Loudon, NH (Sports Network) - Kasey Kahne claimed his second win in the Sprint
Cup Series this season by taking Sunday's Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at New
Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Kahne, in his first year as driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick
Motorsports, took the lead after he came out of the pits first during a round
of stops under caution with 66 laps remaining.
Denny Hamlin had dominated the race by leading 150 laps, but Hamlin and crew
chief Darian Grubb had a miscommunication on their tire strategy during his
last pit stop. After taking four new tires, he fell to 13th in the field. All
the other front runners took just two.
Hamlin charged through the field and moved into the runner-up spot with less
than 10 laps remaining, but on the second-to-last lap, Hamlin went way wide
between turns three and four, which ultimately cost him the win.
Kahne crossed the finish line 2.7 seconds ahead of Hamlin for his 14th career
Sprint Cup victory, including his first at this 1.058-mile track.
Clint Bowyer finished third, while Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski
rounded out the top-five.
With the win, Kahne moved into first in the wild card rankings for the
championship Chase. He is currently 12th in the point standings.
The Sports Network