Why Kasey Kahne is Returning for NASCAR Xfinity Series Event at Rockingham

Kasey Kahne’s return to NASCAR in April NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway will be a full-circle moment.

In the early 2000s, Kahne’s first test behind the wheel of a stock car came on a Monday in February after winning a Sprint Car race on Sunday night at Volusia Speedway Park. That test led to his debut just a couple of weeks later at Rockingham in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

“The first time I ever tested a stock car was with ppc Racing, it was here,” said Kahne at Rockingham on Tuesday. “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.”

Ever since that first test, Kahne has loved the 1.017-mile facility located on US Highway 1 in Rockingham, North Carolina. It’s why he came back – and won – with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Rockingham in 2012, and why he’s climbing back into a stock car for the first time in more than six years on April 19.

READ MORE: 18-Time Cup Winner Kasey Kahne Returning to Xfinity Race at Rockingham

“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.”

That opportunity came with Richard Childress Racing, who will field a third entry in the Rockingham event alongside full-time NASCAR Xfinity Series competitors Austin Hill and Jesse Love. Even before Tuesday’s test, Kahne has been hard at work preparing for the big return.

“Working with Chevrolet and RCR, I’ve already been able to do some sim work, which helped a lot coming here. I’ll know a lot more about it before the race. Overall, just working with good people trying to understand what we were going to have when we got here, and then just taking my time, make sure I can learn a lot over the test.”

While fans are undoubtedly eager to know if this race will lead to more appearances in the NASCAR world for the 18-time winner in the NASCAR Cup Series, Kahne is focused on this one race at one of his favorite tracks.

“I just wanted to do this one race, work with this group. It’s actually really cool; it came together really quick. They’ve given me a great opportunity, and a lot of really good people at RCR.”

The last time Kahne raced at Rockingham, he won in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2012. However, the track he raced that day is considerably different than the surface competitors tested on Tuesday, including a fresh repave that took place in 2022.

“It was a neat race to win that day,” said Kahne. “It was tough. That was the old track. This track is much different, smooth. It’s got a lot of the same characteristics, I think. The feel out there felt pretty similar. I was picking up on it. The smoothness level, much different than it was back then.”

Kahne even admitted he was unaware of the repave until he was well into the process of finding a ride for this event, but feels there are still a lot of similarities in the track.

“When I first was like, man, Rockingham’s back on the schedule, if there’s a way I could be a part of that, 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 was solidly quick in Tuesday's test session at Rockingham Speedway as he was fourth on the unofficial timing and scoring sheet in the first 45-minute session of the day, and 11th-fastest in the second session. Due to damp track conditions causing a delay to Tuesday's test session, NASCAR will hold a second day of NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series testing at Rockingham on Wednesday for any drivers and teams that are interested in logging more laps.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway is scheduled for Saturday, April 19 at 4:00 PM ET. The CW will provide television coverage of the event.