"I owe him a lot": When Kasey Kahne's longtime ally Kenny Francis credited the driver for his NASCAR success

During his time as a NASCAR Cup Series driver, Kasey Kahne spent a significant amount of time with Kenny Francis, both professionally and personally. Recalling those good old times, Francis opened up about the former NASCAR driver back in 2018 and stated that he owed Kahne "a lot."

In 2000, Francis joined Evernham Motorsports from Dale Jarrett's Robert Yates Racing as an engineer. After a couple of years, he was promoted to the post of crew chief and became the team director and crew chief for Jeremy Mayfield.

In 2006, he joined Kasey Kahne as his crew chief and that was the beginning of their journey. They worked together for four years and had decent statistics such as six wins, 12 Top 5s, 19 Top 10s, and six pole positions to their name.

After four years, Kahne decided to move away from Evernham Motorsports (which was rebranded to Richard Petty Motorsports) at the end of 2010, and join Red Bull Racing Team the very next year. And interestingly, Francis followed Kahne.

“He’s a friend of mine so it’s not like I’m going to forget him, right?” Francis said of Kahne. “I don’t know, but I’ll remember him as a good friend and somebody that was great to work with. Man, I owe him a lot."

"Most of the success I’ve had is because of him. I don’t know what else to say. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be where I’m at. It takes a lot of people to make it all work over the years, but he’s a huge part of who I am,” he added.

After a year, Kasey Kahne moved to Hendrick Motorsports from Red Bull Racing Team in 2012, and Kenny Francis followed suit. At HMS, Francis was the crew chief of Kahne's #5 entry till the 2014 season.

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How did Kenny Francis react to Kasey Kahne's transition from full-time to part-time in NASCAR?

At the end of 2014, Kenny Francis had a different duty within HMS, and as a result, they parted ways for the first time since 2006. Even though they did not work together, they remained in touch even after Kahne's move to Leavine Family Racing in 2018, after which the NASCAR driver decided to call off his full-time Cup Series journey.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kasey Kahne (left) and crew chief Kenny Francis pose with trophy - Source: Imagn

“I’m kind of sad. I love the guy, but at the same time, I hope and certainly wish him all the best,” Francis told NASCAR.com about Kahne's decision to retire from full-time. “I think hopefully it’ll be good for him. Hopefully, he’s happy with his decision and he’s happy going down the road.”

Currently, Kenny Francis is employed at Hendrick Motorsports as Vehicle Technical Director, while Kasey Kahne will return to race in the Xfinity Series with Richard Childress Racing for one race at Darlington Raceway this season.