Kahne, the defending Brickyard 400 winner, departed Hendrick Motorsports after six seasons at the conclusion of 2017. He landed with Leavine Family Racing, an upstart family organization that started every Cup Series race for the first time last year.
Some would argue it’s a huge change for Kahne, going from an organization with hundreds of employees to one of the sport’s smaller teams. Kahne doesn’t entirely agree with that assumption.
“I don’t think it’s a lot to get used to, but it’s definitely a different way,” Kahne said. “Our work is going to be different; like the way we look at things and the way we prepare. My whole mindset is the relationships and doing it together, and the chemistry of the group that we have. It’s a small group compared to what I’ve had the last six years and it’s a group of people who all want to go in the same direction. And I feel like if we do that, and work together, no matter what it is, to make the No. 95 the best car that it can be, we’re going to have success. And the guys all feel the same way. That’s our plan. They’re working really hard to get the new Camaro ZL1’s ready and we’re going to have our first one ready for this test coming up in Vegas next week and we’ll get going from there.”
An 18-time winner in NASCAR Cup Series competition, this isn’t the first time Kahne has been part of a small team. Before his six-year stint at Hendrick Motorsports, Kahne spent the 2011 season driving for the now defunct Red Bull Racing.
Looking back, Kahne said that year he spent at Red Bull Racing was one of the most fun years he has ever had in NASCAR. He’s hopeful that joining Leavine Family Racing will have a similar feel for the Washington native.
“The last time I raced for a smaller team was Red Bull and I loved it there,” Kahne said. “It was one of maybe my favorite years I’ve had in the Cup Series. The other years would have to be with Ray Evernham. But, that Red Bull year was awesome. I enjoyed it a ton.
“This year it would be great if it could feel something like that where we start together and we work together and we keep building it up,” Kahne added. “I felt like about half way through that season, we got to where we were very competitive and one of the best cars from that point on. We’ll see how this year goes, but those are things that we want to shoot for, for sure.”
With the NASCAR schedule being his primary focus, that doesn’t mean Kahne is getting away from his roots. He said he hopes to run between 20 and 30 sprint car events this year as his schedule allows.
“I plan on racing 20 to 30 races. I’m going to do the first five in Florida, as long as it fits,” Kahne said. “We’ll start there but the No. 95 is priority for me. I make sure that’s all priority and then from there, I build my schedule as I go and I hope to get 20 to 30 races depending on how they all fit in at the right times of the year.”
So how would Kahne define success in his first year at Leavine Family Racing? He thinks winning and making the playoffs is not out of the question, but he said it’ll be important to build relationships within the team for that to become a reality.
“If we can do that (build relationships) and keep that morale and that communication all season long, our success is going to be that we’re going to have opportunities to win races and we’re going to have an opportunity to make the Chase,” Kahne said. “We’re going to run in the top 10 more often than what I have in the last few years. And I think if we can do all those things, it’s going to be a very successful season.”
Source :speedsport.com
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