[media-credit name=”charlottemotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”199″][/media-credit]Turner Motorsports NASCAR Nationwide Series
Charlotte Motor Speedway News & Notes
Pre-Race Info for Kasey Kahne, Justin Allgaier and James Buescher
KASEY KAHNE QUICK FACTS
No. 38 Great Clips Chevrolet
Charlotte Motor Speedway
History 300
May 26, 2012
No. 38 Great Clips Chevrolet News and Notes
Kasey Kahne Charlotte Motor Speedway NNS Stats
Starts Poles Wins Top-Fives Top-10’s DNFs Avg. Start Avg. Finish
18 1 1 1 4 5 14.6 20.9
Kasey Kahne Career NNS Stats
Starts Poles Wins Top-Fives Top-10’s Avg. Start Avg. Finish
183 8 7 35 68 12.6 16.6
Kahne is no stranger to Charlotte Motor Speedway’s victory lane… In 18 NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway (CMS), Kahne has one win and one pole to his credit in addition to four top-10 finishes with 140 laps led. His crew chief for the 2007 victory at CMS was current crew chief of the No. 38 Great Clips team, Mike Shiplett.
Kahne has seen even more success at Charlotte in Sprint Cup Series competition with a total of four wins under his belt. In 2006, he swept both the spring and fall events at CMS and in 2008 won his second Coca-Cola 600. Also in 2008, Kahne was the recipient of the Sprint Fan Vote which made him eligible for the final transfer spot for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. Kahne started the race from 24th position and raced his way to the front to lead the final 17 laps and take home the $1-million prize.
Who’s on the pit box? Mike Shiplett joined Turner Motorsports in 2012 and has a unique role as he calls the shots for both a veteran (Kahne) and a rookie (Brad Sweet). It is a reunion of sorts for Kahne and Shiplett, who were paired together in the NNS during the 2007 season and put down impressive results including two victories (Charlotte Motor Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway, spring events).
This Week’s Impala… The No. 38 team will unload chassis TMS-328 this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. This is a brand new chassis in the Turner Motorsports stable.
In Brad’s World … After this weekend’s NNS race at Charlotte, Kahne will hand back the reins to Sweet for the next five events on the schedule including races at Dover, Michigan, Road America, Kentucky, and Daytona.
Kahne and Sweet: a unique combination… Not only are Kahne and Sweet good friends off the track, but the veteran is serving as mentor to Sweet as he makes the transition from open-wheel competition to stock cars. Sweet was handpicked by Kahne in 2008 to drive for Kasey Kahne Racing (KKR) where he has since experienced tremendous success in the World of Outlaws Series. Sweet will continue to compete on a limited basis for KKR when he is not behind the wheel of the No. 38 Great Clips machine in the NNS. You can expect Kahne to be very involved and present in the NNS garage when Sweet is behind the wheel of the No. 38 as he will closely monitor his progress and offer encouragement.
Kahne brought Great Clips their first win! From 2003-2005, Kahne and his sponsor, Great Clips, Inc., reached momentous milestones, including capturing Kahne’s first Nationwide Series victory in 2003 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It was also Great Clips’ first win as a primary sponsor. In 2005, Kahne captured his second career win at Texas Motor Speedway before leaving the Nationwide Series to allow more time for his Sprint Cup Series efforts.
Great Clips goes racing with the World of Outlaws in 2012! Great Clips serves as sponsor for KKR driver Joey Saldana this year in the World of Outlaws series. The Minneapolis-based company has been a sponsor of KKR for the past two seasons. This year, they will be featured on all three KKR entries – as a primary sponsor on the #9 with Saldana as well as associate sponsor placement on Brad Sweet’s #49 and Cody Darrah’s #4 World of Outlaws cars.
12 Years and Counting… Great Clips, Inc. is currently the longest-running sponsor in the NNS and has used the Nationwide Series as their primary marketing platform for the last 11 years. Their sponsorship began in 2000 with Akins Motorsports as they climbed on board to sponsor the team’s No. 38 entry with driver, Christian Elder. Mark Green piloted the No. 38 for one season before general manager, Doug Stringer, hired up-and-coming talent, Kasey Kahne, thereby solidifying Great Clips’ commitment to their NASCAR sponsorship.
Kahne on the racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway
“One of the keys to success at Charlotte is that you have to be able to run anywhere on the race track. Your car has to turn really good at certain areas on the track and the front-end has to be in the track. I have a lot of faith in this Turner Motorsports team and never doubt that they are going to give me a good car to race. I work really well with Mike Shiplett (crew chief) and feel like we are just a small step away from getting this Great Clips Chevrolet back into victory lane.”
Follow the No. 38 team on Twitter! Twitter.com/No38TurnerNNS
Follow Kasey Kahne on Twitter! Twitter.com/KaseyKahne
Follow Brad Sweet on Twitter! Twitter.com/KBradSweet49
Follow Turner Motorsports on Facebook! Facebook.com/TurnerMotorsports
About Great Clips: Great Clips, Inc. was established in 1982 in Minneapolis. Today, Great Clips has more than 3,000 salons throughout the United States and Canada, making it the world’s largest salon brand. Great Clips salons employ nearly 30,000 stylists who receive ongoing training to learn advanced skills and the latest trends. Make Great Clips your choice for value-priced, high-quality haircare for men, women and children. No appointments needed, and salons are open nights and weekends. And, it’s more convenient than ever with Great Clips’ Online Check-In. To check-in online, visit www.greatclips.com or download the app for Android and iPhone. For more information about Great Clips, Inc. or to find a location near you, visit www.greatclips.com.