Please visit www.gillettevernhammedia.com for all Gillett Evernham Motorsports news releases, downloadable digital images and information on co-owners George Gillett, Ray Evernham and GEM drivers Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, Patrick Carpentier, and Chase Miller plus their race teams.

Kasey Kahne climbs behind the wheel of the Klondike Dodge for this weekend’s Nationwide race at Daytona International Speedway. Kahne finished 10th at Dover in his most recent NNS start.

The 28-year-old owns 12 starts at Daytona and is no stranger to success there. He has led 15 laps and earned one top-five and four top-10 finishes.

“Daytona is just a crap-shoot,” Kahne explained. “You never know what’s going to happen. Unfortunately, in our last race there, we were caught up in something that wasn’t our mess. That’s just the way Daytona is. Everyone says they’re going to race smart, but in the last 20 laps your manners get thrown out the window and it’s every man for himself. That makes for some exciting racing.”

During the spring event at Daytona the team was caught up in a late race accident and finished 35th.

TV and Radio Times: Qualifying is set for Friday at 1:00 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2 and MRN Radio. Race time: Friday at 8:00 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2 and MRN Radio.

DRIVER KASEY KAHNE QUOTES:

“It will be a good time being back in the Klondike Dodge Friday night. Running under the lights at Daytona is such a cool experience. And we always seem to put on a good show for the fans there.

“I’m hoping we can carry some of the recent success we’ve had on the Cup side over to the Nationwide Series. Gillett Evernham Motorsports has four strong teams and for some reason we just haven’t been able to capitalize on that in the No. 9 Klondike Dodge. We’re hoping to change that at Daytona.

“Daytona is just a crap-shoot. You never know what’s going to happen. Unfortunately, in our last race there, we were caught up in something that wasn’t our mess. That’s just the way Daytona is. Everyone says they’re going to race smart, but in the last 20 laps your manners get thrown out the window and it’s every man for himself. That makes for some exciting racing.”

NOTES

Chassis

•    Kahne will drive chassis No. B26 at Daytona. This is the same chassis the team raced at Daytona and Talladega this season.

Daytona Int’l Speedway

•    Kahne has led 15 laps at Daytona.

•    His best finish was fifth. It came in the spring of 2005.

•    Kahne’s resume includes one top-five and four top-10s.

•    Kahne has an average start of 15.5 and a finish of 25 at DIS.

2008 Season

•    The Ultimate Chargers team has six top-10s this season.

•    Kahne grabbed the Klondike team their first pole of the season at Richmond.

•    This is Kahne’s eighth start in the Nationwide Series this year.

•    At Talladega the Klondike Dodge finished eighth, earning Patrick Carpentier his second straight top-10 and rookie of the race honors.

•    The Klondike team nearly grabbed their first victory of the season at Bristol. Kahne ran out of laps to make the winning pass in the rain-shortened race, but earned the team their first top-five of the year.

•   Patrick Carpentier earned the Klondike team their first top-10 of the season after finishing eighth at Las Vegas. Carpentier didn’t have any practice laps in the car before taking the green flag.

History

• Gillett Evernham Motorsports had two victories in the Nationwide Series last year. They came at Charlotte and Bristol with Kahne behind the wheel.

• Since joining forces with Gillett Evernham Motorsports in 2005, Kahne has won at least two races each season in the Nationwide Series.

Gillett Evernham Motorsports

• Ray Evernham served as Jeff Gordon’s crew chief from 1992-’99 winning 47 races and three Cup championships.

• Evernham founded Evernham Motorsports in 2000 and began first full season of competition in 2001 serving as the cornerstone of Dodge’s return to NASCAR.

• George Gillett Jr. became co-owner with Evernham in October 2007. Gillett also owns the Montreal Canadiens in the NHL and the Liverpool soccer team in the English Premier League.