Special election: Kahne scores unlikely victory in all-star race
By SceneDaily Staff
Sunday, May 18, 2008
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CONCORD, N.C. – Fair is fair, Kasey Kahne said Friday. He didn’t belong in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race because he wasn’t eligible. But after Kahne was voted in the event by fans, guess who won?
That’s right. Kahne. Thanks to a gamble by crew chief Kenny Francis before the final 25-lap segment, Kahne charged to the lead with 16 laps remaining and held off the field to win his first all-star race.
“I can’t believe we just won this thing,” Kahne told his Gillett Evernham Motorsports team over the radio.
Greg Biffle (Roush Fenway Racing) ended up second after his No. 16 Ford started to push in the final segment. Teammate Matt Kenseth finished third. Jimmie Johnson (Hendrick Motorsports) was fourth, with Tony Stewart (JGR) fifth.
The rest of the top 10 were Penske Racing’s Ryan Newman, Penske’s Sam Hornish Jr., Hendrick’s Dale Earnhardt Jr., Dale Earnhardt Inc.’s Mark Martin and Roush Fenway's Edwards.
Kahne started last in the 24-car field after failing to transfer via the Sprint Showdown preliminary race. But he won the fan vote to make the all-star race.
But his No. 9 Dodge steadily moved forward, finishing 13th in the first 25-lap segment, eighth in the second and seventh in the third.
It was after the third segment where Francis took a gamble. Special all-star rules mandated at least a stop-and-go pit stop before the start of the final segment, and that’s all Kahne did. Others changed tires, enabling Johnson, JGR's Denny Hamlin and Kahne to move to the head of the field.
Hamlin and Johnson battled for the lead before Johnson slipped and lost positions. Kahne moved into second, getting the lead on lap 84 as Hamlin faded with engine troubles.
Hamlin was the second JGR driver to have engine trouble. Polesitter Kyle Busch led 38 laps, including all 25 of the opening segment, before backsliding to sixth at the end of segment two as his engine began to sour.
During the 10-minute break between segments two and three, JGR crew members lifted the hood on Busch's car to find a broken rocker arm in the motor, forcing Busch to retire from the race.
“It's just a shame, you know,” Busch said. “We had an awesome race car.”
Biffle charged forward from the fifth position to win the third segment by 4.2 seconds over Earnhardt Jr., who led 14 laps.
Kenseth finished third, followed by Newman and Martin.
Edwards, who started the segment with the lead, tumbled to eighth after losing the lead to Earnhardt Jr. at the end of the segment’s first lap.
Edwards took advantage of Busch’s engine problems to win the second 25-lap segment.
Earnhardt Jr. finished second in the segment, followed by Kenseth, Newman and Biffle.
Teams opened the second segment in realigned position after everyone pitted between the two segments.
After taking two tires on the pit stop, a strategy favored by many of the teams, Busch maintained the lead he gained in winning the opening segment with Newman and Petty Enterprises' Bobby Labonte following off pit road.
Busch’s luck didn’t hold in the second segment as the engine problems began to affect his JGR Toyota. Busch was once more dominating the field, pulling away to a 1.528-second lead, before the problems developed.
That opened the door for Edwards, a winner of three races this season. He took the lead on lap 39 and held it through the 50th and final lap of the stanza.
Busch dominated the first segment of the race, pulling away to leads of more than two seconds in the 25-lap run.
Biffle ran second, followed by Penske Racing’s Kurt Busch, Newman and Earnhardt Jr.
JGR’s Stewart dropped to the rear prior to the green flag for making an engine change. He moved up to 15th among the 24 competitors by the end of the opening of the four segments.
Hornish, who advanced into the all-star race by finishing second in the qualifying Sprint Showdown, brushed the wall on the second lap and later pitted for repairs. Hendrick Motorsports’ Jeff Gordon also struggled to keep his car off the wall throughout the segment, giving up ground but holding on for sixth.
- Mentioned Drivers:
- Kyle Busch
Comments
4 responses to "Special election: Kahne scores unlikely victory in all-star race"
Timothy Schultze said:
May 17, 2008 at 8:48 PMWhat a JOKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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» Confirm Abuse ReportRose Ulsh said:
May 18, 2008 at 11:01 AMI think it was great that Kasey won. Yippee
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» Confirm Abuse ReportJennifer Nelsen said:
May 18, 2008 at 2:12 PMWoo Hoo. Congrats Kasey,Team and Fans. I am so glad he won the allstar race and the fan vote. He proven that he deserved to be in the allstar race. Thanks to the fans that voted for him. WOO HOO!!!!!!!! I am a huge Kasey fan. So excited that he won last night. GO KASEY GO!!!!!!!!!!!!
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» Confirm Abuse Reportralph graham said:
May 19, 2008 at 1:23 AMWell so am I, but i love to know how many votes he did get to put him in it any one can tell me ? Hope this race helps you out and get that dog off your back ,
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