| QUOTE |
| CONCORD, N.C. – I'm not saying he's short, but if he wasn't a Nextel Cup driver, Kasey Kahne would make a great leprechaun. Can't you just imagine Kahne prowling the Notre Dame sidelines, exhorting both those on the field and in the stands to win yet another one for the Gipper? We'll get back to the leprechaun analogy in a second. Kahne spoke about the struggles he has endured in this year's Chase for the Nextel Cup here at Lowe's on Thursday, and he didn't pass the blame or point fingers. ADVERTISEMENT Kahne knows it's his ship and he's the captain. If anyone is to take the blame for Kahne being in ninth place and 185 points behind points leader Jeff Burton after the first four Chase races, it's the driver of the No. 9 Dodge himself. But with a shy smile, twinkle in his eyes and the occasional blush upon his cheeks – no makeup or wine required – Kahne also told the assembled scribes and mic jockeys that he really, truly has a legitimate chance at making a huge comeback and competing for the championship. Call me crazy, but I think NASCAR's leprechaun may just be very serious. In just one race, his entire fortune changed. He went into Talladega last Sunday 273 points behind Burton. But by virtue of his runner-up finish to Brian Vickers, Kahne lopped 88 big points off the deficit between him and the driver of the No. 31 Chevy. "Looking at last week, we made up [88 points] and I didn't think when you're [273] points behind you could make up just as many as you lost the week before, yet we were able to do that," said Kahne, who topped the charts during Thursday's practice session before qualifying second for Saturday's Bank of America 500. The 1½-mile tracks are Kahne's forte. Three of his series-leading five wins this season have come from that distance – including a victory here at Lowe's in May – with the other two being on two-milers. And with four of the remaining six races being on 1½-mile layouts – including three tracks at which he already has won this year – Kahne has the potential to do some serious derailing of the championship hopes for Burton and the other eight Chase competitors. "I think we stand pretty good," Kahne said. Acting almost embarrassed for what he was about to say, Kahne went into leprechaun mode once again. The smile on his lips and twinkle in his eyes belied the fact that he thinks he has a wee bit of Irish luck on his side. "I definitely think we can do the things like Jimmie [Johnson] did that year," Kahne said, referring to Johnson's dramatic rally in 2004 which saw the driver of the No. 48 erase a 247-point deficit after four races to fall just eight points short of the championship. Johnson's tear, which included wins in four of the final six Chase races, began right here with a win at Lowe's that season. Kahne thinks he can do Johnson one better and win it all. After all, he already is 62 points closer to the front than Johnson was at this point in 2004. Sure, that in and of itself is not enough to anoint Kahne as this season's champ, but you can't help but wonder about the hypotheticals – particularly if Kahne is able to do Saturday what he did at LMS in May at the Coca-Cola 600. Namely: win. Again. "Racing is a crazy sport," Kahne said. "You never know what's going to happen next. If we get some good breaks and have some good results and get some of the guys we're racing with to have some of those bad weekends like we've had, we'll be right back in the middle of it." As he walked out of the media center, accompanied by a medically stricken child from the Make-A-Wish Foundation, I swore I saw Kahne jump up, click his heels and start humming, "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling." Just like the young girl alongside him, dreams oftentimes are what keep a person's spirit going. And right now, Kahne is dreaming big; he's dreaming of a championship. Veteran motorsports writer Jerry Bonkowski is Yahoo! Sports' NASCAR columnist. Send Jerry a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast. |
| QUOTE |
| NASCAR's leprechaun |
| QUOTE (NeverBeenThawed @ Oct 13 2006, 03:25 PM) |
| Call me crazy, but the leprechaun thing is stupid. But a good article, no less. |