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LOUDON, N.H. — Kasey Kahne enters the Chase with many questions. They have more to do about what is going on at Richard Petty Motorsports as opposed to what happens on the track.

RPM is a team in flux. It is working on a merger with Yates Racing that could cause some employees to lose their job. The team's director of competition no longer works there after reportedly having an argument with car owner George Gillett last week at Richmond.

Kahne was asked Friday who is there to talk to about what is going on with the team. He stuttered, paused and said:

"I don't really know who it is either. There's not a lot of answers out there right now. I don't know if it's because we're in the middle of a lot of things or we just don't have a person in that position. I think Robbie Loomis (executive vice president of race operations) is supposedly going to be that guy, but I don't think he is yet. Is it Foster (Gillette, managing partner) but you can't get anything out of Foster."

Such questions, Kahne says, makes it more important for his team to start the Chase strong, beginning with Sunday's race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

"In order to win the championship, you're going to have to be strong every week, but for us, I don't think we can get behind," Kahne said.

Another question for Kahne is his future. His contract will expire after next season. Kyle Busch is in a similar situation with his contract set to expire after next season. Joe Gibbs Racing officials, though, expect to sign Busch to a contract extension before the season ends. Kahne says he'll think about his future during the offseason.

"You think about teams are doing and where we're at and we're actually running well," Kahne said.

MONTOYA WINS POLE: Juan Pablo Montoya earned his second pole of the season with a track-record lap of 133.431 mph. He broke Ryan Newman's record of 133.357 mph set in Sept. 2003.

Tony Stewart starts second after a lap of 132.581 mph. Kurt Busch (132.581 mph) is third and is followed by Denny Hamlin (132.030) and Carl Edwards (132.012). All are drivers in the Chase.

Stewart earned the No. 2 starting spot over Busch based on a tiebreaker.

As for the other Chase drivers: Jeff Gordon starts 10th, Kasey Kahne 11th, Mark Martin 14th, Jimmie Johnson 16th, Newman 18th, Greg Biffle 22nd and Brian Vickers 26th.

NO PREDICTION: Twice this season Denny Hamlin has said he would win that weekend's race and then did it. After Friday's practice, he wouldn't make a prediction.

"I'm confident but I'm not going to say anything yet," Hamlin said.

PIT STOPS: Crew chief Pat Tryson says his departure from Kurt Busch's team after this season had nothing to do with Busch but wouldn't detail why he's making the move to be crew chief for Martin Truex Jr. next season. ... NASCAR announced Friday that Versus will air a weekly 30-minute show on the 12 title Chase contenders beginning Sept. 22. ... Betty Moore, wife of legendary car owner Bud Moore, died Friday. She was 83.

Contact Dustin Long at 373-7062 or dustin.long@news-record.com