Kahne wins at New Hampshire
Hamlin positive after breakdown in communication
LOUDON, N.H. — Kasey Kahne made a strong surge in the Chase for the Sprint Cup wild-card race Sunday, winning the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Kahne inherited the lead under caution on lap 235 with a two-tire stop and held off Denny Hamlin, who charged from 13th to second after the final caution, for his second victory of the season in NASCAR’s premier series. The Hendrick Motorsports driver is in the lead spot for one of two Chase berths awarded to the winningest drivers ranked 11th through 20th. — Nate Ryan
LOUDON, N.H. — Kasey Kahne rightfully was talking like a title contender after Sunday’s victory in the Lenox Industrial Tools 301.
Somehow, Denny Hamlin was, too, despite having the win ripped away on a gut-wrenching gaffe with crew chief Darian Grubb.
“We’re going to win the one that counts, and that’s in September,” Hamlin said, referring to the Sprint Cup Series’ next visit to New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Sunday’s win still counted plenty for Kahne. The Hendrick Motorsports driver assumed a hammerlock grip on a wild-card bid for the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship run with his second victory.
No other driver outside the top 10 has more than one win, and Kahne’s ranking of 12th in the standings puts his No. 5 Chevrolet in strong position to take one of the two wild cards reserved for the winningest drivers ranked 11th through 20th.
“I feel good about where we’re at now,” Kahne said after his 14th Cup victory. “We just have to stay consistent, stay after it, hopefully win a couple more races.”
With two victories and a fifthplace ranking, Hamlin is a virtual lock for the Chase. But a win would have tied him with Brad Keselowski and Tony Stewart for bonus points (three per win) to start the 10-race title run, which will begin in two months at Chicagoland Speedway and then return to New Hampshire.
Hamlin took it all in stride despite leading a race-high 150 laps in his No. 11 Toyota. On the final stop, he fell from first to 13th because Grubb thought Hamlin wanted four tires instead of two. Over the final 40 laps on a 1.058-mile oval known for its difficulty in fostering passes, Hamlin charged to second.
“Proud of our team; we had an amazing race car,” he said. “We lost three points today; that’s about it. When it really counts in a few months, we know we’re going to have something pretty strong.”
The impetus for the mistake was Hamlin and Grubb had roughly 45
Finish line: Kasey Kahne wins the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 on Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway to put himself in strong position to make the Chase for the Sprint Cup. “I feel good about where we’re at now,” he says. seconds to make their decision because the pace car picked up the field so quickly and they were first to enter the pits. Grubb, who didn’t ask Hamlin directly whether he wanted two or four, took 100% of the blame on the team’s radio, but his driver was forgiving. “It was a perfect storm,” Hamlin said.
Name-checking his sports psychologist, Bob Rotella (“Think forward!” Hamlin said of his advice), the Joe Gibbs Racing driver kept ticking off the positives — starting with the improvement since Grubb (who led Stewart to last year’s championship) joined a team that finished ninth in the 2011 standings.
“Darian has won me a couple races more than he’s taken away from me,” Hamlin said. “I’ve been through this long enough to know you’re going to have plenty more chances in the future, especially the way we’re running.”
It’s likely Kahne will join Hamlin in the Chase, though he might need one more win to feel secure.
“Yeah, it’s probably never enough,” Kahne said. “But I think three would put you in a real good spot. We have some really good tracks coming up, and I like my car a lot, so I think we’ll be in good shape.”