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Golden Corral 500 - Atlanta Motor Speedway
Kahne Wins from the Pole in Atlanta
Kasey Kahne won the rain-delayed Golden Corral 500 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway from the pole position on Monday afternoon. It was the first time a driver won from the pole since Buddy Baker in 1979. Kahne’s last victory came at Richmond, 29 races ago, also winning that race from the pole as well. Kahne held his breath for the last 20 laps and held off a strong contingent of contenders to claim his second career win. Kahne led most of the final laps in the event originally scheduled for Sunday afternoon and kept his Ray Evernham Dodge in front of Mark Martin, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon and points leader Jimmie Johnson down the stretch of this 500-mile event. On a cold, drab, gray day at this 1 1/2-mile trioval, Kahne kept his red Dodge near the front of the pack throughout the day before charging to the front with 80 laps remaining. Kahne's win is the first for Dodge at this particular track in 29 years, Richard Petty was responsible for that last Dodge win at Atlanta. The King had to be smiling Monday because the new driver of Richard's No. 43, Bobby Labonte, took the familiar red and blue colors to the front of the field before an engine problem sidelined him for the afternoon. Son Kyle brought his Petty Enterprises Dodge home for a top-10 finish. It was a promising afternoon for the re-vamped Petty team with new manager Robbie Loomis and crew chief Todd Parrott. With the win, Kahne moved into second place in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings, the highest ranking of his career. This was his third top-five finish in four races this season, while all four of his finishes in 2006 have been in the top 15. Kahne gave team owner Ray Evernham his eighth NASCAR NEXTEL Cup victory and first at Atlanta. Martin finished second, 1.928 seconds behind Kahne, and has finished in the top-five in the last four races at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Much like Kahne, he has scored four straight top-15 finishes to start the season. Earnhardt Jr. scored his sixth top-five finish in 14 races at Atlanta with his third-place finish. Multiple NASCAR NEXTEL Cup champions Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart finished fourth and fifth respectively.
Kasey Kahne Snaps Newmans Streak with Atlanta Pole
Ryan Newman took to the track today with hopes of extending a remarkable pole streak. A streak of six consecutive pole positions for Newman at Atlanta began in March of 2003 and ran through October 2005. This evening the streak was snapped by Kasey Kahne. Kahne won the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Bud Pole for the Golden Corral 500 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway after posting a lap in 28.792 seconds, at an average speed of 192.553 mile per hour. This is Kahne’s seventh career Bud Pole in 76 NEXTEL Cup Series races and his second top-10 start so far this season. Newman just missed extending his streak by only one position after turning in the second-quickest qualifying lap of 28.794 seconds, at an average speed of 192.540 mph – join Kahne on the front row on Sunday. It is his ninth top-10 start in as many races at Atlanta – including eight front-row starts. Kahne and Newman were the only drivers to break the 192 mph-mark. Jeff Burton qualified in the third position, posting his fourth top-10 start of the season, the only driver to do so. It is only his second top-10 start in 24 races at Atlanta. His previous best start here was 10th in this race in 1998. Bobby Labonte will start fourth, his 10th top-10 start in 27 races at Atlanta – but his first since he started 10th in this race in 2004. Rookie J.J. Yeley will poll off fifth on Sunday after his second top-10 qualifying effort of 2006 – both top fives.
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