NASCAR

Kasey Kahne Joining With 2 Legendary Team Owners For Shocking NASCAR Return

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Kasey Kahne stands on grid

It’s been well over six years since Kasey Kahne competed in a NASCAR event. Forced to retire from competition earlier than planned because of lingering issues with dehydration, Kahne unexpectedly called it quits after a last-minute bow-out ahead of the 2018 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Since that time, Kahne has managed to fly largely under the radar despite making a steady diet of starts for the World of Outlaws team that bears his name.

But with a blockbuster announcement that came down on Friday, Kahne let the world know that his NASCAR days aren’t completely done.

Richard Childress, Rick Hendrick Are Joining Forces In Helping Kahne

Kahne drove for several teams throughout his NASCAR Cup Series career, which covered the better part of 15 years. The most prominent of those teams was Hendrick Motorsports, where Kahne competed from 2012-2017 and earned six of his 18 victories at the sport’s highest level.

Fittingly, it’s with help from a former boss, team owner Rick Hendrick, that Kahne is making a NASCAR Xfinity Series cameo on April 19 at resurrected Rockingham Speedway. However, unlike in his previous run with Kahne, Hendrick isn’t Kahne’s team owner for this occasion. Rather, he’s Kahne’s primary sponsor by way of HendrickCars.com — the website promoting Hendrick’s vast number of car dealerships.

Kahne’s team owner for his upcoming cameo appearance will be Richard Childress, the legendary owner of another Chevrolet team — Richard Childress Racing (RCR).

Making his return to NASCAR with an assist from Hendrick and Childress was a golden opportunity for Kahne, who will wheel a No. 33 RCR Chevrolet at history-laden Rockingham where he won a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in 2012.

Other than hosting another truck race the following year, the track has sat basically dormant since that weekend.

“I’m excited to get back behind the wheel of a stock car, especially at a place like Rockingham Speedway,” Kahne said of the fabled 1.017-mile North Carolina venue. “I’m very appreciative of the opportunity that Mr. Hendrick, Richard, and everyone at RCR have given me, along with the support of HendrickCars.com.”

Even During His Extended NASCAR Absence, Kahne Has Been Racing

While Kahne has kept a fairly low profile since his abrupt exit from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition, he hasn’t sat idly by. As noted, he’s been a semi-regular competitor in the World of Outlaws. Kahne has likewise been reunited with his dirt-track roots with select sprint car appearances under the Kasey Kahne Racing banner.

He even experienced a frightening airborne crash in a World of Outlaws race at Florida’s Volusia Speedway Park in 2022.

Now Kahne, who at 44 is the same age as current Cup Series superstar Denny Hamlin, is ready to try his hand at stock-car racing on asphalt again.

“I still have a pretty serious drive when it comes to competition, and I love racing, still, to this day,” Kahne said in 2024.

Thankfully, Kahne’s health has improved enough in the last few years for him to pounce on the opportunity that Childress and Hendrick presented him. The NASCAR Hall of Fame team owners look forward to partnering with Kahne in his return to the sport where he was a fan-favorite throughout most of his career and captured two of the sport’s crown-jewel events — the Brickyard 400 and the Coca-Cola 600.

“Kasey is a great driver and a fierce competitor,” Childress said. “With Kasey behind the wheel, we expect the No. 33 to have a shot at winning the race.”

Hendrick is equally bullish about what he believes Kahne can accomplish in his comeback.

“Kasey is a great friend and an incredibly talented driver, and we’re proud to have HendrickCars.com on board with him at Rockingham,” said Hendrick, whose dealership website is Kyle Larson’s full-time primary sponsor in the NASCAR Cup Series.

“It’s going to be exciting to see him return to NASCAR at such a special track and with a great team. I have tremendous respect for Richard and everything his organization has accomplished. We look forward to seeing Kasey return to NASCAR in what promises to be a memorable weekend for the sport.”

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Jared Turner
Sports Editor

Jared Turner is a motorsports writer who has covered NASCAR for 20 years. He has interviewed over 20 NASCAR Hall of Famers and around 100 drivers, crew chiefs, and team owners, both past and present. He has also covered the sport for FOX Sports (where he was a two-time recipient of the FOX “X” Award for “Xtraordinary” job performance), NASCAR.com, Sporting News, NASCAR Pole Position Magazine, the SPEED network, and plenty of other online and print-only publications throughout his career. Notably, Jared has penned dozens of articles for NASCAR souvenir programs, including several featured prominently in Daytona 500 keepsakes. A Virginia Press Association award winner and former member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), Jared has racked up accolades both for his writing and his academic work. He studied both Communication and Psychology at Virginia Tech, where he was permanently enshrined in Phi Beta Kappa — the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society. Jared excels at feature writing and opinion writing, much of which stems from his dedication to all levels of racing.

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Author photo
Jared Turner Sports Editor

Jared Turner is a motorsports writer who has covered NASCAR for 20 years. He has interviewed over 20 NASCAR Hall of Famers and around 100 drivers, crew chiefs, and team owners, both past and present. He has also covered the sport for FOX Sports (where he was a two-time recipient of the FOX “X” Award for “Xtraordinary” job performance), NASCAR.com, Sporting News, NASCAR Pole Position Magazine, the SPEED network, and plenty of other online and print-only publications throughout his career. Notably, Jared has penned dozens of articles for NASCAR souvenir programs, including several featured prominently in Daytona 500 keepsakes. A Virginia Press Association award winner and former member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), Jared has racked up accolades both for his writing and his academic work. He studied both Communication and Psychology at Virginia Tech, where he was permanently enshrined in Phi Beta Kappa — the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society. Jared excels at feature writing and opinion writing, much of which stems from his dedication to all levels of racing.

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