NASCAR: Kasey Kahne Thriving Under Pressure So Far This Season
If you would have asked anyone a year ago if Kasey Kahne was as good as done in The Cup Series , every single NASCAR fan would have probably answered either yes or probably.
While those seemed like pretty accurate predictions at the time, especially since Kahne just failed to make The Chase for the third straight year in a row, two decent finishes in 2017 has Hendrick driver flying to new heights.
Kasey Kahne , who has failed to reach victory lane in two straight seasons, finished fourth in the wreck fest that was The Daytona 500, which made many believe that it was just dumb luck, but then followed it up with a with a fourth place finish at Atlanta last week. While some are still calling it dumb luck and only temporary, he is started to look like a changed man.
Whether that change is due to fear of losing his seat to one of the many talented drivers in The Xfinity Series, or because he is starting to realize his potential with a team like Hendrick behind him remains to be seen, but if he wants any hope of keeping up his momentum, he needs a strong finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend.
Fortunately for Kasey Kahne that seems pretty plausible, especially after finishing in the top-ten in three of his last five races at the track. He also has led 114 leaps during the 2013 spring race and ended up finishing second. Of course that’s not a perfect record by any means and he could be subject to a bad day like any other driver, but it’s hard to argue that this isn’t one of his best chances to cement himself in the top-ten.
Keep in mind that this time last year Kahne was 15th in points and was only able to secure three top fives and 13 top-tens. In fact, Kahne struggled to finish in the top-ten for much of that season which he has already done twice this season. And could do it again at Vegas this weekend. If nothing else, this has to be jubilating to a man who promised to give up his seat if he kept underperforming.
If the pressure is still on and it does still appear to be so, Kahne might need that pressure in order to perform his best and finally bring home a champion to papa Hendrick. He knew he needed to get better or risk losing his ride to Byron Williams or one of the other up and comers in The Xfinity Series and that’s what could be driving him towards one of his best seasons in years. .
In fact, it was Kasey Kahne himself who told Foxsports.com that,” “If I haven’t performed by 2018, I need to leave. It’s pretty simple. That has nothing to do with William Byron or anyone else. “If I haven’t performed by then, it’s time to go do something different. That’s just the way racing and life is.”
While Its honestly hard to accept the notion that Kahne isn’t afraid of losing his spot to William Byron or anyone else in The Xfinity Series, it is easy to admit that this newfound determination by Kahne could be his secret weapon in trying to win the championship. Pressure or not, that’s a great thing for Kahne and his future as a Cup driver.
Must Read: Las Vegas Qualifying Results, Kes On Pole
In the end and whether this momentum of Kahne’s continues or not is anyone’s guess , but fans should take comfort in the fact that he was the highest finishing Hendrick Motorsports driver at Atlanta and the second highest finishing driver at Daytona two weeks ago.