Kasey Kahne is expected to come out of retirement and return to full-time NASCAR competition beginning in 2027. The 46-year-old is expected to race full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series and sign with Spire Motorsports.
Kahne last competed full-time in the Cup Series in 2018. The 18-time Cup Series winner announced that year would be his final but his season ended prematurely due to health issues.
Kahne formerly drove for Hendrick Motorsports from 2012-2017 and won two crown jewel races, the Coca-Cola 600 in 2012 and the Brickyard 400 in 2017, with the latter being his final career win to date.
Kasey Kahne Expected to End Retirement in 2027
Jordan Bianchi, motorsports writer for The Athletic, was first to report on Kahne’s unexpected NASCAR return.
According to an article written by Bianchi, Kahne is set to sign with Spire Motorsports to compete full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series next year.
“Kahne, 46, is expected to sign with Spire Motorsports to take the wheel of one of the team’s entries in the Truck Series for the entire 2027 season, according to sources briefed on the situation and granted anonymity to discuss the in-progress deal,” Bianchi wrote via The Athletic.
Kahne made a one-off return to the NASCAR circuit in 2025 at Rockingham Speedway, where he piloted the No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. Aside from that, he has largely stayed out of the NASCAR bubble.
Kahne’s NASCAR Cup Series full-time career began in 2004 behind the wheel of the No. 9 Evernham Motorsports Dodge. The Washington native totaled a career-high six wins in 2006 but finished eighth in the points standings.
Kahne continued to pilot the No. 9 machine through 2008 under the rebranded Gillette Evernham Motorsports. In 2009 and 2010, Kahne piloted the No. 9 Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports.
Kahne moved to Red Bull Racing full-time in 2011 to wheel the No. 4 Toyota. One year later, Kahne got behind the wheel of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
Kahne scored a career-best points finish of fourth in 2012, his first outing at HMS. However, results were difficult to come by in the later years and Kahne was forced out of HMS after 2017.
Kahne competed for Leavine Family Racing for his final season in 2018. Unfortunately, his retirement campaign was cut short due to health issues.
NASCAR ‘Team Announcement’ Set For Saturday at Las Vegas
On Saturday afternoon at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, an unknown NASCAR team announcement will take place. Later in the day, RFK Racing will have media availability.
While the two events are not confirmed to be linked to each other, there is reason to believe it involves either Brad Keselowski’s future or the future of RFK Racing. Earlier this week, it was announced that Keselowski and RFK are parting ways at the conclusion of the 2026 season.
However, with the recent development of Kahne’s NASCAR return, it is plausible to believe the team announcement could involve Kahne and Spire Motorsports. While Kahne is expected to race for Spire in 2027, no formal announcement by Kahne or Spire has been made.
The team announcement is scheduled for 12:45 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday at LVMS. RFK Racing’s media availability will happen at 7:00 p.m. Eastern time.
Kasey Kahne Returning to Full-Time NASCAR Competition in 2027