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Like him or not, you have to admit, Kasey Kahne had one hell of an evening Saturday night, as he was voted into the All Star Challenge and then went on to win it among a chorus of cheers from the fans in attendance. It must feel pretty good to be Kasey Kahne right now. He has the best sponsor he could have, just ask Dale Jr., he is 308 points ahead of where he was at this time last year, and he just won one million dollars in the race that everyone just wants to win. I had forgotten how popular he was, those fans were almost as loud as they were when Dale Jr. was leading it, but they really hadn’t had much of a reason to cheer for him of late. He hasn’t won a race since October 2006, that season he won six of his seven wins, including both races at Charlotte.

Voted into the Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway after he failed to make the field in the Sprint Showdown qualifying race, Kasey Kahne made the most of his opportunity by winning the All-Star event and the $1 million prize that goes with the victory.

Taking fuel only during his final pit stop between the third and fourth segments of the four-segment, 100-lap event, Kahne won the All-Star race for the first time. Matt Kenseth ran third, followed by Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart, the only Joe Gibbs Racing driver whose car survived the night. Source: Kahne goes from All-Star voted-in to Victory Lane Continue reading…

RICHMOND, VA—NASCAR teams took a break Wednesday from practicing for the Crown Royal Dan Lowry 500 at Richmond International Speedway to honor NAPA Auto Parts driver Michael Waltrip with its Sixth Cousin Award, given every year to the driver who displays the best combination of driving talent and friendliness to his extended family. “I tell you what, without ol’ Michael’s talent coming off the porch for us this year, why, it just wouldn’t be the same,” said Carleton Franks, Waltrip’s fourth-cousin-in-law twice removed, who presented him with the award. “Fr’instance, I still got me a leaf blower he loaned me, and he might’a mentioned it once or twice, in a remindin’ fashion, but nothing I’d call pushy. To me, that’s what NASCAR is all about.” Some stock car insiders say that, while Michael Waltrip is not a bad cousin, he only received the award because his older brother, three-time NASCAR champion Darrel Waltrip, had been passed over so many times despite being equally eligible.

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INDIANAPOLIS | It took a bit of effort for Danica Patrick to get settled into her chair in an infield chalet Thursday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. As she wiggled into a comfort zone, her stare was fixed on the ground. There was not a hint of a smile on her face.

Instead, Patrick looked tired — sounded tired, too. Her words came slowly. She seemed more like a woman coming off the night shift than a 26-year-old racer on a warm spring Midwest day.

“I’m very tired,” she said. “Very tired today.”

Life for the most popular open-wheel driver in North America has been more a meat grinder the last six weeks than a Sleep Number bed commercial. All because of a victory April 19 in Japan while many race fans in the United States were asleep or trying to get to sleep.

Imagine how it will be if Patrick wins Sunday’s 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500.

A lot of people are doing just that this weekend — imagining how the sport would be affected by a Patrick victory in the biggest open-wheel race in the world.

Don Hinchey, vice president of communications for the Bonham Group, a Denver-based global sports and entertainment marketing firm, said that a victory Sunday would make Patrick, “Jordanesque or Tiger Woods.” Continue reading…