NASCAR NOTES: Stump Goes to SHR, Kahne Back with Hendrick

Jayski.com and wire service reports

Stewart-Haas Racing, the championship-winning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team, has hired Rex Stump as its technical director, effective immediately. Stump comes to Stewart-Haas Racing after an 18-year career at Hendrick Motorsports. There, he founded the organization's research and development program and has been instrumental in chassis design and technology. For those who remember, Stump was the brains behind the infamous "T-Rex" car that Jeff Gordon drove in one of the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races...and was told after the fact that bad things would happen if it was ever seen in the garage again.

Stump graduated from Kettering University (formerly the General Motors Institute) in 1989 with bachelor's degrees in mechanical and automotive engineering. Upon graduation, Stump worked at General Motors and participated in the Sloan Fellowship program, pursuing a master's degree in structural analysis from Wayne State University in Detroit. While at General Motors, he began working with the Corvette team in developing the active-suspension of the C5, which was slated to debut in the early 1990s. When the active-suspension program was canceled and the C5 was delayed, Stump delved into motorsports, becoming a race engineer for Team Penske in 1991. Working with a group of engineers dedicated to improving the performance of the No. 2 team of driver Rusty Wallace, Stump helped advance Wallace from a two-win season in 1991 to a massive, 10-win season in 1993. By the end of 1993, Corvette had reactivated the C5. Stump returned to General Motors to assist with the project and stayed until the end of 1995, joining Hendrick Motorsports in 1996.

Kahne Inks 3-Year Deal at HMS

Hendrick Motorsports and Kasey Kahne have agreed to a three-year contract extension that will keep the driver with the No. 5 Chevy SS team through the end of the 2018 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

"It's extremely gratifying to work with a driver like Kasey," said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. "I think the world of him both as a driver with championship-level talent and an overall terrific young man. Our whole organization has a great deal of respect for how hard he works, the professionalism he displays with our partners and the way he carries himself every day. We're committed to winning races and competing for titles with him for many years to come."

Kahne, 34, originally signed with Hendrick Motorsports in April 2010 and officially joined the team's four-car stable for the 2012 season. Over the past three years (2012-14), he ranks among the top-10 drivers in Sprint Cup wins (5), pole positions (4), top-five finishes (26) and laps led (1,177). The Enumclaw, Washington, native has 17 career wins in NASCAR's top division.

"I've found a home at Hendrick Motorsports," said Kahne, who since 2012 has earned at least one victory each season while securing three consecutive Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup berths. "We have incredible people and partners supporting us, and I couldn't be more excited about the direction we're headed as a team and a company. It's the right place for me, and I'm looking forward to being here for a long time." Kahne's contract with Hendrick Motorsports was set to expire following the 2015 NASCAR season.

No. 17 Team Penalized for Homestead Infraction

The No. 17 team of Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. that competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series has been penalized for a rules infraction discovered during pre-qualifying inspection Nov. 14 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. This infraction is a P3 level penalty which is outlined in Section 12-4.3 of the 2014 NASCAR rule book:

Violations resulting in P3 penalties tend to fall between serious and intermediate in nature. While they might include general "categories" of infractions similar to those in P4 (e.g. unauthorized parts; failing to meet specs; etc.), they tend to pertain more to secondary componentry or systems; modifications of lessor significance; go/no-go measurement failures of an intermediate nature.

This infraction violates Sections:

12-1 - Actions detrimental to stock car racing;

20-12 - Suspension: All front end and rear suspension mounts and mounting hardware must not allow movement or realignment of any suspension/drive line component beyond normal rotation or suspension/drive line travel.

As a result of these violations, crew chief Mike Kelley has been fined $50,000 and placed on NASCAR probation for six months starting Jan. 1, 2015 through June 30, 2015. Additionally, car chief Patrick Magee has also been placed on NASCAR probation for six months starting Jan. 1, 2015 through June 30, 2015.