No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge Race Facts
Sharpie 500 --- Bristol Motor Speedway
Driver: Kasey Kahne
Team Director: Tommy Baldwin
Team Owner: Ray Evernham
Chassis: No. 59
Car Info: Brand new – never raced
KASEY KAHNE QUOTES
“You obviously have to have a good car (at Bristol) and work hard in practice to get it ready for the race. If you have a good car, you have a lot better shot at not getting into the wrecks and getting pushed around as much. Hopefully we’ll have a good car. You’ve just got to be smart about it. If someone is working on you really hard, sometimes you just need to let them go rather than spinning around.
“I was actually having a lot of fun (in the spring race at Bristol). We had a great racecar, and I’m looking forward to going back this weekend. We built a brand new car for there, and I look forward to it. Driving a Cup car there was a lot of fun, and it handled better than my Busch car ever handled.”
STATS & FACTS
CLOSING IN ON THE LEADERS
Kahne moves into the coveted top-10 of the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series standings for the first time since April. He ranks 10th – just seven points out of the ninth-place spot and 40 points out of eighth.
KAHNE AT BRISTOL
In Kahne’s first NEXTEL Cup Series race at Bristol, he qualified fourth, and was aiming for the race lead on lap 59 when contact with the No. 42 car took him out of second place to finish 40th with a DNF.
HOW IT ALL ADDS UP
Kahne has four top tens and three top fives in the past five races (eighth, third, fourth, 14th, fifth).
Kahne is one of only five drivers to have scored eight or more top-five finishes this season.
Kahne’s four pole positions are two shy of Ryan Newman’s record six poles in a rookie season.
RAYBESTOS ROOKIE BESTS
After 23 races, Kahne has a commanding 75-point lead in the Raybestos Rookie-of-the-Year race.
Kahne’s total of 355 laps led is nearly four times the combined amount of laps led by the five other 2004 Raybestos Rookie-of-the-Year candidates (92). He also has more poles, top fives and top 10s than the combined amount of his Rookie-of-the-Year competitors.
A NEW LOOK FOR SUMMER
The No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge will run its “Dodge Summer Sales Drive” paint scheme for the final week in Bristol. Kahne’s Dodge has run this paint scheme since racing at Chicago in July.
FAST ON FRIDAYS
Kahne earned his fourth pole (Las Vegas, Darlington, California and Pocono) and his second track qualifying record (Las Vegas, Pocono) at Pocono in June.
Evernham Motorsports has set three track qualifying records this season (Kahne – Las Vegas and Pocono (a), Mayfield – Dover).
Kahne tied Art Watts (1957) for the quickest any driver has reached four career poles – 14 races.
No. 9 DEW CREW ROSTER CHANGE
Nick O’Dell has replaced Jim Pohlman as front tire changer for the No. 9 Dew Crew. O’Dell worked as the front tire changer on the No. 91 Evernham Motorsports Dodge team earlier this year. O’Dell also served as front tire changer for the No. 9 Dew Crew at Michigan and Watkins Glen. Jim Pohlman remains lead mechanic on the team.
