Kasey Kahne takes a minute to sit with his father before the action begins at California Speedway. Credit: Autostock

Kahne trying to relax as playoff tension mounts

FONTANA, Calif. -- Kasey Kahne sat behind the No. 9 hauler on a hot Friday morning at California Speedway listening to his favorite tunes on one of the three iPods he owns.

"It's great to be Kasey Kahne," a reporter said with a laugh.

Kasey Kahne qualified ninth for Sunday's race. Credit: Autostock

Sony HD 500 Lineup Pos. Driver Speed Time 1. Ku. Busch 184.540 39.016 2. B. Vickers 184.049 39.120 3. C. Bowyer 183.505 39.236 4. S. Riggs 183.197 39.302 5. M. Truex Jr. 182.950 39.355 6. Earnhardt 182.792 39.389 7. J. Burton 182.672 39.415 8. D. Hamlin 182.454 39.462 9. K. Kahne 182.292 39.497 10. Ky. Busch 182.223 39.512 • Complete lineup, click here Pole sitterKurt Busch wins the pole for the Sony HD 500 on Sunday Solid runDale Jr. has a fast run, will start sixth Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

Well, not great.

At least not at the moment.

Kahne is 11th in the Nextel Cup points race, 90 behind Mark Martin and the 10th and final spot that will make the Chase for the Nextel Cup that begins after next weekend's race at Richmond International Raceway.

There's a lot of pressure on Kahne to make the field. Evernham Motorsports has invested a lot in the 26-year-old heartthrob from a marketing and personnel standpoint.

One can hardly turn on a television without seeing a commercial with women going gaga over the kid with the Hollywood look. During the offseason Kahne was given the same crew that helped former EMS driver Jeremy Mayfield make the Chase the past two seasons.

But if Kahne is feeling the pressure, he's not showing it.

"We need to make the Chase," he said. "If we don't do that it's not good for the organization. It's not good for Ray Evernham or any of his drivers. ... We'll win races as the season winds up, and we'll be good.

"If we don't make the Chase, it'll be disappointing. What are you going to do? Shoot yourself? I'm not going to."

That doesn't mean Kahne doesn't spend every waking hour thinking about what faces him the next two races.

"I think about stuff all the time," Kahne said. "I have a problem thinking too much, no matter what it is. It's part of the way I am."

That's one reason Evernham didn't mind as much as normal that Kahne spent Wednesday racing Sprint cars in his home state and Thursday night drifting cars at nearby Irwindale [Calif.] Speedway.

"Sometimes you don't want him doing things like that because you're afraid he's going to be physically tired or distracted," Evernham said. "Other times I sit there and wonder if he thinks about it too much, and that's not good either.

"So as long as it didn't physically wear him out, mentally it might be good."

Kahne, who is only 138 points out of fourth place in a system where a driver can gain a maximum 156 points, agreed the time away was good.

"I don't think too much about NASCAR when I'm out there drifting or racing in the Sprint car," said Kahne, who raised about $300,000 for his foundation on Wednesday and Thursday. "Before and after it, it's definitely on my mind.

"I've thought about it all week, how to get through this race and do everything right and gain points and hopefully lead laps."

Kahne has a good history at California Speedway. He was fourth here in February and sixth in this race a year ago. He also has a second and a 13th, with his only poor finish of 40th in last year's first race.

But Kahne, who qualified ninth for Sunday's race, needs more than another good finish.

"If everybody else ahead of us finishes in the top 10 the next two weeks in a row we're not going to make it," Evernham said. "All we can do is try and run as hard as we can run and hope for the best."

But Evernham admits not having Kahne in the Chase will be a blow for his organization.

"I always look at the space on the cars as if the space is our stock," he said. "One thing the leverage of the Chase gives you is that immediately the price goes up on all the real estate of your car. Right now I believe we're going to make the Chase."

Kahne hopes so.

"I wish I was 30 points out instead of 90," he said. "We have to make up a lot of ground on Sunday and next Saturday night. It's going to be close. We're up for it."