Kahne wins at Fontana, closes in on top 10
By MIKE HARRIS, AP Auto Racing Writer

AP - Sep 4, 1:11 am EDT

FONTANA, Calif. (AP) -- Kasey Kahne figured that winning the NASCAR Nextel Cup race at California Speedway was the one way he could assure himself of remaining in the fight for the upcoming playoffs.

``I came here telling myself, `You've got to win. You've got to win. You have to go out there and lead laps,''' Kahne said. ``That's all you can do if you want to make this Chase.''

Still, the 26-year-old Cup star thought he might be setting his sights a little too high.

``You can't expect to win. You can't expect to lead the most laps just because you want to,'' he said. ``It's way too tough competition. But we just hit everything right this weekend.''

Kahne started by winning Saturday night's Busch Series event on the 2-mile oval, then led a race-high 132 of 250 laps Sunday on the way to his series-leading fifth victory of the season. He closed in on a spot in the Chase with one race remaining to get it done.

To win Sunday, Kahne had to overcome a penalty, a series of challengers and a daring fuel gamble by rookie Reed Sorenson at the end.

``These guys fought back with great pit stops,'' Kahne said. ``I just can't thank this team enough. They just worked their butts off to get us back in this Chase and at least now we have a chance going into Richmond next week.''

Not even a penalty for speeding on pit road halfway through the 250-lap race could stop Kahne, who fell back briefly to 24th. His No. 9 Evernham Motorsports Dodge stuck with the leaders and, thanks to a two-tire pit stop on lap 176 that got him up to second, Kahne was in position to drive past Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the lead after the green flag came back out on lap 180.

After falling back again when several other cars made two-tire pit stops, Kahne outdueled new teammate Elliott Sadler to regain the top spot on lap 197. But there was yet another challenge.

Several drivers tried to stretch their final tank of gas to the finish and the 20-year-old Sorenson, who drives for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, almost pulled off his first victory and the first for the team since 2002. He took the lead on lap 241 after most of the top cars pitted for a splash of gas and two tires.

Kahne, who gave up the lead when he made his final stop on lap 238, found himself in fifth, nearly 14 seconds behind Sorenson. Kahne charged hard, grabbing second from rookie Clint Bowyer on lap 247, but was still more than 7 seconds behind the leader.

But Sorenson lost his gamble, running out of gas starting lap 249. Kahne zoomed past and raced away for the sixth victory of his career, beating Earnhardt to the finish by 3.428 seconds. Sorenson wound up 21st.

``You think a lot,'' Kahne said of all the ups and downs in the race. ``You think about not making mistakes, not doing anything wrong. But you still have to be aggressive.

``We made a lot of good calls tonight and we definitely deserved this one.''

Kasey Kahne makes his way through turn four during the Sony HD 500 auto race in Fontana, Calif., Sunday, Sept. 3, 2006. Kahne won the race.
AP - Sep 4, 12:57 am EDT
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Kahne had slumped badly after getting off to a tremendous start this season, with four wins in the first 15 races.

He started the night 90 points behind 10th-place Mark Martin and remained 11th in the battle for a spot in the 10-man Chase. But he will go to Richmond for next Saturday night's race just 30 points behind Jeff Burton, who fell behind Martin into 10th.

``I wasn't sure how far we'd be back, but 30's a lot closer than 90, and it could have been a lot worse than 90,'' Kahne said. ``It's a big jump. Anything can happen at Richmond. It's going to be a wild race there and, hopefully, we're on the good side of things.''

Earnhardt, who has struggled on the California oval in his last five starts, was very happy with his strong run this time.

``We're glad to get a second anywhere, especially in California and (on) this kind of race track,'' said Earnhardt, who failed to make the Chase last year. ``We've really turned that around.

``I don't really get into the pressure of the Chase. The pressure is trying to run good, no matter what.''

Bowyer held on for third place, followed by Carl Edwards, three-time California winner Jeff Gordon, rookie Denny Hamlin and new points leader Matt Kenseth.

Jimmie Johnson, who finished 11th Sunday night, had led the standings for all but two weeks this season but now trails Kenseth by nine points. Those two remain the only drivers who have clinched berths in the 10-race Chase. Kevin Harvick remained third, but the rest of the top 10 was shuffled considerably.

Heading for Richmond, 72 points separate fourth-place Jeff Gordon from Burton, with Kyle Busch, Earnhardt, Hamlin, defending series champion Tony Stewart and Martin in between.