Rockingham Speedway isn’t alone in making a comeback to NASCAR this weekend. 18-time NASCAR Cup Series race winner Kasey Kahne will make his first NASCAR National Series start in nearly seven years as he competes in Saturday’s North Carolina Education Lottery 250 at the 1.017-mile track.
The native of Enumclaw, WA, will pilot the No. 33 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in his return race. Kahne’s return to NASCAR won’t come at just any venue. The driver has a special connection to Rockingham Speedway as it was the first track he ever got behind the wheel of a stock car at.
“The first time I ever tested a stock car was with ppc Racing, it was here,” said Kahne in a press conference during a test at Rockingham in January. “I had won a Sprint Car race at Volusia the night before, it was a Sunday night race at Volusia County. I’m guessing it would have been in February.
“I drove through the night up here, slept in the parking lot, got in the Busch car that morning, and did a test here. That was the first time I was in a stock car years ago.”
At the conclusion of January’s two-day test session at Rockingham Speedway, Kahne was blown away at how similar the track was to its former self despite a fresh repave and faster speeds.
“I didn’t even know it was repaved until after I was far into the whole trying to make it happen. That was a surprise that it had been repaved, the grip level, and the smoothness. Overall, it’s still pretty similar,” Kahne noted.
Seeing the news of Rockingham’s return lit a fire under Kahne, who finished second in a runner-up finish with Matt Kenseth in his only NASCAR Cup Series start at the facility in 2004, where he also won a race in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2012.
“I saw this Rockingham race pop up, and I said, man, that’s a track I know and I’ve enjoyed racing at over the years,” said Kahne. “I started reaching out and trying to find a way to get back into it and do a race.”
Kahne’s path back to the NASCAR National Series for this race weekend at Rockingham comes in the form of Richard Childress Racing’s formidable NASCAR Xfinity Series equipment. While he’ll be in a car capable of contending, Kahne expects that there will not be a lot of additional stock car racing starts in his future.
“I just wanted to do this one race, work with this group,” Kahne explained. “It’s actually really cool; it came together really quick[ly]. They’ve given me a great opportunity, and a lot of really good people at RCR.”
After walking away from the sport during the 2018 season, due to medical reasons, Kahne has kept his competitive juices flowing on dirt tracks, driving a winged Sprint Car for his Kasey Kahne Racing team. Kahne has won six World of Outlaws championships as a team owner.
In 2023, Kahne was named one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers, a list that was compiled in honor of the sport’s 75th anniversary season.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series North Carolina Education Lottery 250 at Rockingham Speedway is set for Saturday, April 19, at 4:00 PM ET. The CW will provide television coverage of the event. Click here for the full weekend TV schedule.
