There were times during the 2009 Sprint Cup Series season when Kasey Kahne could not have been blamed for losing his focus as driver of the No. 9 Dodge for Richard Petty Motorsports.

Yet he never did. Through all the rumors of imminent change -- and even a series of layoffs back at the oft-troubled and seemingly ever-changing RPM shop -- Kahne and crew chief Kenny Francis kept their eyes squarely on the weekly prize. That would be Victory Lane, of course, and they visited it twice during a journey that ultimately ended with them qualifying for the Chase to the Sprint Cup before settling for a 10th-place finish overall in the point standings.

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We decided a long time ago that all we could do was go out and do the best we could do every week, and I think we were able to do that most of the time.

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KASEY KAHNE

Prior to the season, the former Gillett Evernham Motorsports (which was the former Evernham Motorsports) became Richard Petty Motorsports when it absorbed the former Petty Enterprises operation. Throughout much of the season, rumors swirled about the future of the new RPM, which eventually announced a pending switch in manufacturers to Fords for 2010 and yet another imminent merger, this time with Yates Racing. To say it all became an ongoing distraction that Kahne and his team members struggled to block out would be a massive understatement -- but Kahne said he was proud of how he and his teammates handled it.

"I feel like we're pretty used to some of this stuff," Kahne said. "We've gone through a lot of changes in the last three or four years in our organization, so as a team we're used to it. We decided a long time ago that all we could do was go out and do the best we could do every week, and I think we were able to do that most of the time."

Didn't get much better than this

When he won the Toyota/Save-Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway in June, Kahne had to ask Francis for directions to Victory Lane. He successfully negotiated all the turns to get there earlier in the day, sending legendary former driver Petty back to Victory Lane as an owner (at least in name) for the first time in a decade. Prior to the upset victory, in which he held off noted road-course ace Tony Stewart and others over the final laps, Kahne had never finished higher than 14th in a road-course race during his six-year Cup career, doing that at Watkins Glen. Petty stood with him afterward as both owner and driver wore grins that said it all.

"I think that was really cool to see Richard in Victory Lane with us -- and it's a big deal," Kahne said.

The disappointment still lingers

After posting his second victory of the season in the Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta and following that up with a respectable 12th-place finish in the regular-season finale at Richmond, Kahne was fifth in points and seemed to be carrying lots of momentum into the Chase. But he blew an engine in the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire, relegating him to a 38th-place finish in the first race in the Chase. He dropped to 12th in the points as a result and never really recovered.