Kahne doing good imitation of Stewart, so far

HAMPTON, Ga. – Kasey Kahne has a role model: Tony Stewart.

Not that Kahne wants to develop a temper or bad-boy reputation. He just wants to race like the NASCAR Nextel Cup champion.

So far, he’s doing a pretty good job. He won the pole for today’s Golden Corral 500 and is third in the season points entering the race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

In 2004, Kahne captured rookie honors with a season that included five runner-up finishes, 13 top fives and 14 top 10s.

Kahne, who turns 26 next month, struggled in 2005. He earned his first victory last spring at Richmond, but that was one of only five top fives and eight top 10s during the 36-race season. None of those results came in the final 10 events.

He spent a lot of time thinking about how he could become a better, more consistent driver.

“One thing I did was watch Tony Stewart through the week and watch some of the things he does from the time he makes his first lap in practice until he’s done racing that weekend,” Kahne said Friday night after winning the seventh pole of his career.

He suspects the difficult season may be a plus in the long run.

“Sometimes that stuff helps,” he said. “You don’t want to do it all the time, but it’s such an up-and-down sport. I think I learned a lot from it, and I know the team has. I think I’m more prepared and ready for this season.”

A big part of the problem for the Evernham Motorsports driver and the rest of the Dodge entries last year was the new Charger. The model that replaced the Intrepid at the beginning of 2005 has faced a big hurdle with its balance.

Two teams – Penske Racing South and Petty Enterprises – have gone back to the 2004 car at some tracks in an effort to be competitive. Team owner Ray Evernham has chosen to tough it out with the new car.

It appears his team has found some solutions, with Kahne opening the season with an 11th-place finish at Daytona and fourth-place runs at California and Las Vegas.

“Things can change quick, but we’re definitely on a high right now,” Kahne said. “We have momentum and things are going our way. We’ve got to capitalize while we do have this and, hopefully, keep it going all season.”

Today’s race will feature Bill Lester, the first black driver to race in NASCAR’s top series since Willy T. Ribbs in 1986.