Matt goes back to Rockingham this weekend with plans to sweep the two-race series (see article from Nascar.com). Qualifying for the AC Delco 200 starts Friday at 12:45 Eastern and the race is Saturday at 2pm, televised live on TNN.

Matt will not be in the car that won the race earlier this year, that car was destroyed at the first Dover race when the right front gave out putting Matt hard into the wall. Instead they will have the car that dominated at Dover in the second race. The team clearly expects to win this weekend, good luck all.

Kevin Lepage withstood the pain in his shoulder last weekend and did not need relief from Matt Kenseth. Matt did practice the car Saturday Morning to be eligible for the race.

Matt practiced at the Atlanta Motor Speedway this week. The good news is that the #17 had the fastest lap times (Matt Kenseth 184.430mph; #87-Joe Nemechek 184.235; #80-Mark Krough 181.180; #77-Ed Berrier 180.473; #35-Lyndon Amick 179.800; #23-Lance Hooper 179.800) The bad news is that on Matt’s last run, he got a little too close to the wall, getting into the marbles and just lost the car. The first hit was pretty minor from what I hear but the second hit was to the front end, causing considerable damage to the car. The other good news is that Matt is fine and the car can be repaired to be ready for the race in November.

Matt will be at Phoenix on Friday to practice the #16 with the possibility of driving for Kevin Lepage if his shoulder is bothering him. Kevin Lepage has a bruised right shoulder and he feels confident he can race.

I think us Matt Kenseth fans are getting a little spoiled lately... Sure is nice being disappointed with a second place finish. Team Lycos had an excellent car at Gateway this weekend, qualifying in the 10th spot and leading several laps before being passed by race winner Dale Earnhardt Jr.

“Really, this is like a win for us because our flat-track program really hasn’t been all that good this year,” said Kenseth, who is now 102 points behind Earnhardt Jr. in the standings with three races remaining in 1998. “We didn’t do very well here at all last year, so this is a big improvement. We’ve got to take this second-place run and be happy with it. We’re going to a couple of tracks I really do like in Rockingham and Atlanta, so we’re not out of this thing yet. We’ve still got time to win it.”

Matt Kenseth lost 5 more points to Dale Jr this weekend, they both led several laps but Jeff Purvis got the extra bonus points for leading the most. Matt has 102 points to make up in the next 3 races if he is to claim the Busch Series Title.

Kevin Lepage fractured his right Scapula Saturday night in the Daytona race. Matt Kenseth will be in Phoenix this Friday to relieve Kevin if needed. Matt Kenseth will practice the #16 Primestar Ford and the team and Lepage will make a decision on if he will qualify the car and take it day-by-day on if Lepage will run the DuraLube/Kmart 500. Matt has some laps on this track in a South West Touring Late Model.

LUXAIRE JOINS KENSETH AS ASSOCIATE SPONSOR FOR 1999
NORMAN, OK — Luxaire Heating and Air Conditioning announced today that an associate sponsorship agreement has been reached with Reiser Enterprises for the 1999 Busch Grand National season. Luxaire will be displayed on the C-Post of the #17 DeWALT Chevrolet Monte Carlo driven by Matt Kenseth. This agreement marks the 7th year for Luxaire involvement in Busch Grand National racing.
   “We are excited about our new involvement with Reiser Enterprises and Matt Kenseth for 1999,” said Ted Altmire, Marketing Manager for Luxaire. “Our dealers, contractors and employees are all motorsports fans and the NASCAR program has developed into one of their top sales tools.”
   “I’m excited to have Luxaire Heating and Air Conditioning as part of our 1999 program,” Kenseth said. “It’s exciting to see strong companies that have been involved with NASCAR as long as Luxaire has, hopefully we can win a championship with them on board next season.”
   In addition to the Reiser Enterprises sponsorship, Luxaire announced an associate sponsorship agreement in The Pennzoil World of Outlaws Series with driver Andy Hillenberg. The sponsorship will mark the first year of Luxaire’s involvement in the fast growing dirt track series.

Fuel Mileage kept Team Lycos out of victory lane this weekend as Mike McLaughlin was able to keep his car out on the track for the last 93 laps without pitting. Matt was right there in second, ready to take the checkered flag if the #34 ran out of fuel but McLaughlin held on for the win. Matt started from the second position after an awesome qualifying run. It looked like a certain pole position until Dave Blaney rocketed around the track late in the qualifying session to beat Matt out of the top spot. It was the Matt and Dale show though as Matt led for 53 laps and Dale JR for 93. The Reiser Enterprises crew pulled out some killer pit stops and ultimately helped Matt stay out in front of Dale Earnhardt JR at the end of the race.
     The points battle was a wash today as Matt and Dale finished 2nd and 3rd, with Dale picking up the 5 bonus points for leading the most laps. Matt Kenseth still trails Earnhardt JR by 97 points with just 4 races left in the season.
  

Matt’s off this week. He has hit stardom and is signing autographs for all of his adoring fans. Luckily, John Reiser has volunteered to fill in and will be chatting with us this Monday. John is responsible for telling Matt where the other drivers are during the race. This weekend, Matt will be racing at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. We’ll see how Matt and John did on Monday. Chat with Matt Monday night 7pm Eastern.