KAHNE TAKES CUES FROM ELITE.

Byline: TIM HADDOCK Motor Sports

NASCAR Nextel Cup rookie driver Kasey Kahne is putting up impressive numbers.

In the first five races, he has won two poles, had three top-five finishes and seems to be following in the tire tracks of Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon, open-wheel racers who have attacked stock cars by the throttle.

Kahne was asked in a teleconference Tuesday how the early-season success has affected him.

``I don't think it's hurt,'' said Kahne, driver of the No. 9 Dodge for Evernham Motorsports. ``I think it has put a little more pressure on us because we have run so good early in the season and maybe we need to have a little higher expectations from the outside. I think we still have our same goals: the Raybestos Rookie of the Year and top 15s every weekend and finishing the races and not get in any wrecks.''

Kahne credits a lot of his success to his Evernham Motorsports teammates, Bill Elliott and Jeremy Mayfield. Kahne is racing the car Elliott, a former Cup champion, drove since Dodge owner Ray Evernham put the team together.

Plus, he has been getting support from an unexpected source.

``Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. has given me some advice,'' Kahne said. ``Dale Jr., Bill Elliott and Jeremy Mayfield have given me some advice on all of this. I went from not having too many interviews and too many different- type media things to a bunch every week. It's changed a lot, but it's changed for a good reason. I'm just trying not to lose focus on what we're doing and keep racing good.''

But Kahne realizes how lucky he is to have Elliott as a source of advice and information.

``That's been a dream to get the support and help from Bill Elliott,'' Kahne said. ``That's something not too many rookies get. You can get into somebody else's race car and get help from a crew chief, but you never get the support Bill Elliott has given me.''

--Marlin's mentor: Mentors are invaluable in this age of youngsters in NASCAR's top class. Kahne has Elliott, and Casey Mears has Sterling Marlin.

Mears, driver of the No. 41 Dodge for Chip Ganassi Racing, is putting together a nice sophomore season. Already he has posted more top-15 finishes than all of last year.

``Sterling has always been a big help,'' Mears said. ``He's not the kind of guy who's going to walk over and say here's something you might want to try, but he's always been there to answer your questions. He's a great guy. He has a good heart and he's done a lot of little things to help here and there. You can't replace that.''

--Far from finished: Rusty Wallace, driver of the No. 2 Dodge for Penske Racing South, has been the latest of the old guard rumored to be on his way out. But he says, not so fast.

He was asked recently what he thinks about racing for possibly the last time at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, site of Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup race.

``I don't know about that,'' Wallace said. ``Don't be beating up on me so early. My career's not winding down. I've got at least four or five more Bristols left in me. I'm excited about what I'm doing. I feel like I've been driving some of the best races I've been driving this year. We ran great at Atlanta, Las Vegas, Rockingham. Our biggest problem this year has been these pit stops. They've been horrible. Instead of having 13-second stops, we've been having 17 and 18 and 19. Larry (Carter, crew chief) is working really, really hard. He's found some new guys, and they've been practicing like crazy with these new people. I'm confident when we get to Bristol we'll finally get it right.''

--Fantastic field: The second annual Mopar USAC Twin 25s at Irwindale Speedway will bring some of the top open-wheel drivers in the country to the half-mile oval Saturday night.

Among them are Champ Car drivers Michel Jourdain Jr., Patrick Carpentier and Jimmy Vasser, who will be racing next month in the Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Adrian Fernandez was originally slated to be one of the drivers in the Festival of Speed at Irwindale Speedway, but his recent defection to the Indy Racing League changed the lineup.

If any more Champ Car drivers or teams decide to make the switch, there might be more drivers in a golf bag than at the Grand Prix of Long Beach.

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