Full Throttle

Kasey Kahne finally threw the monkey off his back and achieved his first [avatar:http://cranialcavity.net/files/cup.jpg]Nextel Cup[/avatar] win followed closely by USAC alumnus Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman.

Kahne finished second five times last season en route to winning rookie of the year honors. He also finished second at Martinsville Speedway last month.

“It was just an unbelievable feeling,” said Kahne, who led led 242 of 400 laps. “I was pretty nervous. I’ve been leading races and not won them.”

“Tonight’s just the night,” Kahne, a six-time pole-sitter, told the AP. “We’ve come so close and always thought when it comes the time, we’re going to win a race.”

Stewart, who won his first Cup race at Richmond in 1999, said getting his first victory would give Kahne confidence.

“That kid doesn’t need any more confidence, [that] is the bad thing for us,” Stewart said.

Unofficial Finish, Chevy American Revolution 400:

Fin, St, Driver, Car, Laps, Status, Pts/Bonus
1, 1, Kasey Kahne, No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge, 400, Running, 190/10
2, 3, Tony Stewart, No. 20 The Home Depot Chevrolet, 400, Running, 175/5
3, 2, Ryan Newman, No. 12 ALLTEL Dodge, 400, Running, 165/0
4, 10, Kyle Busch*, No. 5 Kellogg’s/Star Wars Chevrolet, 400, Running, 160/0
5, 7, Kevin Harvick, No. 29 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet, 400, Running, 160/5
6, 9, Greg Biffle, No. 16 National Guard Ford, 400, Running, 150/0
7, 5, Elliott Sadler, No. 38 M&M’s Ford, 400, Running, 146/0
8, 39, Bobby Labonte, No. 18 Boniva Chevrolet, 400, Running, 142/0
9, 23, Michael Waltrip, No. 15 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, 400, Running, 138/0
10, 17, Jamie McMurray, No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge, 400, Running, 134/0
11, 6, Ricky Rudd, No. 21 Motorcraft Genuine Parts Ford, 400, Running, 130/0
12, 26, Matt Kenseth, No. 17 DeWalt Power Tools Ford, 400, Running, 132/5
13, 15, Jeremy Mayfield, No. 19 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge, 400, Running, 124/0
14, 27, Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet, 400, Running, 121/0
15, 14, Mark Martin, No. 6 Viagra Ford, 400, Running, 118/0
16, 12, Jeff Burton, No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet, 400, Running, 115/0
17, 4, Kurt Busch, No. 97 IRWIN Industrial Tools/Sharpie Ford, 400, Running, 117/5
18, 25, Joe Nemechek, No. 01 U.S. Army Chevrolet, 399, Running, 109/0
19, 8, Rusty Wallace, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge, 399, Running, 106/0
20, 34, Scott Wimmer, No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge, 399, Running, 103/0
21, 11, Carl Edwards, No. 99 Roundup Extended Control Ford, 399, Running, 100/0
22, 21, Travis Kvapil*, No. 77 Kodak/Jasper Engines Dodge, 399, Running, 97/0
23, 22, Sterling Marlin, No. 40 Coors Light Dodge, 399, Running, 94/0
24, 18, Jeff Green, No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge, 399, Running, 91/0
25, 38, Jason Leffler, No. 11 FedEx Ground Chevrolet, 399, Running, 88/0
26, 36, Scott Riggs, No. 10 Arometrics Chevrolet, 399, Running, 85/0
27, 19, Dave Blaney, No. 07 Bass Pro/Tracker/Jack Chevrolet, 398, Running, 82/0
28, 16, Casey Mears, No. 41 Target Dodge, 398, Running, 79/0
29, 30, Mike Wallace, No. 4 Lucas Oil Products Chevrolet, 398, Running, 76/0
30, 40, Ken Schrader, No. 49 Schwan’s Home Service Dodge, 398, Running, 73/0
31, 33, Robby Gordon, No. 7 Jim Beam Chevrolet, 398, Running, 70/0
32, 29, Brian Vickers, No. 25 GMAC/ditech.com Chevrolet, 397, Running, 67/0
33, 41, Kyle Petty, No. 45 Georgia-Pacific/Brawny Dodge, 397, Running, 69/5
34, 35, Dale Jarrett, No. 88 UPS Ford, 396, Running, 61/0
35, 31, Tony Raines, No. 92 Front Row Motorsports Chevrolet, 392, Running, 58/0
36, 32, Bobby Hamilton Jr., No. 32 Tide Chevrolet, 387, Running, 55/0
37, 24, Mike Bliss, No. 0 NetZero Best Buy Chevrolet, 375, Running, 52/0
38, 43, Hermie Sadler, No. 66 Peak Fitness Ford, 367, Off Track, 49/0
39, 20, Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, 252, Out of Race, 46/0
40, 28, Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, 80, Out of Race, 43/0
41, 13, Johnny Sauter, No. 09 Miccosukee Gaming & Resorts Dodge, 64, Out of Race, 40/0
42, 42, Morgan Shepherd, No. 89 Victory in Jesus/Red Line Oil Dodge, 36, Out of Race, 37/0
43, 37, Mike Garvey, No. 75 Jani-King/Rinaldi Air Conditioning Dodge, 23, Out of Race, 34/0