Toyota / Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway
No. 95 Procore Camaro ZL1 Notes:
· JOIN THE PROCORE CREW: Become a member of the No. 95 crew today at www.procore.com/95crew to get your free, collectible Kasey Kahne hero card, as well as exclusive merchandise and content throughout the season thanks to our partner, Procore.
· KAHNE BY THE NUMBERS: In 14 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career starts at Sonoma, Kasey Kahne has an average start of 14.9 and an average finish of 17.9. He’s completed 1,526 of 1,547 (98.6 percent) career laps, and has led for a total of 41 laps. Kahne has earned two poles, one win (2009), two top-five and six top-10 finishes at the 1.99-mile road course.
· NEW CHIEF AT THE HELM: This weekend the No. 95 Procore team will be led by interim crew chief, Jonathan Leonard. Leonard has served as the team’s lead engineer during the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series leading up to this weekend and had also served as the team’s interim crew chief for the final five races of the 2017 season with driver Michael McDowell.
· RACE INFO: The Toyota / Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway (1.99-mile road course) begins at 3:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 24th. The race will be broadcast live on FS1, Sirius XM Channel 90 and PRN Radio.
Kahne’s Career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Stats at Sonoma:
Date Event: S F Laps Status
06/27/04 Dodge / Save Mart 350 30 31 109/110 Running
06/26/05 Dodge / Save Mart 350 26 41 92/110 Running
06/25/06 Dodge / Save Mart 350 6 31 110/110 Running
06/24/07 Toyota / Save Mart 350 8 23 110/110 Running
06/22/08 Toyota / Save Mart 350 1 33 111/112 Running
06/21/09 Toyota / Save Mart 350 5 1 113/113 Running
06/20/10 Toyota / Save Mart 350 1 4 110/110 Running
06/26/11 Toyota / Save Mart 350 6 20 110/110 Running
06/24/12 Toyota / Save Mart 350 15 14 112/112 Running
06/23/13 Toyota / Save Mart 350 15 6 110/110 Running
06/22/14 Toyota / Save Mart 350 30 6 110/110 Running
06/28/15 Toyota / Save Mart 350 26 8 110/110 Running
06/26/16 Toyota / Save Mart 350 19 9 110/110 Running
06/25/17 Toyota / Save Mart 350 21 24 109/110 Running
Kahne’s Career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Stats at Sonoma:
Races Wins Top 5s Top 10s Poles
Cumulative 14 1 2 6 2
From the Driver’s Seat:
Kasey Kahne: “Sonoma is a really fun track, but it can also be a tough track. Making your tires last, as well as turning in Turn 4, Turn 7, and Turn 10 are some pretty key things to focus on there. Getting off of Turn 11 is also really important, but having forward drive and keeping your tires on the car throughout the race are some of the important things we focus on at Sonoma. The restarts at Sonoma can be challenging because there’s a lot that goes on there usually with a preferred line, but it also kind of relies on the cars that are around you and how they’re able to take off up the hill and those first few corners. Everything matters at Sonoma, but the restarts are a place where you can either gain a lot, or lose a lot depending on where you’re at. You have to get off of Turn 10 really well in order to get into Turn 11 well and out brake everyone else in order to get to the inside line in that corner. A lot of times, you’ll see guys covering up that line since the field really backs up to you going into Turn 11. When you have a car that brakes really well and pulls all four tires down to suck down into the track, that’s a fun spot to try to pass and get an advantage.”
From the Pit Box:
Jon Leonard: “This weekend is obviously our first road course race of the season. It has a lot of similarities to Martinsville with a very short track feel. Lots of brake usage, and lots of slow, low-grip corners throughout the course. Tire falloff is substantial, so tire strategy always comes into effect at Sonoma. The stages for this weekend are 25-50-110, but we can go 40 about or so laps on fuel. Cars typically pit under green much sooner than that due to such large falloff, and the opportunity to stay on the lead lap since the lap times for leaders is so long. Focuses for this weekend will be to keep it mistake-free and to keep it simple. Kasey has won here before, so he knows what he ultimately needs out of his race car. Letting him lead us in the right direction and being able to give him something he can compete with are going to be our priorities. Keeping brakes and fenders on our Procore Chevy are going to be a key to survival. The game plan for the race on Sunday will vary depending where we are running, but a top-10 will generally have a different approach than a top-20 of course. Just like any racetrack, Sonoma is all about track position, and finding ways to constantly improve track position will be important.
As for transitioning into the crew chief role, I’m excited and thankful for the opportunity. I’ve had a little experience at it before (with five races at the end of 2017 with Michael McDowell), so I can appreciate and understand what is expected and needed. A lot of my role will stay the same – set-up preparation, history analysis, and practice decisions from an engineering standpoint. Most changes are more evident at the shop pre and post-event: car/spec changes and decisions, part/component selection. A lot more work on the front and back-end of the weekends – and looking ahead – compared to mostly just week-of preparation. At the end of the day, all the decisions are going to be connected to my name. It’s not always going to be easy, and I’m sure it won’t always be right, but being able to own your mistakes, and grow from them is what is important. Being able to be a leader and bring this group together (including Kasey) will bring us success. I’m also lucky to have a great second engineer who I trust and can step into a lot of my former engineering role to help with some of my responsibilities both at the shop and at the track. Ben (Lynch) and I work well together and have a very similar background. I’m really looking forward to what this No. 95 team can achieve for the rest of the season. We have a good bunch of guys who want to compete with the big boys – and that’s what we’re here to do starting this weekend.”
No. 95 Procore Camaro ZL1 Team:
Driver: Kasey Kahne Crew Chief: Jonathan Leonard
Car Chief: Ben Leslie Spotter: Doug Campbell
Engineer: Ben Lynch Hauler Driver: Damon Lopez
Shock Specialist: Tim Lambert Mechanic: Ryan Southall
Mechanic: Matt Kimball Mechanic: Ryan Dextraze
Tire Specialist: Tony Ramierz Jackman: Richie Williams
Fueler: Ryan Dextraze Rear Changer: Cory Baldwin
Front Changer: Weston Lovejoy Front Carrier: Justin Kirby
About Procore Technologies:
Procore Technologies, Inc., is a leading provider of cloud-based applications for construction. Procore connects people, applications, and devices through a unified platform to help construction professionals manage risk and build quality projects, safely, on time, and within budget. The company has a diversified business model with products for Construction Project Management, Construction Financials, Quality & Safety, and Field Productivity. Headquartered in Carpinteria, California, with offices around the globe, Procore has more than 2.5 million users managing billions of dollars in annual construction volume. For more information about Procore, visit procore.com.
