Amid the frenzy of what would become the closest championship battle in the history of NASCAR's premier series, it went virtually unnoticed. As Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards traded jabs on and off the track at Texas, Martin Truex Jr. piloted a brand new race car to an eighth-place finish -- his best in Fort Worth in almost two years. While momentum swung among the title contenders at Phoenix, David Reutimann recorded his first top-10 in 17 weeks. And while the racing universe was transfixed by the events at Homestead, Truex quietly finished third -- right behind the two drivers who decided the championship between them.
Given the circumstances, the progress was almost completely overshadowed, lost in a heavyweight championship bout that dominated the final few weeks of the 2011 campaign. But not at Michael Waltrip Racing, which was rolling out its new and clearly more competitive race cars for the first time and laying the groundwork for what would be a major step forward in 2012.
We thought we were better than we were ... [there has] really been a culture change.
These days, there's no overshadowing the progress being made at MWR. It commands attention, from the positions Truex and new MWR driver Clint Bowyer occupy in the top 10 of the current Sprint Cup standings, to a No. 55 car that's proven competitive whether it's Mark Martin or Brian Vickers behind the wheel. The vehicles at MWR are faster, more balanced and less prone to wild swings in consistency. The development of those cars has fueled the rise of an organization that one year ago seemed to be taking large steps in the opposite direction.
"There's not hardly anything on the car that's the same," said Rodney Childers, crew chief on a No. 55 car shared to this point by Martin and Vickers. "From this time ... last year to now, there's not anything on that entire car that's the same. It's really basically like starting over."
And to a large degree it was.
Teams build their cars off one master chassis, and Childers said top organizations like 10-time champion Hendrick Motorsports revamp that base vehicle every six months or so. MWR, by comparison, was still basing everything off a chassis that had been built in 2009 as recently as the middle of last season. Eventually, that car grew outdated, and performance suffered as a result.
The impact was clear at a three-car operation that mustered just four top-fives between them, and went without a victory for the first time in three seasons. After a few years of creeping up on the elite teams in NASCAR's top division, MWR suddenly seemed to lag well behind.
Last April, that lack of performance began to eat at Childers.
"I started getting pretty irritated and banging my head against the table in many of our meetings," he remembered, "saying, 'We've got to start over. We've got to build a new car. We've got to build all-new suspension. We've got to redo everything.' Of course, that's hard to accept and to say you have to do that. To even say, 'We have to step back and punt' is hard to do. The more and more we got toward that, the more people starting thinking, you know, that's really the right thing."
And so they punted, pouring more efforts into what they hoped would be a brighter 2012 season instead of trying to right a lost 2011 campaign. MWR began holding weekly Tuesday meetings open to anyone in the shop that might have an idea about how to build a better car. The focus was on improving aerodynamics, lowering the center of gravity, and rethinking the vehicle in its totality rather than envisioning it as just a chassis with pieces added on.
Other things happened, too. Lines of communication with manufacturer Toyota became clearer, and Childers struck up a working relationship with Joe Gibbs Racing crew chief Dave Rogers that stemmed, of all things, from Childers being angry over an accident involving Reutimann and Kyle Busch at Kansas.
It all began happening well before MWR brought in key additions like new director of competition Scott Miller or new crew chief Brian Pattie, who runs things on Bowyer's car. And it brought with it a degree of change that Truex believes affected not only the team's vehicles, but the fiber of the organization as whole.
"I think early last year, at some point, we actually thought our cars were better than they actually were, for some reason," Truex said. "... It was a company-wide thing where we just started doing things different, building new stuff, changing the way we did things. And it really changed our perspective ... we thought we were better than we were, I guess I'm saying.
"It's really been a culture change, I think as a company, to now. No matter how we run, we're working harder than anybody else and trying to be the best. If we run third, we're not happy with that anymore. So, it's fun. It's fun to be a part of that. It's fun to see the enthusiasm around the shop, and everybody wanting to win races and be the best out there. Obviously, it's paid off for us."
MWR is A-OK
Michael Waltrip Racing has seemingly learned from the ills of its past as a team, creating some buzz this season.
SPEED RaceDay: Truex Jr.
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Press Pass: Truex Jr.
SPEED Trackside: Bowyer
That much is evident in the standings, where Truex sits sixth and Bowyer ninth. The No. 55 car, with its array of drivers, ranks ninth in owners' points. MWR's drivers have already combined for more top-five finishes than they had in all of last season, and Truex is riding a streak of eight top-10s in his last 11 starts dating back to last year. That's the kind of consistency that nets Chase berths, and it's the kind of consistency MWR has been noticeably lacking -- until now.
No question, MWR upgraded its personnel with the additions of Bowyer, Martin, Miller and Pattie for this season. But the improvement in the race cars started before those human pieces began to be added, and the increased mechanical performance has allowed MWR to take maximum advantage of that upgraded roster. Truex could feel the difference in the new car the first time he slid behind the wheel. That was last fall at Texas, which, in retrospect, stands as the starting point for the rebirth of this six-year-old franchise co-owned by Waltrip and Rob Kauffman.
"The car just had a good feel to it, and it had speed," Truex said. "The biggest thing we noticed was, in green-flag pit stops during the race, the car was really fast. On new tires, the car had speed. It's not always driving perfect, which they never do, but the car has speed in it. It's easier to be fast even when the car is off. So, it's been easier to work on. And one of the things I've noticed about it that I've liked is it's more user-friendly.
"You don't go to bed on Saturday night worried to death the balance is going to shift 180 degrees from what you had in practice and were happy [with], to when the race starts. So, it's been a little bit more consistent for us and that's been a big key for us this year."
That's a stark difference from past seasons, where MWR cars could vary from race-contending to middle of the pack in consecutive weeks. "No matter how hard you try, it's still a hand-made piece," Miller said. "But I think we've gotten our [quality-control] system down a lot better to where we're a lot more consistent, and know a lot more about what we've got from week to week than probably they have before."
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Miller made the move from Richard Childress Racing to MWR the week of last fall's Texas race, arriving the same time as the new cars. Childers said the new vehicles were debuted late last year because the team wanted to get them some track time before the end of the season. Then, they'd know what to fine-tune for the upcoming campaign. Once that was done, the team had to build its fleet for 2012, growing from just a few new vehicles to enough to supply three full-time programs. That's where Miller, known for his organizational acumen, came in.
"A lot of the groundwork was already in place when I walked in the door," he said. "Part of the process is being able to get that much work done, and being efficient in getting it done with limited resources ... compared to Hendrick Motorsports, say. It's relative. So trying to get that much work done for three teams to start the year on all new equipment was really a huge task. I've tried to help coordinate that, and make things more efficient, and push for things with the ownership that I felt we needed to make that process better. That's kind of where I came in."
Drivers pitched in with feedback, much of it positive. Miller, who won six times as a crew chief on the Sprint Cup level, began putting more responsibility in the hands of his lead wrench-turners, which was welcome.
"The thing Scott Miller did was, he came in, he took all that stuff in, and he started listening to the crew chiefs more than what had been going on before," Childers said. "And he said, 'We're going to get this thing to where these three guys are happy with what they're taking to the race track. Because if they're not happy, they don't have any confidence going into the weekend.' He did a real good job of organizing it all, getting the fab shop working with the crew chiefs, getting it all to mesh a little bit, instead of them all being separate departments and things like that. He did real good with that part of it. And then, from a crew chief standpoint, everybody is working together pretty well."
It certainly seems that way, judging from the results.
The team's high-water mark came three weeks ago at Bristol, when all three MWR vehicles finished inside the top five for the first time ever. But it goes beyond one race -- the team's three programs have finished inside the top 10 in 11 of a combined 18 starts this season. It shows week-in and week-out the kind of performance that threatens to win races and secure Chase berths. And if that happens, it will be powered by a vehicle that was overlooked when it debuted during last year's championship hunt, yet may very well play a role in deciding the next one.
"That's where we're at now, is just looking for that next step," Truex said. "So hopefully, we'll be able to get there."
Friday, April 6, 2012
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Hamlin experiences Augusta inside the ropes
Denny Hamlin made his reputation as a driver.
Bubba Watson made his reputation with his driver.
But Watson, one of the longest hitters on the PGA Tour, left his driver in the bag during Wednesday's traditional Par 3 Contest at Augusta National Golf Club, a day before competition in The Masters starts in earnest at the vaunted club in eastern Georgia.
Hamlin carried Watson's bag during the par-3 event played on Augusta National's nine-hole executive course. The par-3 layout measures 1,060 yards compared with the championship course at 7,435 yards. Short irons, not the driver, are the order of the day on the short course.
Golf is one of the sports, like NASCAR, that really hasn't changed in how it's played since its inception.
”
-- DAVID RAGAN
Hamlin and Watson have become close friends through their mutual interest in golf. Born in Bagdad, Fla., Watson now lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., where Hamlin spent much of the most recent NASCAR offseason working on his game. Coincidentally, both Hamlin and Watson play golf left-handed
Hamlin reportedly lowered his handicap considerably during the winter, but he is loath to admit it, given the damage a single-digit handicap might do to his ability to get an edge in the occasional golf wager. But Hamlin's talent was in evidence last year when he acquitted himself admirably in the Wells Fargo Championship pro-am in Charlotte, N.C.
Serving as a caddie to the men who can really play the game is a different matter, even if it is in the informal atmosphere of the par-3 tournament, where golfers' children have the run of the fairways and occasionally hit shots for their fathers.
Hamlin got his shot to join the pros Wednesday, but missed a putt for birdie on hole No. 9. Still, the experience of being a participant at one of golf's most famous venues made an impression on the Joe Gibbs Racing driver.
"It was a cool experience to come to Augusta and caddie for Bubba in the par-3 tournament," Hamlin said. "We have become pretty good friends over the past couple years, and I have to thank him for the opportunity. I'll be rooting for him in The Masters this weekend."
Hamlin wasn't the only driver who got a taste of Augusta National this week. David Ragan visited the course in his native Georgia for early practice rounds on Monday.
"Being from Georgia, we kind of take for granted that the Masters happens right in our backyard," said Ragan, who drives the No. 34 Ford for Front Row Motorsports. "Some friends of ours always get tickets every year, but typically we're always racing, coming off a race weekend and getting ready for another race the following weekend.
"But we have the off weekend this year, so this was the first time I had some downtime to be able to do some of the things that normal people get to do."
Though golf and NASCAR racing take place on vastly different venues, Ragan sees similarities between the traditions of both sports.
"Golf is one of the sports, like NASCAR, that really hasn't changed in how it's played since its inception," Ragan said. "You look at NASCAR, running the Daytona 500 and the Southern 500 and those types of traditional races. They stick with a lot of the same procedures that have been in place since day one.
"Technology might help drive the ball farther on the golf course, just like technology helps give us more horsepower to go faster, but the core basics of the sport are still very much the same as they were when they first started."
Bubba Watson made his reputation with his driver.
But Watson, one of the longest hitters on the PGA Tour, left his driver in the bag during Wednesday's traditional Par 3 Contest at Augusta National Golf Club, a day before competition in The Masters starts in earnest at the vaunted club in eastern Georgia.
Hamlin carried Watson's bag during the par-3 event played on Augusta National's nine-hole executive course. The par-3 layout measures 1,060 yards compared with the championship course at 7,435 yards. Short irons, not the driver, are the order of the day on the short course.
Golf is one of the sports, like NASCAR, that really hasn't changed in how it's played since its inception.
”
-- DAVID RAGAN
Hamlin and Watson have become close friends through their mutual interest in golf. Born in Bagdad, Fla., Watson now lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., where Hamlin spent much of the most recent NASCAR offseason working on his game. Coincidentally, both Hamlin and Watson play golf left-handed
Hamlin reportedly lowered his handicap considerably during the winter, but he is loath to admit it, given the damage a single-digit handicap might do to his ability to get an edge in the occasional golf wager. But Hamlin's talent was in evidence last year when he acquitted himself admirably in the Wells Fargo Championship pro-am in Charlotte, N.C.
Serving as a caddie to the men who can really play the game is a different matter, even if it is in the informal atmosphere of the par-3 tournament, where golfers' children have the run of the fairways and occasionally hit shots for their fathers.
Hamlin got his shot to join the pros Wednesday, but missed a putt for birdie on hole No. 9. Still, the experience of being a participant at one of golf's most famous venues made an impression on the Joe Gibbs Racing driver.
"It was a cool experience to come to Augusta and caddie for Bubba in the par-3 tournament," Hamlin said. "We have become pretty good friends over the past couple years, and I have to thank him for the opportunity. I'll be rooting for him in The Masters this weekend."
Hamlin wasn't the only driver who got a taste of Augusta National this week. David Ragan visited the course in his native Georgia for early practice rounds on Monday.
"Being from Georgia, we kind of take for granted that the Masters happens right in our backyard," said Ragan, who drives the No. 34 Ford for Front Row Motorsports. "Some friends of ours always get tickets every year, but typically we're always racing, coming off a race weekend and getting ready for another race the following weekend.
"But we have the off weekend this year, so this was the first time I had some downtime to be able to do some of the things that normal people get to do."
Though golf and NASCAR racing take place on vastly different venues, Ragan sees similarities between the traditions of both sports.
"Golf is one of the sports, like NASCAR, that really hasn't changed in how it's played since its inception," Ragan said. "You look at NASCAR, running the Daytona 500 and the Southern 500 and those types of traditional races. They stick with a lot of the same procedures that have been in place since day one.
"Technology might help drive the ball farther on the golf course, just like technology helps give us more horsepower to go faster, but the core basics of the sport are still very much the same as they were when they first started."
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Kenseth posts best M'ville finish since 2002
MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Matt Kenseth called it "a recipe for disaster."
The two fastest cars all day -- Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon -- were sitting first and second but on old tires. The rest of the field was on fresh rubber. And three laps were left to decide the winner of the Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
Talk about a little déjà vu for Kenseth. Two years ago, he and Jeff Gordon traded bumps in a similar situation, with Kenseth getting the worst of it, going from first to 18th in the span of two laps.
This is probably my worst track and we had a top-10 car all day and ran in the top 10 all day.
So Kenseth was more than happy to have a different view of this one. And it definitely worked to his advantage the second time around, as he wound up finishing fourth -- his best Martinsville finish since running second to Bobby Labonte in 2002.
"When the top two didn't get tires after 100-some laps, you knew it was going to get pretty crazy," Kenseth said. "I didn't know it was going to get that crazy in the first corner, but you knew it was going to be nuts."
When Ryan Newman bumped Clint Bowyer on the first of two green-white-checkered restarts -- making it three-wide on NASCAR's narrowest track -- Kenseth knew that wasn't going to turn out too well.
"I was just hoping I wasn't going to be caught up in whatever wreck was going to happen," Kenseth said.
With cars spinning and crashing in front of him, Kenseth slowed in the top groove -- somehow avoiding getting drilled from behind in the process -- and eventually swung back down the track to safety.
That put him fifth on the race's final restart. This time, Kenseth found his path clear and was able to overtake Martin Truex Jr. for fourth on the last lap of the race.
"I was right behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. and I was boxed in," Kenseth said. "With just two laps, if you're not in the first two rows, there isn't enough time to really get anywhere unless somebody slips up. Fortunately, [Junior] was able to get a good run off Turn 2 after the white flag and we were able to pass a couple of cars and get a good finish."
Patient Matt Kenseth? Not usually, especially when it comes to Martinsville, where patience can be in short supply.
"I usually lose mine every year here," Kenseth said. "You have to be a little bit patient, you have to have some give and take. Circumstances dictate that a lot of times. You have to have some space to be able to let people go and that type of thing, too. You just try not to burn the brakes up and drive it too hard and run into somebody or something."
Kenseth started 21st but worked his way into the top 10 early on, thanks to two long green-flag runs that played into his car's strength.
"We were OK for about 10 laps," Kenseth said. "Then from about Lap 10 to Lap 40, we weren't very fast. And then until we'd pit, most runs we were competitive. We needed a little bit more, but this is probably my worst track and we had a top-10 car all day and ran in the top 10 all day."
Kenseth knew he didn't have anything for Johnson, Gordon or Junior -- and on short runs, Denny Hamlin was better -- but Kenseth climbed from his car Sunday with two positive thoughts.
One, he didn't wind up wrecking -- or getting wrecked. That wasn't the case here last fall, when Kenseth was involved in several skirmishes with Brian Vickers, eventually ruining Kenseth's championship hopes.
Two, his No. 17 Ford was competitive throughout. Despite disappointing outings at Phoenix, Las Vegas and Fontana, Kenseth now has three top-five finishes -- including the Daytona 500 win -- and is in a four-way tie for third in the standings.
"We've been so up and down [in 2012], and had cars that ran really good but the finishes haven't showed that," Kenseth said. "So I'm happy to get a top-five here.
"Hopefully, we can get some finishes rolling so if we do that, we don't have to worry about the points. They'll take care of themselves. But we've got to keep getting these finishes."
The two fastest cars all day -- Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon -- were sitting first and second but on old tires. The rest of the field was on fresh rubber. And three laps were left to decide the winner of the Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway.
Talk about a little déjà vu for Kenseth. Two years ago, he and Jeff Gordon traded bumps in a similar situation, with Kenseth getting the worst of it, going from first to 18th in the span of two laps.
This is probably my worst track and we had a top-10 car all day and ran in the top 10 all day.
So Kenseth was more than happy to have a different view of this one. And it definitely worked to his advantage the second time around, as he wound up finishing fourth -- his best Martinsville finish since running second to Bobby Labonte in 2002.
"When the top two didn't get tires after 100-some laps, you knew it was going to get pretty crazy," Kenseth said. "I didn't know it was going to get that crazy in the first corner, but you knew it was going to be nuts."
When Ryan Newman bumped Clint Bowyer on the first of two green-white-checkered restarts -- making it three-wide on NASCAR's narrowest track -- Kenseth knew that wasn't going to turn out too well.
"I was just hoping I wasn't going to be caught up in whatever wreck was going to happen," Kenseth said.
With cars spinning and crashing in front of him, Kenseth slowed in the top groove -- somehow avoiding getting drilled from behind in the process -- and eventually swung back down the track to safety.
That put him fifth on the race's final restart. This time, Kenseth found his path clear and was able to overtake Martin Truex Jr. for fourth on the last lap of the race.
"I was right behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. and I was boxed in," Kenseth said. "With just two laps, if you're not in the first two rows, there isn't enough time to really get anywhere unless somebody slips up. Fortunately, [Junior] was able to get a good run off Turn 2 after the white flag and we were able to pass a couple of cars and get a good finish."
Patient Matt Kenseth? Not usually, especially when it comes to Martinsville, where patience can be in short supply.
"I usually lose mine every year here," Kenseth said. "You have to be a little bit patient, you have to have some give and take. Circumstances dictate that a lot of times. You have to have some space to be able to let people go and that type of thing, too. You just try not to burn the brakes up and drive it too hard and run into somebody or something."
Kenseth started 21st but worked his way into the top 10 early on, thanks to two long green-flag runs that played into his car's strength.
"We were OK for about 10 laps," Kenseth said. "Then from about Lap 10 to Lap 40, we weren't very fast. And then until we'd pit, most runs we were competitive. We needed a little bit more, but this is probably my worst track and we had a top-10 car all day and ran in the top 10 all day."
Kenseth knew he didn't have anything for Johnson, Gordon or Junior -- and on short runs, Denny Hamlin was better -- but Kenseth climbed from his car Sunday with two positive thoughts.
One, he didn't wind up wrecking -- or getting wrecked. That wasn't the case here last fall, when Kenseth was involved in several skirmishes with Brian Vickers, eventually ruining Kenseth's championship hopes.
Two, his No. 17 Ford was competitive throughout. Despite disappointing outings at Phoenix, Las Vegas and Fontana, Kenseth now has three top-five finishes -- including the Daytona 500 win -- and is in a four-way tie for third in the standings.
"We've been so up and down [in 2012], and had cars that ran really good but the finishes haven't showed that," Kenseth said. "So I'm happy to get a top-five here.
"Hopefully, we can get some finishes rolling so if we do that, we don't have to worry about the points. They'll take care of themselves. But we've got to keep getting these finishes."
Monday, April 2, 2012
Newman offers no apology for Martinsville victory
In no way, shape or form was he going to apologize to anyone for what transpired during the final laps of the Goody's Fast Relief 500 to help him get to Victory Lane on Sunday at Martinsville Speedway. On the first attempt at a green-white-checkered finish after a caution came out on Lap 498 of what had been scheduled for a 500-lap event, Newman's No. 39 Chevrolet rammed into the back of Clint Bowyer's No. 15 Toyota and appeared to play a role in setting off a chain reaction that took out the top three cars in the field at the time, clearing the way for Newman to motor through the melee and onto the victory.
Somebody had to win; it might as well have been us. ... It worked out for us.
But Newman and others put the blame for the wild wreck that took out Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson squarely on Bowyer.
"In the end, we did what we needed to do," Newman said. "We put ourselves in position to win. [Second-place finisher AJ] Allmendinger raced me clean and Clint [Bowyer] took out the rest of 'em on the first [green-white-checkered restart]. Somebody had to win; it might as well have been us. ... It worked out for us."
Newman said he anticipated a melee on the first G-W-C restart after the late caution that was brought about when David Reutimann's No. 10 Chevrolet rolled to a dead stop on the frontstretch.
"You kind of know what's going to happen. I did what I had to do to get a jump on the third-place car. That's really who I was racing," Neman said. "Jeff was on old tires and Clint wasn't so his car might have been a little better, so he stuck his nose up under there. That's what you've got to do at Martinsville.
"Everything really hinged on the 10 car stalling on the front straightaway. That made for a pretty interesting finish."
Newman acknowledged that Gordon, who led a race-high 328 laps, wasn't very happy with him immediately after the race.
"Jeff came up and hit me [afterward], I'm not sure why," Newman said. "I'm sure it was because he had a dominant race car and he didn't win. But it wasn't me that caused that wreck. It was Clint who drove down underneath there.
"Clint put 'em three-wide, bounced off the curb and jumped up into 'em, from what I saw. That's what caused everything. I was going to make a run on Clint to do the same thing he was trying to do to Jeff. But Clint blocked me and I hit him right at the start-finish line and that kind of propelled him up to where he got up into the 24 car once they got to the corner. It worked out to my favor. I mean, it wasn't intended to be that way -- but it definitely worked out to my favor."
When he held off Allmendinger on the second green-white-checkered restart, it resulted in Newman's 16th career victory. It was the first in his career at Martinsville and his first of the young 2012 season.
Crew chief Tony Gibson admitted Newman didn't appear to have a winning car. But he applauded his driver for putting the car into position to do precisely that in the end, when it was the only time that really mattered.
"Clint cleared the way for us and Ryan did the rest," Gibson said. "He drove a great race all day long, never gave up -- and like I've said a million times, you put him somewhere near the front with 10 to go, look out. He's going to have a shot to win it."
Actually, Newman didn't think he drove a great race all day. He had to overcome a speeding penalty on pit road that put him one lap down at one point.
"We ended up going a lap down because of my speeding penalty, and that was totally on me," Newman said. "But we never gave up and did an awesome job of making changes to the car. We were not a dominant race car, but we put ourselves in contention. The way the strategy and everything worked out, coming in for two tires [on the last pit stop] and Clint kind of clearing out Turn 1 for us, we were fortunate to be in the right place at the right time.
Somebody had to win; it might as well have been us. ... It worked out for us.
But Newman and others put the blame for the wild wreck that took out Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson squarely on Bowyer.
"In the end, we did what we needed to do," Newman said. "We put ourselves in position to win. [Second-place finisher AJ] Allmendinger raced me clean and Clint [Bowyer] took out the rest of 'em on the first [green-white-checkered restart]. Somebody had to win; it might as well have been us. ... It worked out for us."
Newman said he anticipated a melee on the first G-W-C restart after the late caution that was brought about when David Reutimann's No. 10 Chevrolet rolled to a dead stop on the frontstretch.
"You kind of know what's going to happen. I did what I had to do to get a jump on the third-place car. That's really who I was racing," Neman said. "Jeff was on old tires and Clint wasn't so his car might have been a little better, so he stuck his nose up under there. That's what you've got to do at Martinsville.
"Everything really hinged on the 10 car stalling on the front straightaway. That made for a pretty interesting finish."
Newman acknowledged that Gordon, who led a race-high 328 laps, wasn't very happy with him immediately after the race.
"Jeff came up and hit me [afterward], I'm not sure why," Newman said. "I'm sure it was because he had a dominant race car and he didn't win. But it wasn't me that caused that wreck. It was Clint who drove down underneath there.
"Clint put 'em three-wide, bounced off the curb and jumped up into 'em, from what I saw. That's what caused everything. I was going to make a run on Clint to do the same thing he was trying to do to Jeff. But Clint blocked me and I hit him right at the start-finish line and that kind of propelled him up to where he got up into the 24 car once they got to the corner. It worked out to my favor. I mean, it wasn't intended to be that way -- but it definitely worked out to my favor."
When he held off Allmendinger on the second green-white-checkered restart, it resulted in Newman's 16th career victory. It was the first in his career at Martinsville and his first of the young 2012 season.
Crew chief Tony Gibson admitted Newman didn't appear to have a winning car. But he applauded his driver for putting the car into position to do precisely that in the end, when it was the only time that really mattered.
"Clint cleared the way for us and Ryan did the rest," Gibson said. "He drove a great race all day long, never gave up -- and like I've said a million times, you put him somewhere near the front with 10 to go, look out. He's going to have a shot to win it."
Actually, Newman didn't think he drove a great race all day. He had to overcome a speeding penalty on pit road that put him one lap down at one point.
"We ended up going a lap down because of my speeding penalty, and that was totally on me," Newman said. "But we never gave up and did an awesome job of making changes to the car. We were not a dominant race car, but we put ourselves in contention. The way the strategy and everything worked out, coming in for two tires [on the last pit stop] and Clint kind of clearing out Turn 1 for us, we were fortunate to be in the right place at the right time.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Kahne tops at Martinsville for second pole of year
MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Kasey Kahne proved once again that he's a fast starter, but he's still in dire need of a strong finish.
With a 97.128 mph (19.496 seconds) lap in Saturday's time trials, Kahne edged Kevin Harvick (97.048 mph) for the top starting spot in Sunday's Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway. Kahne claimed his second Coors Light Pole Award of the season, his first at Martinsville and the 24th of his career.
* Out Front with Miss Coors Light: Rachel and Kasey
Four-time Martinsville winner Denny Hamlin (97.003 mph) will start third after running the exact same speed as Clint Bowyer. Hamlin won the tiebreaker for the position based on current owners' points. Ryan Newman (96.988 mph) will start fifth.
In his first year in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Kahne has posted an average starting position of 7.8, but his average finish has been a disappointing 26.6.
"It's a tough track to qualify and a tough track to race -- always has been one of my tougher ones over the years," said Kahne, who has led a total of 19 laps at the famed short track (average finish of 20.7, one top-five and two top-10s in 16 starts). "I'm glad we can start up front, have a great pit stall -- that No. 1 stall -- I think that helps throughout the whole race with track position.
"Hopefully, we'll have a solid day [on Sunday]. That's what we need to do. We've had great Fridays and Saturdays but just haven't put together a Sunday yet."
Brian Vickers, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon and Joey Logano will start from positions 6 through 10, respectively.
Series points leader Greg Biffle qualified 27th as Ford drivers had a rough day at the .526-mile track. Marcos Ambrose led the Ford contingent with a 12th-place effort in time trials. Biffle, however, was more optimistic about the race itself.
"We feel like we're pretty decent in race trim," Biffle said. "Qualifying was our biggest struggle. It's not where we wanted to be, but we've got 500 laps to get there."
The No. 37 Ford of Tony Raines failed post-qualifying inspection when NASCAR deemed the car too low. Accordingly, the qualifying time was disallowed, opening a starting spot for J.J. Yeley.
Scott Speed and Mike Bliss failed to qualify for the 43-car field.
With a 97.128 mph (19.496 seconds) lap in Saturday's time trials, Kahne edged Kevin Harvick (97.048 mph) for the top starting spot in Sunday's Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway. Kahne claimed his second Coors Light Pole Award of the season, his first at Martinsville and the 24th of his career.
* Out Front with Miss Coors Light: Rachel and Kasey
Four-time Martinsville winner Denny Hamlin (97.003 mph) will start third after running the exact same speed as Clint Bowyer. Hamlin won the tiebreaker for the position based on current owners' points. Ryan Newman (96.988 mph) will start fifth.
In his first year in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Kahne has posted an average starting position of 7.8, but his average finish has been a disappointing 26.6.
"It's a tough track to qualify and a tough track to race -- always has been one of my tougher ones over the years," said Kahne, who has led a total of 19 laps at the famed short track (average finish of 20.7, one top-five and two top-10s in 16 starts). "I'm glad we can start up front, have a great pit stall -- that No. 1 stall -- I think that helps throughout the whole race with track position.
"Hopefully, we'll have a solid day [on Sunday]. That's what we need to do. We've had great Fridays and Saturdays but just haven't put together a Sunday yet."
Brian Vickers, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon and Joey Logano will start from positions 6 through 10, respectively.
Series points leader Greg Biffle qualified 27th as Ford drivers had a rough day at the .526-mile track. Marcos Ambrose led the Ford contingent with a 12th-place effort in time trials. Biffle, however, was more optimistic about the race itself.
"We feel like we're pretty decent in race trim," Biffle said. "Qualifying was our biggest struggle. It's not where we wanted to be, but we've got 500 laps to get there."
The No. 37 Ford of Tony Raines failed post-qualifying inspection when NASCAR deemed the car too low. Accordingly, the qualifying time was disallowed, opening a starting spot for J.J. Yeley.
Scott Speed and Mike Bliss failed to qualify for the 43-car field.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Sharing EFI information has its limits, drivers say
BRISTOL, Tenn. -- If NASCAR is about to enter a new era of cooperation, where competing teams and organizations share much of the same information relating to new electronic fuel injection systems, the drivers have two words to add to the conversation.
They can look at all the data they want, but unless you're Tony Stewart doing what Tony Stewart does with his talent, you're not going to have a restart like he does.
It's kind of like this: if you've got a video game and everybody knows how to win, how fun is that? Keep the challenge in it without giving away all the answers.
"I'd rather not have that," said Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "It would be a benefit to be able to see all that. But I think it's a slippery slope.
"With the fuel injection it brings in the ability this year to be able to see data that we've never been able to see before. I think we should ease into how we use that data -- and how NASCAR allows us to use that data -- kind of slowly so as to not upset the culture of the sport, or how things have worked in the past. I think if we take this new door that has been opened to us and abuse it, it might not be good for the sport. I think it's better for competition for everybody to have a few secrets."
Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing, said he agrees with Earnhardt.
"The thing with us drivers is what we do with the pedals and steering wheel and all that stuff is all our proprietary stuff," Edwards said. "From NASCAR's perspective, I can see how they would want everyone to not have an advantage and [how they would want to] keep feeding everyone information to make it tougher and closer.
"But I know for me personally, with the fuel-mileage things and other stuff, there have been times when I thought there were things I did in the car that I wouldn't want anyone else to see. If those days are over, then they are over. I guess that's just the way it is."
The ushering in of EFI has brought NASCAR a new reality where there are mounds of data available through computers that never before could have been measured inside the car during competition. For instance, "mapping" of race winner Tony Stewart's engine data could provide insight to other drivers as to how Stewart repeatedly was able to stage faster restarts than the rest of the field during last Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Las Vegas.
In fact, fellow driver Jimmie Johnson said it already has for him. As driver of the No. 48 Chevy for Hendrick Motorsports, Johnson's team has a technical alliance with Stewart's No. 14 Chevy team at Stewart-Haas Racing. So it's not unusual for them to share information anyway. There's just more of it to share -- or not to share -- now.
"I did look at Tony's data and definitely have a direction and know what's going on," Johnson said. "It's a complicated thing that I'm certainly not going to share for the world to see. But I've got a clear direction of where to work."
And that, Johnson said, is the way it should be -- in that SHR and HMS have that technical alliance. He just wouldn't necessarily want NASCAR to go share all the information he's just learned with competing teams who drive Toyotas for Joe Gibbs Racing, Fords for Roush Fenway Racing or Dodges for Penske Racing, and so on.
"In a situation like what we have at Hendrick, from the inception or start of Stewart-Haas Racing having that relationship with Hendrick, we've been sending information back and forth. It's designed as a two-way street. So it's good to have that," Johnson said. "Amongst those six cars, that's the way it is. That's the way it works and I'm sure it's the same way through Roush and their satellite teams."
Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Dodge for Penske Racing, said he thinks he understands why many drivers are fearful of the new information age.
"The ultimate fear is whenever you involve computers, you replace humans -- whether it's in the car or out. And that's been the fear for the last 60 years. This is no different," Keselowski said. "This sport has always managed to maintain the human element. The real fear is that as that technology develops, the human element will become less and less critical and the sport will lose some of its substance -- just as anything else would."
Meanwhile, Sprint Cup series director John Darby insisted that the drivers' fears are largely unfounded. He said NASCAR has yet to share widespread EFI information from the season's first three races with teams or organizations, and pledged that the governing body would indeed be very careful about what it dispenses when the time comes.
"We've got data files from cars that we've downloaded from our first three races," Darby said. "Part of what we're doing right now is going through the data to understand what would be of value from tuning an engine operation versus the data you could extract that would be driver information, if that makes sense.
"Our interest is not to show the world where Tony Stewart slammed his throttle to the floor on a restart. It's about how the engine was tuned, whether it be a fuel map or a timing map. That's all we're worried about."
Teams then can use the general information given them by NASCAR to help alleviate possible engine-wear issues that might be related to the new fuel-injection systems. Plus Darby thinks the theory that a driver can learn to perform better on a restart by merely looking at computer data is a long shot for most.
"There is enough driver-characteristic information that could be extracted from the data if it was looked at properly, but we have no interest at all in passing that out. That would be up to the individual teams," Darby said.
"The bottom line is that a driver having a great restart and fuel injection have absolutely nothing to do with each other. That comes from the driver's talents. They can look at all the data they want, but unless you're Tony Stewart doing what Tony Stewart does with his talent, you're not going to have a restart like he does."
Earnhardt just thinks less is more in this case, and hopes NASCAR doesn't share too much with the entire racing world. He tried to put it in a perspective that everyone should be able to understand.
"It's kind of like this: if you've got a video game and everybody knows how to win, how fun is that? Keep the challenge in it without giving away all the answers," Earnhardt said.
They can look at all the data they want, but unless you're Tony Stewart doing what Tony Stewart does with his talent, you're not going to have a restart like he does.
It's kind of like this: if you've got a video game and everybody knows how to win, how fun is that? Keep the challenge in it without giving away all the answers.
"I'd rather not have that," said Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "It would be a benefit to be able to see all that. But I think it's a slippery slope.
"With the fuel injection it brings in the ability this year to be able to see data that we've never been able to see before. I think we should ease into how we use that data -- and how NASCAR allows us to use that data -- kind of slowly so as to not upset the culture of the sport, or how things have worked in the past. I think if we take this new door that has been opened to us and abuse it, it might not be good for the sport. I think it's better for competition for everybody to have a few secrets."
Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing, said he agrees with Earnhardt.
"The thing with us drivers is what we do with the pedals and steering wheel and all that stuff is all our proprietary stuff," Edwards said. "From NASCAR's perspective, I can see how they would want everyone to not have an advantage and [how they would want to] keep feeding everyone information to make it tougher and closer.
"But I know for me personally, with the fuel-mileage things and other stuff, there have been times when I thought there were things I did in the car that I wouldn't want anyone else to see. If those days are over, then they are over. I guess that's just the way it is."
The ushering in of EFI has brought NASCAR a new reality where there are mounds of data available through computers that never before could have been measured inside the car during competition. For instance, "mapping" of race winner Tony Stewart's engine data could provide insight to other drivers as to how Stewart repeatedly was able to stage faster restarts than the rest of the field during last Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Las Vegas.
In fact, fellow driver Jimmie Johnson said it already has for him. As driver of the No. 48 Chevy for Hendrick Motorsports, Johnson's team has a technical alliance with Stewart's No. 14 Chevy team at Stewart-Haas Racing. So it's not unusual for them to share information anyway. There's just more of it to share -- or not to share -- now.
"I did look at Tony's data and definitely have a direction and know what's going on," Johnson said. "It's a complicated thing that I'm certainly not going to share for the world to see. But I've got a clear direction of where to work."
And that, Johnson said, is the way it should be -- in that SHR and HMS have that technical alliance. He just wouldn't necessarily want NASCAR to go share all the information he's just learned with competing teams who drive Toyotas for Joe Gibbs Racing, Fords for Roush Fenway Racing or Dodges for Penske Racing, and so on.
"In a situation like what we have at Hendrick, from the inception or start of Stewart-Haas Racing having that relationship with Hendrick, we've been sending information back and forth. It's designed as a two-way street. So it's good to have that," Johnson said. "Amongst those six cars, that's the way it is. That's the way it works and I'm sure it's the same way through Roush and their satellite teams."
Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Dodge for Penske Racing, said he thinks he understands why many drivers are fearful of the new information age.
"The ultimate fear is whenever you involve computers, you replace humans -- whether it's in the car or out. And that's been the fear for the last 60 years. This is no different," Keselowski said. "This sport has always managed to maintain the human element. The real fear is that as that technology develops, the human element will become less and less critical and the sport will lose some of its substance -- just as anything else would."
Meanwhile, Sprint Cup series director John Darby insisted that the drivers' fears are largely unfounded. He said NASCAR has yet to share widespread EFI information from the season's first three races with teams or organizations, and pledged that the governing body would indeed be very careful about what it dispenses when the time comes.
"We've got data files from cars that we've downloaded from our first three races," Darby said. "Part of what we're doing right now is going through the data to understand what would be of value from tuning an engine operation versus the data you could extract that would be driver information, if that makes sense.
"Our interest is not to show the world where Tony Stewart slammed his throttle to the floor on a restart. It's about how the engine was tuned, whether it be a fuel map or a timing map. That's all we're worried about."
Teams then can use the general information given them by NASCAR to help alleviate possible engine-wear issues that might be related to the new fuel-injection systems. Plus Darby thinks the theory that a driver can learn to perform better on a restart by merely looking at computer data is a long shot for most.
"There is enough driver-characteristic information that could be extracted from the data if it was looked at properly, but we have no interest at all in passing that out. That would be up to the individual teams," Darby said.
"The bottom line is that a driver having a great restart and fuel injection have absolutely nothing to do with each other. That comes from the driver's talents. They can look at all the data they want, but unless you're Tony Stewart doing what Tony Stewart does with his talent, you're not going to have a restart like he does."
Earnhardt just thinks less is more in this case, and hopes NASCAR doesn't share too much with the entire racing world. He tried to put it in a perspective that everyone should be able to understand.
"It's kind of like this: if you've got a video game and everybody knows how to win, how fun is that? Keep the challenge in it without giving away all the answers," Earnhardt said.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Kahne sees a turnaround on the horizon in 5 car
CONCORD, N.C. -- He was involved in three wrecks during Speedweeks, most notably one in the Daytona 500. At Phoenix, he got loose off a corner and hit the wall. At Las Vegas, he came home in the middle of the pack despite setting a track record in qualifying. At Bristol, he crashed when his spotter told him he was clear, and he wasn't. At California, he competed with the knowledge that one slip-up might knock him -- unthinkably -- outside of the top-35 cars in owners' points, which have guaranteed starting spots in each Sprint Cup event.
It's hardly been the start Kasey Kahne envisioned in his debut season with powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports, an organization that's won 10 titles on NASCAR's premier series, and is chasing its 200th race win. But Kahne looks at the fast cars he has every weekend, looks at the potential within his No. 5 team, and delivers a warning.
I knew going in, that just because I was going to Hendrick Motorsports didn't mean I was going to start winning more races.
"We've got fast cars," he said Tuesday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. "I think all the guys have been really quick at the majority of the tracks we've been to. All the Hendrick guys. I feel like our engines are doing great, our cars are awesome. Myself, I'm still learning things there, but I feel lime we're getting pretty good at it. I feel like we're competitive. We've had some bad luck and made some mistakes and things, but I think we can be a contender as this season goes, for sure."
Much like Jeff Gordon, whose similar run of early season misfortune has him just two spots north of the 27th-place position his teammate currently occupies in the standings, Kahne's cars have been fast every week. That much is evident in Kahne's starting positions this season, the past four of which -- including the track-record pole run at Las Vegas -- have been inside the top 10. The issue has been finishing, something complicated by a mistake here or there, or just plain bad luck.
By necessity, it all reached a head last weekend in Southern California. Owners' points change from 2011 to the current season for this week's event at Martinsville Speedway, and heading to Auto Club Speedway, Kahne sat uncomfortably near the top-35 cutoff. His No. 5 car was loose early, but improved to the point where it was about the seventh-fastest vehicle in the race. Long green-flag runs made it tough for Kahne to gain track position, and rain ended the event before the car came in. But an uneventful 14th-place finish was relief enough, given that it ensured Kahne won't have to make Sunday's race -- or any later ones, for that matter -- on speed.
* Standings: Driver | Owner
"I was a little worried at California," he admitted. "If we had one more bad race there, we would have been fighting for position at Martinsville, which would have been unheard of for us. I was glad. We didn't finish where we wanted to, but if 200 laps were there, we would have had a pretty strong car by the end of that race. I was fine with that, and we're solid now. We just need to keep it up. We need to keep finishing strong, having good race cars like we've had, and I think it will all work itself out."
It was difficult not to foresee all kinds of potential in the combination of the 11-time race winner Kahne with Hendrick, the best team of the sport's modern era. Kahne had won with much lesser organizations, including at Phoenix this past fall for a Red Bull team that was a one-year stopover for the driver, and about to go out of business because its sponsor was pulling out. That he was making the move with Kenny Francis, his longtime crew chief and trusted friend, made the pieces fit together that much more snugly.
Or so it seemed. But for all of Hendrick's promise and Kahne's talent, it was still a new team, and it brought with it an adjustment. Drivers like Kahne operate on feel, their bodies telling them how each of the tires are doing, and how the vehicle itself rolls through the corners. Hendrick's cars are somewhat different than what he had been used to at Red Bull -- and Richard Petty Motorsports before that -- and figuring out that feel takes time. At one point in the race in California, for instance, Kahne's car behaved in traffic in a way that was different from practice, and he wasn't prepared for it.
Such are the smaller, unseen fine-tuning processes a new driver must go through with a new organization, regardless of how many races he's capable of winning. Teammates Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. have all been at Hendrick for years, and to a certain degree know what to expect from the vehicles underneath them. Kahne is just starting to get there.
"They do things for a reason [at Hendrick], and they've done them for a long time," Kahne said. "Jeff and Jimmie and Dale, they know exactly where they're at, and so do their crew chiefs and teams, and they're working on stuff. We are slowly getting there. We have the speed, but putting together that whole race is what is a little more difficult."
Knowing the car is fast helps. So does knowing the owner supports you, no matter how trying the first weeks of the season have been. Kahne said he and Rick Hendrick talk or text every week, and occasionally enjoy longer periods of time together like a flight to California for a sponsor event. Over and over again, he said, the boss has relayed the same message -- the cars have speed, fortunes will change, and you'll be fine. There's never any shortage of encouragement from the top.
"I just think if your owner is still behind you, and speaking highly of what you're doing and how your team is, and sees what your team is and what's going on and isn't putting it all on you ... you just feel good about it," Kahne said. "You feel like you're fine and you'll get through it and you'll figure out what those problems are we've had. Maybe it's bad luck, maybe it's not. But he's been right there and has told me, don't worry about it. We have another car for next week that's just as good, maybe better."
It's all helped Kahne keep up his own spirits. "I feel really confident with everything we have, and it just takes time to get acclimated and figure some of that stuff out," he said. "I think we're getting there, I think we're getting closer. As we put races together, I think we'll show [it] and we'll get back to where we need to be."
That would be battling for race wins and potentially a Chase berth, although Kahne does have to get back inside the top 20 in points to make himself eligible for a wild card to NASCAR's 12-driver playoff. For now, though, sunrise appears on the horizon. The California run staunched the bleeding, for the time being. Kahne's left knee, which underwent surgery for a torn meniscus prior to the Daytona 500, doesn't swell up on him anymore after races. He's even started running again, albeit at a slower pace than he's used to. In the upcoming off weekend, he's heading to Attica, Ohio, to race sprint cars, his first love.
It was that or the Bahamas. Sitting on the couch wasn't an option.
"It's actually a pretty nice couch," he said. "I just don't spend a lot of time on it."
There's too much else to do, primarily salvaging his Sprint Cup season after an opening month of frustration and bad luck. These days, though, Kahne feels like he can see the corner. It's just a matter of turning it, and watching all the potential that exists with his new organization spring to life.
"Probably because of the results, I feel a little bit on edge maybe for some of the races, just because I want to run better and things," he said. "But I knew going in, that just because I was going to Hendrick Motorsports didn't mean I was going to start winning more races. It's still a huge team effort, and there's still a lot of things you have to do right in order to run up front and contend for those wins. It takes a little bit of time. I think we've had some time now, and we're getting pretty close. I think we're pretty good as a team, and hopefully we can start running in the top 10."
It's hardly been the start Kasey Kahne envisioned in his debut season with powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports, an organization that's won 10 titles on NASCAR's premier series, and is chasing its 200th race win. But Kahne looks at the fast cars he has every weekend, looks at the potential within his No. 5 team, and delivers a warning.
I knew going in, that just because I was going to Hendrick Motorsports didn't mean I was going to start winning more races.
"We've got fast cars," he said Tuesday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. "I think all the guys have been really quick at the majority of the tracks we've been to. All the Hendrick guys. I feel like our engines are doing great, our cars are awesome. Myself, I'm still learning things there, but I feel lime we're getting pretty good at it. I feel like we're competitive. We've had some bad luck and made some mistakes and things, but I think we can be a contender as this season goes, for sure."
Much like Jeff Gordon, whose similar run of early season misfortune has him just two spots north of the 27th-place position his teammate currently occupies in the standings, Kahne's cars have been fast every week. That much is evident in Kahne's starting positions this season, the past four of which -- including the track-record pole run at Las Vegas -- have been inside the top 10. The issue has been finishing, something complicated by a mistake here or there, or just plain bad luck.
By necessity, it all reached a head last weekend in Southern California. Owners' points change from 2011 to the current season for this week's event at Martinsville Speedway, and heading to Auto Club Speedway, Kahne sat uncomfortably near the top-35 cutoff. His No. 5 car was loose early, but improved to the point where it was about the seventh-fastest vehicle in the race. Long green-flag runs made it tough for Kahne to gain track position, and rain ended the event before the car came in. But an uneventful 14th-place finish was relief enough, given that it ensured Kahne won't have to make Sunday's race -- or any later ones, for that matter -- on speed.
* Standings: Driver | Owner
"I was a little worried at California," he admitted. "If we had one more bad race there, we would have been fighting for position at Martinsville, which would have been unheard of for us. I was glad. We didn't finish where we wanted to, but if 200 laps were there, we would have had a pretty strong car by the end of that race. I was fine with that, and we're solid now. We just need to keep it up. We need to keep finishing strong, having good race cars like we've had, and I think it will all work itself out."
It was difficult not to foresee all kinds of potential in the combination of the 11-time race winner Kahne with Hendrick, the best team of the sport's modern era. Kahne had won with much lesser organizations, including at Phoenix this past fall for a Red Bull team that was a one-year stopover for the driver, and about to go out of business because its sponsor was pulling out. That he was making the move with Kenny Francis, his longtime crew chief and trusted friend, made the pieces fit together that much more snugly.
Or so it seemed. But for all of Hendrick's promise and Kahne's talent, it was still a new team, and it brought with it an adjustment. Drivers like Kahne operate on feel, their bodies telling them how each of the tires are doing, and how the vehicle itself rolls through the corners. Hendrick's cars are somewhat different than what he had been used to at Red Bull -- and Richard Petty Motorsports before that -- and figuring out that feel takes time. At one point in the race in California, for instance, Kahne's car behaved in traffic in a way that was different from practice, and he wasn't prepared for it.
Such are the smaller, unseen fine-tuning processes a new driver must go through with a new organization, regardless of how many races he's capable of winning. Teammates Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. have all been at Hendrick for years, and to a certain degree know what to expect from the vehicles underneath them. Kahne is just starting to get there.
"They do things for a reason [at Hendrick], and they've done them for a long time," Kahne said. "Jeff and Jimmie and Dale, they know exactly where they're at, and so do their crew chiefs and teams, and they're working on stuff. We are slowly getting there. We have the speed, but putting together that whole race is what is a little more difficult."
Knowing the car is fast helps. So does knowing the owner supports you, no matter how trying the first weeks of the season have been. Kahne said he and Rick Hendrick talk or text every week, and occasionally enjoy longer periods of time together like a flight to California for a sponsor event. Over and over again, he said, the boss has relayed the same message -- the cars have speed, fortunes will change, and you'll be fine. There's never any shortage of encouragement from the top.
"I just think if your owner is still behind you, and speaking highly of what you're doing and how your team is, and sees what your team is and what's going on and isn't putting it all on you ... you just feel good about it," Kahne said. "You feel like you're fine and you'll get through it and you'll figure out what those problems are we've had. Maybe it's bad luck, maybe it's not. But he's been right there and has told me, don't worry about it. We have another car for next week that's just as good, maybe better."
It's all helped Kahne keep up his own spirits. "I feel really confident with everything we have, and it just takes time to get acclimated and figure some of that stuff out," he said. "I think we're getting there, I think we're getting closer. As we put races together, I think we'll show [it] and we'll get back to where we need to be."
That would be battling for race wins and potentially a Chase berth, although Kahne does have to get back inside the top 20 in points to make himself eligible for a wild card to NASCAR's 12-driver playoff. For now, though, sunrise appears on the horizon. The California run staunched the bleeding, for the time being. Kahne's left knee, which underwent surgery for a torn meniscus prior to the Daytona 500, doesn't swell up on him anymore after races. He's even started running again, albeit at a slower pace than he's used to. In the upcoming off weekend, he's heading to Attica, Ohio, to race sprint cars, his first love.
It was that or the Bahamas. Sitting on the couch wasn't an option.
"It's actually a pretty nice couch," he said. "I just don't spend a lot of time on it."
There's too much else to do, primarily salvaging his Sprint Cup season after an opening month of frustration and bad luck. These days, though, Kahne feels like he can see the corner. It's just a matter of turning it, and watching all the potential that exists with his new organization spring to life.
"Probably because of the results, I feel a little bit on edge maybe for some of the races, just because I want to run better and things," he said. "But I knew going in, that just because I was going to Hendrick Motorsports didn't mean I was going to start winning more races. It's still a huge team effort, and there's still a lot of things you have to do right in order to run up front and contend for those wins. It takes a little bit of time. I think we've had some time now, and we're getting pretty close. I think we're pretty good as a team, and hopefully we can start running in the top 10."
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