LOUDON, N.H. (June 29, 2008) ----- What appeared to be a promising weekend for Kasey Kahne and the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge team was cut short when another car made contact with Kahne on lap 224, relegating him to a 30th-place finish Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Kahne started the LENOX Industrial Tools 301 from the 14th position and immediately flexed the power of the Budweiser Dodge, climbing into the sixth position by lap 55. “A little loose in and off” was Kahne’s comment to his crew before he brought the No. 9 down pit road on lap 62 for his first green-flag pit stop of the race. Four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment were prescribed to correct the loose handling condition.

The changes proved favorable as Kahne found himself in the second position when the first caution flag waved on lap 85. For his second trip down pit road, crew chief Kenny Francis called for right-side tires and fuel only. Pitting back in the 39th pit stall, Kahne fought heavy traffic and had trouble exiting his pit, resulting in the loss of several positions.

After restarting 11th, track position proved to be vital as Kahne struggled to make his way back toward the front. On lap 224, while racing for position, the No. 8 car made contact with Kahne sending him spinning into the outside wall. Kahne was forced to hit pit road under green-flag conditions to repair the damage. The No. 9 team worked feverishly to repair the minor damage, but not before Kahne lost two laps in the process.

With severe thunderstorms looming, Kahne held his 30th-place position until the skies opened up and heavy rain pounded the one-mile speedway, forcing NASCAR to call the race with 17 laps remaining. Kurt Busch scored the victory after several of the dominant cars were forced to pit for fuel a few laps prior.

“Track position was so important today,” Kahne said after the race. “It was difficult to make a pass back in heavy traffic. Once the 8 car made contact with us, we were forced to ride around until the race was over and just finish wherever we could. It’s just too bad. The Budweiser Dodge was really strong all weekend.”

Michael Waltrip followed in the second position, while J.J. Yeley, Martin Truex Jr. and Kahne’s teammate Elliott Sadler completed the top-five running order.

Kahne lost one position in the point standings. With nine races remaining until “The Chase”, Kahne resides in the 10th position, 465 points behind series leader Kyle Busch and 11 points behind ninth place Tony Stewart.

The Sprint Cup Series competitors return to Daytona International Speedway for the third restrictor-plate race of the season. The Coke 400 gets underway Saturday, July 5th at 8 pm. TNT will have live coverage of the broadcast beginning at 6:30 pm ET. Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the radio broadcast.