CONCORD, N.C. -- For Richard Petty Motorsports, keeping Kasey Kahne in the fold beyond this season is priority No. 1. And the Cup driver is willing to give his team the chance to do it.

“

I definitely want to give my situation I'm in now a really good opportunity, a really legit shot at showing me that this is the spot where I need to be, that RPM is the spot where I need to be.

”

-- KASEY KAHNE

Kahne, whose contract with RPM expires after this season, said he wants to see the effects of the changes that RPM has undergone in recent months before he decides on whether to stay. RPM's anticipated absorption of Yates Racing became official last month, and the four-car team will field Fords in 2010 under a technical alliance with powerhouse Roush Fenway Racing.

"I definitely want to give my situation I'm in now a really good opportunity, a really legit shot at showing me that this is the spot where I need to be, that RPM is the spot where I need to be," Kahne said Tuesday during the preseason media tour. "A lot of this merger and things, they've done it to try and build that, to give our team a better opportunity. I'm definitely going to give them a shot here. How long that takes? I don't know. I think you can look at that in a lot of different ways. I don't see it anytime soon."

RPM management clearly wants him to stay. "It is our intention to try and keep Kasey Kahne," managing partner Foster Gillett said. Doing that, though, will require improvement across the board.

Even though he won two races and qualified for the Chase last season, there were times when Kahne seemed clearly frustrated with the uncertainty that surrounded the RPM organization, which has undergone a number of mutations since the days of Evernham Motorsports, the team Kahne initially joined in 2004. Prior to the 2009 finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, he said he was keeping his options open for 2011 and beyond, and he could begin exploring other offers as soon as this month.

Now, with the Yates merger complete and a stable management team seemingly in place -- George Gillett and Petty remain owners, with former Yates co-owner Max Jones now aboard as president and general manager -- Kahne seems content to let performance make his decision for him.

"They've made me an offer already, and I just want to wait and see," he said. "That's the biggest thing, just performance, how can I win races and do that kind of stuff. I'm really hoping that this merger and things with the Roush people and Yates is going in that direction."