Inside Dish: Kahne finally finds his groove
Don't look now, but Kasey Kahne is on a roll. After posting two top 10 finishes in the season's first 23 races, Kasey Kahne has finished in the top 10 in the past three. . . .
Kevin Harvick was the last driver to qualify for the Chase, but that doesn't mean the No. 29 team has lost an ounce of its feistiness. "We've got to throw caution to the wind right here and now and go for it as hard as we can," No. 29 crew chief Todd Berrier says, "because the bottom line is you either win the thing or you finish 12th. Who (cares) about anything in between?" . . . .
Considering how often IRL champion Dario Franchitti has ended up airborne and upside down this season in his IndyCar, is it any wonder he wants to race stock cars? . . . .
This is Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s Cup lineup for 2008: Martin Truex, Paul Menard, Mark Martin, Regan Smith and Aric Almirola. The only time DEI will see victory lane is when Truex gets there. This is not a positive step in the post-Dale Earnhardt Jr. era. . . . .
Jeff Green has the worst average start (30.2) and worst average finish (26.8) of the 27 Cup drivers who have started all 26 Cup races this season. . . .
How about this number from the Busch Series: Kyle Busch has raced in 15 of the 28 races this season yet has led the most laps in the series with 941. That's 259 more than second-place Carl Edwards, who has started all 28 Busch races and is the runaway leader in the points standings. Oddly, Busch has one victory, which came last week at Richmond, where he led 227 of 252 laps. . . .
With his sponsor situation at Michael Waltrip Racing uncertain for 2008, David Reutimann is talking to other teams. "I've gone to Michael and asked him in different situations to be able to talk to people, and Michael being the guy that he is and the driver, he has allowed me to do that," he says. "It's not a situation where I'm running around trying to talk to everybody. Sometimes something comes our way." Reutimann deserves a Cup ride in 2008. . . .
Just as one championship chase is beginning, another ended. Jimmie Johnson's win Saturday clinched the manufacturers championship for Chevrolet. With 10 races left, Chevy has won its fourth consecutive title. It has 31 manufacturers championships since 1952.
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