NASCAR History: Everything to Know About the Cup Series’ Last Visit to Rockingham Speedway

NASCAR has been rolling the dice in recent years, blending international flavor with a nod to its roots. On one hand, they’ve opened the door to global talent and venues; on the other, they’ve revisited classic circuits to stir up a sense of nostalgia among long-time fans. Yet, some iconic tracks are still biding their time for a full-blown return.

One such venue is Rockingham Speedway, where this weekend, the Xfinity and Truck Series competitors will take center stage, while Cup Series drivers get a breather.

The last time the Cup Series visited Rockingham was in 2004 for the Subway 400, marking a bittersweet farewell to the track. That weekend started with Ryan Newman bagging the pole at 156.475 mph, outrunning a trio of Dodge contenders — Jamie McMurray, Kasey Kahne, and Rusty Wallace — who were hot on his heels.

The field was trimmed to 43 cars after a couple of practice crashes sidelined some entries, allowing slower qualifiers like Joe Ruttman and Kirk Shelmerdine to make the cut. Once the green flag dropped, Newman led the opening laps before McMurray flexed his muscle and surged ahead. But the race didn’t take long to veer off-script.

Lap 11 brought the first caution when Ken Schrader tangled with turns one and two, handing the lead to Jeff Gordon. He held it until lap 53 when Kyle Petty smacked the wall.

Newman, Gordon, and Matt Kenseth traded the top spot. Eventually, a crash on lap 131 — Schrader and Jimmie Johnson this time — brought out another yellow, but Kenseth took charge on lap 134.

The day was filled with chaos, as wrecks halted the race. Carl Long slammed with Joe Nemechek, flipped down the backstretch, and came crashing to a halt in turn three. Later, with just 42 laps remaining, Robby Gordon’s crash sparked the final showdown.

As the field came down to the last restart, Kasey Kahne and Matt Kenseth locked horns in a drag race to the finish. Kenseth edged Kahne at the line by a margin of 0.010 seconds, marking one of the closest finishes in Cup history, while McMurray secured third.

Kenseth led the lion’s share of the afternoon — 259 of 393 laps — while McMurray and Gordon chipped in with 67 and 35 laps, respectively. Around 50,000 spectators turned up for the emotional send-off, falling just short of packing the 60,113-seat grandstand.

Now, in a nod to the past, NASCAR’s Xfinity and Truck Series machines will once again roar around the 1.017-mile oval. Whether the Cup Series follows suit next season, however, is still not known.

Kasey Kahne will return to Rockingham

In January 2025, NASCAR dropped a headline-grabber that Kasey Kahne would return to the cockpit for the Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway on April 19.

While Kahne has turned laps at the track five times before in the Xfinity Series, his best finish dates back to a modest P16 in 2002. Now, after nearly six years away from competitive racing, he’s ready to pilot Richard Childress Racing’s #33 Chevrolet.

The storyline comes full circle — Rockingham was where Kahne made his Xfinity debut, and now the spectators are waiting for his and the track’s long-awaited return. Reflecting on the test session that marked his comeback, Kahne shared,

“It had been six and a half years. It was really nice to be back in a car. I didn’t know exactly how it would feel… but truthfully, once I got to Turn 3 coming to the start of practice and the car loaded into the corner, I instantly felt right at home and felt like I had been doing it for a while.”

Looking ahead to race day, Kahne knows it’s not just about shaking off rust. He plans to check all the boxes — executing a live pit stop, dialing in the car’s balance to ensure it stays steady from green flag to checkers, and sharpening his spatial awareness with the help of spotters. All in all, his focus is to stay competitive, run clean, and aim squarely for a top-five or top-10 finish — if not a trip to Victory Lane.