Kasey Kahne will not return due to health concerns

Kahne, 38, announced Tuesday he has not been medically cleared to compete for the remainder of the 2018 season following a test he underwent in the car at Charlotte Motor Speedway last week.

He has sat out of Leavine Family Racing’ No. 95 Chevrolet since Darlington dealing with heat exhaustion issues. That means Kahne’s NASCAR’s career is over as he previously announced he would step away from fulltime NASCAR competition at the end of the year.

In September, Kahne said he’d been dealing with heat exhaustion issues at the end of the NASCAR races since last season but the Darlington (S.C.) race “was the worst that it’s been.”

“It was my hope that everything would go well and I would be able to finish out the season strong in the No. 95 for Leavine Family Racing,” Kahne said in a message posted to his Twitter account. “Unfortunately, that’s not the case.

“Out of the race car I am perfectly healthy, I feel great and the doctors have determined that I have no underlying health problems. My body just can’t handle extended periods of time in the race car and we weren’t able to control the sweat ratio to keep me hydrated enough to prevent any permanent damage to my body.

“NASCAR has been a great home for me for 15 years and I wish the No. 95 the best of luck these last few races.”

Kahne said he still planned to compete in sprint car races in the future.

“With much shorter races and open cockpits, there is no issue with my health or hydration with that type of racing.”

In 529 career starts in the Cup series, Kahne won 18 races and had 93 top-five and 176 top-10 finishes and won 27 poles. His best series finish was fourth in the 2012 season, when he was competing with Rick Hendrick Motorsports.

Kahne’s final win came last season at the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Kahne also won eight races in the Xfinity Series and five in the Camping World Truck Series. He also won the 2008 NASCAR All-Star Race.