KANSAS CITY, Kan. - Greg Biffle had the fastest car and the freshest tires, but Kasey Kahne overcame both to win Saturday's United Way 300 Busch Series race at Kansas Speedway by the nose of his No.6 Dodge.
Biffle, driving the No.66 Ford, dominated the second half of the race, leading Laps 125-182, but a late caution scrambled the running order and gave Kahne an opportunity on which he capitalized.
When the yellow flag flew for T.J. Bell's spin on Lap 182, Biffle and most of the leaders headed to the pits. Kahne, running fourth at the time, stayed on the track while Biffle took four tires and dropped to eighth.
When the green flag dropped to start a 17-lap sprint to the finish, Kahne trailed Johnny Sauter, who also skipped the last pit stop.
Kahne passed Sauter after three laps to take the lead while Biffle sped through the field into second, only to see the caution flag fly again on Lap 195, setting up a three-lap dash to the finish.
The caution was just what Kahne needed as he blocked every advance from Biffle to win by 0.003 seconds.
Sauter, who finished third ahead of Kevin Harvick, Jon Wood and Reed Sorenson, suggested he would have used a different tactic on the final lap.
"You should have turned (Kahne)," Sauter told Biffle, who agreed that if he had that lap to run again he might have been more aggressive.
But Biffle is fifth in the Nextel Cup Chase for the Championship, and he doesn't want to give Kahne a reason to seek revenge.
"There's $60,000 on the line (Saturday) and there's $5.5-million (today)," Biffle said. "I'm looking at that big picture."
NHRA: Ron Capps broke a lengthy drought in the O'Reilly Fall Nationals in Ennis, Texas, topping Funny Car qualifying for the first time in five years. Capps piloted his Dodge Stratus R/T to a track-record time of 6.694 seconds at 327.82 mph. Doug Herbert (Top Fuel) and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) topped their divisions.
CARRYING A FLAME: Jarno Trulli will have an unusual honor for a Formula One driver: He will be involved with the Olympics. The Italian will carry the torch when it passes through his hometown of Pescara on its way to the Winter Games, which start February in Turin.
