
points leader Jeff Gordon by 119 points, is 16 points behind
eighth-ranked Kyle Busch and leads 10th-ranked Clint Bowyer by three
points.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 5 career starts, 0 wins, 0 top-5s, 2 top-10, 0
poles. Best career finish: Eighth in 2013. Finished eighth in this
race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: Logano bounced back after two straight poor
performances to finish eighth at Indianapolis last season. He's
definitely looking for his first career top-five at the fabled
Brickyard, if not his first win there next weekend.
LOOKING BACK: Logano was involved in a wreck with Morgan Shepherd on
Lap 211 of Sunday's race at New Hampshire, ultimately finishing 40th
(Shepherd, ironically, wound up 39th in the final order). "I got
taken out by the slowest car out there," Logano said after the race.
"You would think there would be some courtesy to the leaders. We
were in second place. (Shepard) gets out of the way on the
straightaway and then goes into the corner and slides right up into
the lane I was in. We were doing a good job after having a left rear
flat in practice and having to go to a backup car. We were out there
running second. I can't get too mad at ourselves over this...I feel
like that should be stuff that shouldn't happen at this level of
racing. It's just too bad because I feel like we were a second-place
car. We were the second best. We didn't have anything for Brad. But
it would have been nice to get a 1-2 Team Penske finish. I feel like
we have missed out on that three or four times this year."
ETC.: Logano has completed 98.0 percent (784 laps) of the 800 laps
contested in five career starts at Indianapolis. His average start
there is 17.2 and average finish is a nearly identical 17.4. He has
zero DNFs there.
15 CLINT BOWYER, Toyota
Team: Michael Waltrip Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: Clint Bowyer climbed two spots in the standings,
from 12th to 10th after New Hampshire. He trails points leader Jeff
Gordon by 122 points, is three points behind ninth-ranked Joey
Logano and leads 11th-ranked Paul Menard by seven points.
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 8 career starts, 0 wins, 2 top-5s, 2 top-10s, 0
poles. Best career finish: Fourth in 2006 and 2010. Finished 20th in
this race last year.
LOOKING AHEAD: Time is starting to close in on Bowyer to assure
himself that he'll make the revamped and expanded Chase for the
Sprint Cup. If he can get a win in the next seven races, that likely
will be enough to lock in Bowyer into the Chase. But until then, he
has to keep working at it. Indianapolis has been particularly
arduous for Bowyer. Can he turn things around there next weekend?
LOOKING BACK: Bowyer had a very strong run at New Hampshire, leading
36 laps before ultimately settling for a still-decent sixth-place
finish. "Just frustrating," Bowyer said of his finish after Sunday's
race. "Kind of our M.O. This year, nothing goes right. We got into
position to get a top-five and a solid run and the 4 (Kevin Harvick)
runs out of gas and stacks us all up on the bottom and a bunch of
them get around us. We got the consistency down -- we just got to
keep gaining on it. We're here to win races for 5-Hour Energy and
everybody and all our partners on this Toyota. We're just not quite
there yet. We still got some work to do to catch up to the Fords and
the Hendrick cars. We're gaining on it. We got the consistency."
ETC.: Bowyer has completed a perfect 100 percent (1,280 laps) of the
1,280 total laps contested in eight previous career starts at
Indianapolis. His average start there is 20.0 and average finish is
a significantly better 13.2. He has zero DNFs there.
27 PAUL MENARD, Chevrolet
Team: Richard Childress Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: 11th, only seven points out of the top 10. Lost one
spot to fall out of the top 10 last week. Would make the Chase if
the Chase for the Championship began this week.
LOOKING AHEAD: Menard said, "We're looking forward to the off
weekend, but we'll be ready to get back at it in Indy. We won there
a couple of years ago, so all of us can't wait to get back there. We
are doing everything we can to make the Chase."
LOOKING BACK: Menard battled a loose-handling race car for most of
the day as he finished 19th at New Hampshire. "Loudon is
traditionally not very good to us so it's good to come out of it
with a decent finish," said Menard. "It's not where we could've
been, but we salvaged it there at the end when guys were running out
of fuel."
ETC.: Menard said he really enjoys being around his two teammates -
Ryan Newman and rookie Austin Dillon. "It's two new guys (to RCR)
and two guys that are very different in their personalities and the
way they think," said Menard. "You have Ryan, who is a degreed
engineer, been around the sport a long time, a multi-time race
winner and a Chase guy every year. And then we have Austin, who is
this young and enthusiastic guy and full of energy. I feel like we
all have the same interests, we can talk about racing, talk about
hunting, talk about just being outside or doing something totally
different, spend time together doing that and get to know each other
a lot better."
11 DENNY HAMLIN, Toyota
Team: Joe Gibbs Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: 12th, 18 points out of the top 10. Gained two spots
last week. Will make the Chase as a result of his Talladega win.
LOOKING AHEAD: Hamlin said he will "enjoy the weekend off, but it is
the road crew and the guys back at the shop that really need this
weekend off. We get so few weekends off, and they work so hard. It
will just be nice for them to get a couple of days off."
LOOKING BACK: Hamlin led twice for 20 laps and was running second
when a late-race caution flag forced him to pit for fuel. The crew
decided to change all four tires, and that decision helped Hamlin
rally in the final two laps to finish eighth at Loudon. "It's a
tough finish to swallow, for sure," said a frustrated Hamlin. "We
adjusted our car throughout the day and got it pretty good on that
last run. I got up to second and within five car lengths of the 2
(Brad Keselowski) before I was told I had to save more fuel. The
last caution was pretty unlucky for us, because we were going to
finish second, but we still rallied from 16th to eighth in two laps
at the end."
ETC.: Hamlin is involved with a lot of charities, but the one that
is the "most personal" is cystic fibrosis because of his cousin.
"He's kind of going through a tough time," said Hamlin. "It's tough
for any family that has cystic fibrosis and I've met a lot of kids
that have it and they live at the hospital a lot. It's tough to be
in that situation. I'm very fortunate to be partnered with the
people I'm partnered with because FedEx really allows me the liberty
to be out there and help promote these great organizations. It makes
me feel really good when I'm able to go out there and have a sponsor
that supports that."
4 KEVIN HARVICK, Chevrolet
Team: Stewart-Haas Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: 13th, 20 points out of the top 10. Lost two spots
last week. Will make the Chase because of his two wins so far in
2014.
LOOKING AHEAD: Harvick is looking forward to spending the week off
with his family. "They are usually at the track with me," said
Harvick, "but there is just something different when you can get
away by yourself with your family. It will be a fun time."
LOOKING BACK: The gamble to try and run the final 82 laps on one
tank of fuel backfired for Harvick when a caution flag was waved
with two laps to go sending the race in overtime. Harvick was second
when the green flag waved for the green-white-checkered flag finish.
But he immediately ran out of gas as he ended the day in 30th place.
"We would have been in great shape if the race had gone the regular
distance (301 laps), but those extra four laps killed us," said
Harvick. "That last caution really, really hurt."
ETC.: Harvick has nothing but high praise for crew chief Rodney
Childers when it comes to putting together the 4 team. "He recruited
every single person on this team," said Harvick. "They all came for
the same reasons. They all want to win races. They all want to win
and race for championships and when you put that kind of people
together with that determination everybody pushes everybody else."
42 KYLE LARSON, Chevrolet
Team: Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
WHERE HE STANDS: 14th, 24 points out of the top 10. Gained three
spots last week. Would make the Chase if the Chase for the
Championship began this week.
LOOKING AHEAD: As a new and first-time home owner and an expectant
father, Larson had a lot on his plate as he heads in the last off
week of the season. "I much prefer racing, but we have a lot of
things we need to do while we are off," said Larson. "I'm sure
having a blast right now driving these Target Chevrolets. I want to
thank Chip (Ganassi, car owner) and everybody at the shop. These
race cars have been a lot faster this year than they have in the
past. Just really want to thank those guys."
LOOKING BACK: Larson was running 16th when a caution flag fell on
lap 113 of the 301-lap race at Loudon. Crew chief Chris Heroy
decided to gamble by telling Larson not to pit. "It was a bold call
by Shine to get us some track position and it really paid off," said
Larson, who ran in the top 10 for the rest of the day before ending
the race in the third spot. "We talked about it in our team meeting
- that it is going to take a really dumb call, or what would look
dumb, but hopefully work out. It did. We got to lead some laps (13)
and maintained our track position all race long after that. Great
pit calls by Shine. The Target Chevy was really good. The last
restart worked out for us (as he jumped from sixth to third). All in
all, a really good day."
ETC.: Three straight finishes of 28th or worse had dropped Larson
from eighth to 17th in the point standings, and more importantly,
dropped him out of a spot in the Chase. "It's been a rough three
weeks," said Larson. "We were really good (three top-five finishes
and seven top-10's in the first 15 races) and then we had two DNF's
(did not finish) and then a bad race at Sonoma. That is why this
(the top-five finish at Loudon) is so important. To get back up in
the points. To get back where we are in the Chase. This is what we
needed as we head into the off week."
3 AUSTIN DILLON, Chevrolet
Team: Richard Childress Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: 15th. Lost two spots last week. Tied with fellow
rookie Kyle Larson in the point standings, but because Larson has
more top-five finishes Dillon is on the outside looking in when it
comes to making the Chase if the Chase for the Championship began
this week.
LOOKING AHEAD: Dillon knows the team needs the week off, but he kind
of wishes "we would be racing this weekend. We want to make the
Chase, and we are so close to doing that. But the guys that go on
the road each week and the guys back at the shop need some time off.
This is their last weekend off for the rest of the season."
LOOKING BACK: Dillon rallied in the final 50 laps to finish 14th at
Loudon. "To finish 14th is quite an accomplishment after the day we
had in the Dow Chevrolet," said Dillon. "The car really reacted well
once the sun came out, and we seemed to perform better on four tires
versus two tires all day long. We were able to take advantage of the
green-white-checker restart at the end, too and gain some
positions."
ETC.: Since his grandfather Richard Childress started RCR, Dillon
feels a little extra responsibility to everyone that is part of the
organization. "I've grown up with those guys, know how much heart
and soul they put in the race cars," said Dillon. "I said it at our
kickoff lunch. We have a great house at RCR. When I cross the bridge
(that leads to the facility), that's our house. When we get to the
track, my job and our teams' jobs are to represent our house. That's
what we try and do every time we bring our stuff to the race track."
16 GREG BIFFLE, Ford
Team: Roush Fenway Racing
WHERE HE STANDS: 16th, only five points out of a spot in the Chase.
Lost one spot last week.
LOOKING AHEAD: Biffle said he is "just going to get away for a few
days" during the upcoming off weekend. "Everyone at Roush Fenway has
been working hard to get better, but they also need a break and this
is the last weekend to get away," said Biffle. "So it will be nice
for everyone in the organization to get a couple of days off before
we start the big push for the Chase."
LOOKING BACK: After hitting the wall early in the race, Biffle
struggled with an ill-handling race car for most of the first half
of the race. But he rallied in the second half to finish 15th at
Loudon. "We battled really hard today to come away with a 15th-place
finish," said Biffle. "I'm proud of the guys. My crew didn't give up
and we were able to make the most of it today. We stayed in the hunt
(for a place in the Chase for the Championship)."
ETC.: Doug Yates, the chief executive officer for Roush Yates
Engines, said his organization is "really pushing hard to get Greg
Biffle a win, along with Marcos Ambrose and Ricky Stenhouse. I
applaud NASCAR because this new format is doing exactly what it's
supposed to do. It's supposed to have some wildcards and really make
it exciting, but as far as breaking the season down we're really
focused on the Chase and what we have to do as an engine company to
give our teams what they need to win this championship."
5 KASEY KAHNE, Chevrolet
Team: Hendrick Motorsports
WHERE HE STANDS: 17th, only nine points out of a spot in the Chase.
Gained one spot last week.
LOOKING AHEAD: Kahne does not have an off week as he will race in
the Nationwide Series event at Chicagoland Speedway on Saturday
night. He will drive the number 5 Great Clips Chevrolet for JR
Motorsports. In Kahne's last Nationwide start, he edged teammate
Regan Smith by 0.021 seconds for the win in the Firecracker 250 at
Daytona.
LOOKING BACK: After running in and just outside the top 10 all day,
Kahne ended the day in 11th place. "We had stretches where we were
pretty good, and then we had stretches where we were real tight,"
said Kahne. "We had a top-10 car, but things got a little crazy on
that green-white-checkered deal and we just missed getting us
another top 10. We needed another lap or two and we would have been
two or three spots better."
ETC.: As the Sprint Cup Series takes its last week off this season,
Kahne is still on the outside looking in when it comes to being part
of this year's Chase for the Championship. But he is still very
confident that come September he will be in the hunt for the
championship. "We aren't that far out points wise, and we feel we
have some real chances to win a race between now and Richmond," said
Kahne. End of Part 1 - more to follow
