Kasey Kahne drives to victory at Sonoma

It was a happy Father’s Day for Kasey Kahne and Richard Petty Motorsports. Kahne snapped a losing streak that has dogged him for 37 races and Petty returned to Victory Lane for the first time in a decade after Kahne piloted his #9 Budweiser Dodge to take the checkered flag at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California.

Kahne, 29, led the final 38 laps but had to fight off a late challenge from Tony Stewart in the #14 Chevrolet, the current leader in the Sprint Cup series, to earn his first win on a road course. Kahne is now 13th in the standings and just three points away from being able to qualify for one of the twelve spots in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. With ten more races in the schedule, Kahne has ten chances to make the cut.

Petty Motorsports had a good day in Sonoma. In addition to Kahne’s victory, the team had three top-ten finishes for the first time since Daytona. A.J. Almendinger finished seventh and Elliot Sadler came in tenth.