The Future For Kahne May Have Already Started With The Formation Of KKR
The Future For Kahne May Have Already Started With The Formation Of KKR
With the formation of Kasey Kahne Racing, the NASCAR veteran may already have his eyes firmly on a future that is much the same at Tony Stewart's.
Updated: Kasey Kahne Out at Hendrick Motorsports
Sponsorship Dollars Will Determine Where Kasey Kahne Lands in 2018
In a sense, Kasey Kahne is racing's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
There's the Dr. Jekyll side of Kahne, the All-American boy type, a big NASCAR fan favorite who races for one of the most successful organizations in the business, Hendrick Motorsports.
And then there's the Mr. Hyde side of Kahne, the kind of guy that likes to get down and dirty -- and the dirtier the better -- driving winged sprint cars and midgets in his spare time when he's not trying to win at places such as Daytona, Talladega, Indianapolis, and other NASCAR venues.
Kasey Kenneth Kahne is at a point in his career where he seemingly has it all -- with the exception of that elusive first NASCAR Cup championship. But he's also at a stage where what he does today may soon become something entirely different in the future.
We're talking about Kahne's career in NASCAR Cup. The 37-year-old Enumclaw, WA, native has seen a number of fellow racers retire in the last year or two.
Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon retired after the 2015 season but then came back for several races in 2016 to replace another HMS teammate, the injured Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Three-time NASCAR Cup champ Tony Stewart retired after the 2016 season to not only devote more attention as a co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing but also to go back to his favorite form of racing: dirt track racing.
And then there's another of Kahne's HMS teammates, Earnhardt Jr., who stunned the NASCAR world two weeks ago when he announced this will be his final season behind the wheel of his No. 88 NASCAR Cup Chevrolet. Like Stewart, Earnhardt will take a more active role in his co-ownership of JR Motorsports once he climbs out of the cockpit of his Cup car for the final time.
So that leaves Kahne in a situation of pondering what his own future holds. At 37, he still has probably another five years as a contending NASCAR Cup driver. Yet at the same time, will he want to keep driving that long. Or, will his current situation with HMS remain? What happens if Hendrick decides it wants to bring in another driver -- perhaps younger -- to fill Kahne's spot in the No. 5 Chevy?
That's why Kahne, although he may not be talking about it publicly, is likely taking stock of his racing future and where his career may lead him down the road.
One potential answer would to follow Stewart's footsteps. Stewart has long been an influential factor in Kahne's life as a friend and mentor. And if it's good enough for Tony to step out of Cup racing and back into dirt track and grassroots racing, then that may very well be a good enough situation for Kahne to step back into some day.
It wouldn't be a surprise. Dirt racing is where Kahne learned to race. It's where he also first attracted the attention of Ford, which signed him to a developmental driver contract and had big plans for the young man from the Pacific Northwest.
But racing is also a business and Kahne had to do what was best for his career. After a stint of driving for Yates Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Kahne jumped ship and joined Ray Evernham and the Dodge camp in 2004. That move ultimately led to a lawsuit from Ford that was eventually settled.
Since then, Kahne has gone on to win 17 Cup races, with a season-best final ranking of fourth in 2012 in his first season with HMS. He's also earned eight wins in the Xfinity Series and an uncanny five wins in six career starts in the Camping World Truck Series.
But the future is coming fast. Kahne sees that other drivers in their late 30s to early-to-mid 40s such as Kevin Harvick, seven-time champ Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, and Matt Kenseth are all still competitive but also slowly sliding into the twilight of their NASCAR careers.
They're all preparing for their post-NASCAR tenure. Johnson is heavily involved in physical training. Harvick has a sports management firm that includes managing MMA fighters and boxers, and Kenseth is also looking at options for what he'll do after he retires from racing.
Kasey Kahne Racing
But Kahne is also pragmatic and a long-range, big-picture kind of guy. That's why he formed Kasey Kahne Racing (KKR) in 2005. Housed in Mooresville, North Carolina, KKR employs roughly 20 people dedicated to sprint car racing, particularly in the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, with drivers Daryn Pittman and Brad Sweet.
And, of course, an occasional foray back to his dirt roots for Kahne.
KKR has been very successful, including Pittman's WoO championship in 2013. And in its decade-plus of racing, KKR has racked up well over 150 feature wins in the Outlaws.
Kahne tries to spend as much time as he can with KKR, but his NASCAR career remains his No. 1 racing priority. That's why Kahne's younger brother, Kale, 34, has played such a key role in the development of KKR, both overseeing the organization as well as serving as crew chief for Pittman.
KKR has evolved into one of the most successful teams in WoO racing -- and clearly has even bigger plans down the road. Those plans potentially could include Kahne not only returning to the organization as a more involved, hands-on team owner once his Cup career ends.
He's already begun to do that. When teammate Earnhardt announced his retirement, Kahne jokingly tweeted, "Excuse us, Dale Earnhardt Jr. We hear you'll have some free time next year. We could possibly pencil you in (to a Sprint car ride)."
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/kkrdirt/status/856913102906032128" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
Just a few weeks before his tweet to Junior, Kahne got back on track in his No. 4 KKR dirt car this year over the Easter weekend but didn't exactly perform the way he had hoped.
Kahne took to the track at Gator Motorplex in Willis, Texas, on April 13. Kahne started strong, qualifying sixth and finishing second in his heat. Unfortunately, when it came to the A-Main, Kahne spun late in the race and ended up a disappointing 20th.
Then, when Kahne moved on to the Texas Outlaws Nationals at Devils Bowl Speedway in Mesquite for the next two nights, he started ninth and finished 11th (Stewart was also in the event and finished second). The following night of the two-day show, Kahne ended up 16th in the main event.
The fact that Kahne continues to stay involved in racing not just as an owner but also as an occasional part-time dirt driver is a clear indication he likely will move further in that direction as his Cup career eventually starts to wind down.
Kahne also continues to expand the business side of KKR, having inked a sponsorship in mid-March to have iRacing.com sponsor his own dirt racing exploits this season in the No. 4 in the 2017 World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series. iRacing is also riding as an associate sponsor on Pittman's No. 9 sprint car this season, as well.
Kahne also has key primary sponsorship for Brad Sweet's No. 49 car from NAPA for 42 races this season. Sweet has won more than 20 races in WoO, where he also won Rookie of the Year honors in 2014.
How long will it be for Kahne to both remain in Cup racing and then potentially return at least part-time on a regular basis in dirt racing remains to be seen.
But Kahne knows that day is ultimately coming.
Timeline of Kahne's dirt racing career
* Born April 10, 1980
* Currently fields cars in the World of Outlaws sprint car series for Daryn Pittman and Brad Sweet. Also competes in USAC Sprint Car Series with Brady Bacon as driver, as well as USAC Midgets with Sweet behind the wheel.
* Kahne is a two-time Skagit Speedway winner of the annual Jim Roper Dirt Cup Memorial race (2002 and 2003) and continues to hold the track's top speed record there.
* Kahne began his racing career at 17 years old in a sprint car at Deming Speedway in Deming, WA. From there, he moved on to Skagit Speedway in Alger, WA, and then to the USAC dirt ranks.
* One of the biggest turning points of his career was after winning the 2000 season series opener at Williams Grove Speedway. He caught the eye of and was quickly hired to drive for longtime dirt team owner Steve Lewis, who also was involved in the early dirt racing careers of future standouts Jeff Gordon, Stewart, and the late Jason Leffler and Kenny Irwin.
* Kahne had an outstanding rookie season in sprints in 2000, being named USAC rookie of the year as well as winning the midget class championship. He also began to race more competitively and frequently in the World of Outlaws.
* In 2014, Kahn devised the Dirt Classic, which has become one of the most popular dirt track events of the season. It's also one of the better-paying non-points events, with $20,000 going to the winner. Since its inception, the Classic has paid out nearly $400,000 in earnings to race participants. The 2017 Dirt Classic will be held Saturday, Sept. 23, at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, PA. There will also be a Dirt Classic at Attica Raceway Park in Ohio and the FrontRow Challenge at Southern Iowa Speedway.
* Formed the Kasey Kahne Foundation in 2005, a charitable group that has awarded several hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding to seriously ill children and other charitable groups.
* Signed a contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports that will keep him in the No. 5 Chevy through the 2018 season. But after that, who knows -- might Kahne end his NASCAR career and go back to his first love of playing in the dirt? Only time will tell.