(By Sarah Farlee Managing Editor, CupScene.com)
Posted: Monday,September 6th, 2010
Hampton, Ga., - Kasey Kahne was a driver on the bubble to make the Chase for the Sprint Cup field coming into the Atlanta Motor Speedway and Sunday night’s Emory Healthcare 500.
Kahne saw the bubble bust.
“I felt like we were there,” said Kahne, who had a top-five car much of the night. “When we got out front we were pretty good, but I was still trying to hold off Carl, Jimmie and Tony was really quick.”
Kahne’s time at the front of the field came to a halt after blowing a tire following contact with Kurt Busch as a result of a nudge from Ryan Newman. Kahne got turned sideways into Busch, but both drivers were able to hold on after being forced down to apron. Kahne saved the car, but the contact cut a tire – and that was end to Kahne’s night.
Kasey Kahne (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
“I was just going down the straightaway and got hit from behind and I know it was the 39 [Newman],” said Kahne. “So I feel like he lost us about 20 spots today.”
“He said he got hit from behind and that forced him into me,” Kahne added of Newman’s explanation. “That’s racing, but either way we’re the one that took the big shot there.”
Kahne came back on track and retaliated by moving up the track to nudge Newman. Following the race the two drivers met in the garage area to discuss both incidents. Kahne says both drivers are fine.
“It’s just that when you get racing sometimes it gets you mad,” Kahne said. “He lost about four spots from me rubbing him a little bit and I lost about 25 or 30 from him rubbing me, so he got me a little better.”
Newman also said both drivers were fine and that the initial contact was unintentional.
“It’s happened in enough situations this year where I’ve been told it’s unintentional and it’s ruined my day,” said Newman. “He felt like he needed to retaliate.”
“Fortunately I kept mine straight and we went on,” added Newman.
The incident with Kahne wasn’t the only contact Newman made with another driver. Newman was involved in and incident that sent Greg Biffle spinning and Elliott Sadler into the wall.
“He [Biffle] just cut across my nose,” said Newman. “I don’t know if the spotter told him he was clear or he thought he was and he wasn’t.”
“It hurt our day and I should be mad at Biffle as much as Kasey should be mad at me,” added Newman.
Despite both incidents an eighth place finish has Newman in the 13th position as the field heads to Richmond. Newman is 117 points behind Clint Bowyer, who holds the final spot in the 12 driver Chase field.
“Mathematically, we have a chance and for an engineering guy I guess that means something,” said Newman. “We can’t expect to make it all up in one shot.”
“How do you expect to make it up in one race what we didn’t do in 25 races?”
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