Kahne logs laps at Kentucky tire test

SPARTA, Ky. – Before beginning his weekend off, Kasey Kahne took part in a two-day tire test at Kentucky Speedway Monday and Tuesday.

Kahne said the speedway has made great improvements to the track, including a repave of the 1.5-mile tri-oval.

“Kentucky has always been a difficult track,” the driver said. “Turns 3 and 4 actually feel really similar to me, it’s much smoother but it feels similar how you race it and how you drive it. And then (Turns) 1 and 2 is a completely different corner and probably in time it’s going to be a much better corner than what it used to be so I think they made nice improvements here for sure.”

Kahne said the track changed a good bit from Monday to Tuesday as more rubber was laid down on the new surface. The heat also played a part in the track conditions for the test.

“(Monday) there was really no grip at all and it just took time,” Kahne said. “By the end of the day it was starting to get pretty good and (Tuesday) there was even more rubber on the track. When we come back, hopefully it’s hot. I think if it’s hot it will create a much better race and let us kind of move around and lay more rubber on the racetrack with a lot of cars.”

All-in-all, the two-day testing session was a good opportunity for the No. 5 team to try a few things out and log more laps on the track.

“It’s a good test for us,” the driver said. “We needed some testing to run through a lot of different things and try stuff. I think there’s a lot of data that we’ll be able to look at and my teammates as well coming here to be a little more prepared when we do come back.”