My favorite NASCAR driver is Kasey Kahne. But he wasnt always. Before I got really involved in watching the sport, I always liked Jeff Gordon. To me Jeff Gordon was the man. And I still like Jeff really well. He is a good guy. But once I really started watching NASCAR, I found other drivers I liked more, such as Kahne, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano and others. But I'm going to tell you why Kasey Kahne is my driver of choice.
2006: My interest in Kahne had already developed after I had purchased his 2006 Mopar paint job, or maybe it was 2005, but in any case I liked Dodge and Mopar and Kasey had the scheme so I kinda took a liking to him and Jeff Gordon. Not knowing how good of person or driver he really was. He had won the 2006 Lowe's(Now called Charlotte) Motorspeedway race in October, repeating his performance from May. I always liked Kahne.
2007: I was still a strong Jeff fan and admittedly a huge Tony Stewart disliker, but late in the season he started to grow on me. I've liked Tony ever since. Soon it was the Bristol race in the fall, Kasey had yet to win a race in 2007. He had dominated the event. But when Michael Waltrip blocked to keep from going a lap down, Kasey lost the lead to Carl Edwards, who at the time I didnt like just because he drove a Roush car. But anyway, Kasey wound up second, but after seeing him struggle most of the season, I began to see the potential in him. Looking further into his stats and other things, and posts on Scene Daily I found out how much of a nice guy Kahne was. I knew then, Kahne was my guy and I will stick with him until he retires. No I didnt jump off the Jeff Gordon bandwagon at all. I still like Mr Gordon a lot. Kahne finished 2007 with zero wins. That incident with the security guard was complete bull crud.
2008: The healing came for Kahne as he had a good season, went up as high as 4th in points at the beginning of the season. Finally winning races, he won the non points paying race, The AllStar Race. A week later he backed it up with a win in the Coca Cola 600. 2 weeks later he won at Pocono. He never won after that. And could have made the chase had it not been for a blown engine and a wreck caused by Kasey Mears and Michael Waltrip in the race he had dominated in 2007. At the fall Charlotte race, Kasey almost had the victory and would have become the first person to sweep all 3 Charlotte races. But Jeff Burton beat him. Im ok with Jeff Burton doing it though. I figured if anyone would beat him, Id rather it be Jeff Burton than Kurt Busch who finished 3rd. He finished out the season with a 6th place finish at Homestead.
2009 was a great year for Kasey. Only 2 wins, but those 2 wins came when it mattered. He won his first and so far only Road Course race at Infineon Raceway, setting up a big Chase Berth run. He had a great run going after that...He got a lot of top 5s. Including a good finish of 3rd at Chicago, a track where he has struggled at in the past. Kahne went to Bristol and struggled with a loose handling car and had a big disapoint finish of 28th... that would have messed up his Chase run had not the win at Atlanta 2 weeks later happened. He moved from 11th to 6th in points and after Richmond made the Chase and was seeded 5th. I saw this a good opportunity.... until something happened. A BLOWN ENGINE in the first race of the Chase! I was so ticked! He had some good runs after that, but getting into other peoples crashes ruined his Chase hopes. A 3rd place finish at Lowe's and a 2nd at Talladega highlighted his 2009 Chase. But oh well, he finished 10th in points which earned him a spot to give a speach in the 2009 Banquet. Overall, not a bad year for Kasey.
2010 was a nightmare. Started out promising. 2nd place in the Bud Shootout, winning Gatorade Duel #2, and getting a 4th place start in the Daytona 500 by virtue of this win. Only to crash out with about 20 to go or so. After that Kahne's 2010 season began to look lost. A 9th place finish at Las Vegas and a 4th at Atlanta, after dominating and losing it to the likes of Kurt Busch, highlighted the first half. And if his luck in Cup wasnt bad enough, in almost every Nationwide race he ran in he crashed out or had a mechanical problem. Only 2 Nationwide races went right for Kahne. The Daytona race where he finished 9th, and the Darlington where he finished 4th. Cup was a little better to him. He had a good string of Top 5s going in the summer. However it quickly fell to a hault after Chicago where he finished 6th. Early in the season it was announced he would go to Hendrick Motorsports in 2012, with no idea of a 2011 ride. In August it was announced that Red Bull Racing Team would be his team in 2011. Kahne could now breathe easy and focus on the rest of the season. In June he dominated another race, only to have a blown engine and get betrayed by a teammate, Paul Menard wouldnt let Kahne pass, but let Kyle Busch get by and pass Kasey for the lead while trying not to go a lap down to Kahne. That really ticked me off. At Pocono a couple races before, AJ Allmendinger blocked Kahne from making a pass on the last lap and sent Kasey airborne into the fence and almost landed in the woods. So yeah, his teammates kind of betrayed him. People say that Kasey betrayed Ford, but we all anticipated Kahne's departure even before the 2010 season began. RPM just wasnt doing their jobs right. The Gilletts may have kept it alive but they also ruined it. More blown engines in 2010, more for Kasey no less, than any year, unless you count 2007. After the Charlotte Race in the Fall, where Kahne's breaks just quit all of a sudden. Kahne had enough. He and RPM worked it out and decided it was best to move on, but not any bad blood towards each other at all. Kahne said he hopes they win races in 2011. Another thing in 2010 that really made me happy was after getting wrecked by a stupid move by Kurt Busch, on his birthday no less, Kasey greeted the media with a smile and said it was ok. What a trooper. He left RPM for Red Bull Racing with 5 races remaining in 2010, and showed promise in each race, except for the Phoenix race, which I think Phoenix dont like him for some stupid reason, but anyway. Kahne's potetial started to show again after a Pole at Homestead and contending for the Lead in the first part of the race. Kahne went on to finish 6th. Ending a dissapointing year, but has a new promising year ahead with RedBull Racing!
2011 and Beyond: Kasey Kahne will drive the #4 Red Bull Blue Toyota in 2011 until he takes over the 5 car in 2012. I expect a lot from Kasey and the 4 car, especially since Kasey's proven winner of a Crew Chief Kenny Francis will follow Kasey to Red Bull. Budwieser was good sponsor and all for Kasey(2008-2010), but I like the fact he wont be driving a beer car. I belive Kasey will win a minimum of 3 races in 2011. I also belive he will contend for a Championship. Now that he is gone from RPM, Kasey's struggling days are hopefully finally over. I am looking forward to the 2011 season.
Kahne has Character, and commitment and never says a bad thing about a Competitor or fellow workers. Kahne is my choice as a driver because he has a lot of potential and a good attitude.
Thanks for Reading,
NASCAR Newt.
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