By Joseph Wolkin

Coming off a season that saw a mere three top 5s, Kasey Kahne is determined to make the Chase in 2016. Going winless since Atlanta in 2014, he is looking to rekindle the fire with Hendrick Motorsports. After leading a career-low 66 laps in 2015, Kahne is set to compete for victories once again.

What are your thoughts on the new aero package, even though there are still complaints that the low-downforce package isn’t enough?

“It is definitely lower, and because of that, there is less drag. The cars – in the summer time – will definitely move around. The tires are going to fall off hopefully quicker because the cars are sliding around more. The speed still feels like you have a little bit more engine on it because of the less drag. You are going to gain in all areas that are good for myself. I enjoy power and I enjoy lower downforce, Hopefully, as a whole, this package is heading to be in the right direction, and it should help me with my performances a little bit.”

In the past, you have performed well with similar packages. What are your expectations for this year?

“I need to get back into Victory Lane. The thing that I want to do is be fast. In practice, I want to be one of the best cars, and for the race and qualifying, I want to be near the top. On average, it is the same. In order to do that, you need to have speed every time you are on the racetrack. That is something we have lacked for 80 percent of the time for two years. Our goal is to have speed every time we hit the track. If we do that, we will be back in Victory Lane.”