KANSAS CITY, KS (September 29, 2002) — Matt Kenseth is on a roll. For the fourth race in a row, Kenseth extended his top-10 streak with a seventh place finish in the Protection One 400 at Kansas Speedway Sunday afternoon.

The performance of the DEWALT car was not up to par throughout the entire weekend. Kenseth qualified in 27th position, but the car was not handling the way he wanted it to. Practice speeds were in the bottom third of the field, so the team knew they would have to make plenty of adjustments to get a respectable finish out of the weekend.

As the race began under sunny skies, crew chief Robbie Reiser told the team they had a long day ahead of them with lots of work to do, so they needed to be “picture perfect.”

Shortly after the green flag flew, Kenseth told Reiser he felt a vibration in the car. On lap three, nine cars were involved in an accident behind him. Racing resumed on lap 15, but another caution flag flew on lap 20 due to the No. 15 car of Michael Waltrip hitting the wall. Kenseth pitted for two tires and a track bar adjustment to combat a tight handling condition. He went out on the track in 25th position. Another caution on lap 29 allowed for Kenseth to pit on lap 29 to top off the fuel tank.

Racing resumed again on lap 33 and Kenseth moved up to 17th by the time the next caution flag flew on lap 43. The DEWALT car had a bad vibration when it reached a certain RPM so Kenseth attempted to take it easy on the car without losing too much on the track.

As the race wore on, Kenseth moved into the top-15. The car was faster in clean air so as Kenseth passed cars on the track he was able to pull away and gain on the leaders.

On lap 77, Kenseth pitted again, but for right side tires only. He went back out onto the track in 2nd place. Shortly after the restart he lost some ground, and fell back to 12th. The handling of the car was too tight, and it was all Matt could do to keep the car on track.

The highlight in the DEWALT pits came on lap 142. A 13.87 second pit stop propelled Kenseth from 11th to 6th on the track. He maintained the track position and held on until the closing laps.

A red flag stopped the race with only five laps remaining in the 267-lap event. Kenseth was fifth, but struggled on some of the restarts throughout the race. Dale Earnhardt Jr. slowed Kenseth up on the final single-file restart, causing Kenseth to let off the gas to avoid wrecking the No. 8. He lost some ground but ended up in seventh position — and grabbed his sixteenth top-10 of the season.

“Today was all right I guess,” said Kenseth. “We didn’t have that great of a car, but we stayed at it all day and got a top five car at the end. It was unfortunate that they threw that red flag because our car was really, really poor on restarts today for some reason. I couldn’t get going after that red flag but when I did, I got under Junior and he ran me all the way down past the apron. I could have stayed in the gas and finished fifth, but I would’ve had to wreck him. I chose to lift and lose some spots, so I lifted and lost some spots.”

Kenseth maintained the eighth spot in the chase for the championship, and now is only 193 points out of first place. The NASCAR Winston Cup series visits Talladega Superspeedway next weekend for the final restrictor plate race of the season and Kenseth and a lucky fan will race for the Winston Million Dollar Bonus.

Protection One 400 • September 29, 2002
Kansas Speedway • Kansas City, Kansas

Matt Kenseth Performance Summary at Kansas Speedway:

Winston Cup Series
Date	Start	Finish	Laps	Money	Status
09/30/01	13	32	238/267	$53,900	Accident

Kansas Speedway Totals
Starts	1
Wins	0
Poles	0
Top 5	0
Top 10	0
Top 15	0
Money won:	$53,900
Laps Completed	238/267 = 89%

Matt Kenseth’s Thoughts on Kansas:

“I have only ever run at Kansas once, as has everyone else. Last year we qualified well, and then got into an accident in the last part of the race. I think it should be a good run for us, and honestly, it needs to be if we want to make our mark on this season. We need to run up front from now until the end, and can’t afford to make any mistakes or have anything go wrong.”

Crew Chief Robbie Reiser’s Thoughts on Kansas:

“We are taking car 21 this weekend to Kansas. We tested in Kentucky a week ago to make sure we were prepared for this race.”

Spotter Mike Calinoff’s Thoughts on Kansas:

“Spotting for Matt this weekend will be enjoyable — he loves these types of tracks. We are on a roll!”

NOTES OF INTEREST:

BLOOMIN’ FAVORITE… Matt Kenseth leads the series in the Outback Steakhouse Bloomin’ Favorite Driver of the race award. The payoff is $75,000 at the end of the season.

THIS TIME LAST YEAR… Last year at this time, Kenseth only had one top-5 and five top 10’s. This year he has four wins, ten top-5’s, and fifteen top-10’s.

2002 YEAR TO DATE SEASON TOTALS
POINTS	3,485 / 8th
MONEY WON	$3,160,702
LAPS COMPLETED	7,812/8,206 = 95%
STARTS	27
POLES	1 Dover
WINS	4  Rockingham, 2/24 Texas, 4/07 Michigan, 6/16 Richmond, 9/7
TOP FIVE	10
TOP TEN	15

DOVER, Del. (September 22, 2002) — Matt Kenseth added another top five to his stat sheet this weekend as he finished an impressive fourth in the MBNA All-American Heroes 400 at Dover International Speedway.

Kenseth started the 400-mile event in 17th position. He did not have a good practice session on Saturday, and the team was skeptical of what would unfold during the race. Crew chief Robbie Reiser told the team to be optimistic, because there would be plenty of opportunities to adjust on the car during the 400-mile event.

Within the first 15 laps, Kenseth told Reiser the car was really loose. An early wreck on lap 8 between Ward Burton and Jerry Nadeau brought out the first caution. The DEWALT crew made an air pressure and track bar adjustment on the pit stop in 14.66 seconds. Kenseth was running 13th in the field when the race restarted.

The handling of the car went away fast, and Kenseth said the car was so loose on lap 47 that he could barely press on the gas pedal. The 17 crew made another adjustment to the car on lap 55 with a 14.31 second pit stop.

Kenseth impressed his team when Todd Bodine spun directly in front of him on the front stretch, causing Jeff Gordon to spin as well on lap 67. He pitted the car again on lap 68 and the team scored a 14.27 second stop.

With lap 70, Kenseth started his charge through the field. During another pit stop under caution on lap 117, the DEWALT boys picked up four positions on pit road with their four-tire stop of 14.42 seconds.

Kenseth moved up to ninth on lap 146. The car was a little bit tight now, but according to Matt, it was “pretty decent.” That was short lived because by lap 193 he was both tight and loose, and once again having problems turning the car.

The team made final adjustments under caution with 70 laps to go, and Kenseth once again charged forward. Running lap times as fast as the leader and eventual winner, Jimmie Johnson, Kenseth passed Tony Stewart on lap 372 for fourth, and crossed the finish line in the same position.

“That was a great run for this team,” said Kenseth. “We had a bad car early on, and it just got worse before it got better. We all worked hard today and got a good finish. I am really proud of this DEWALT Team.”

Kenseth moved to eighth in the point standings, and is only ten points from seventh place. There were four Roush Racing cars in the top-10 on Sunday.

Next weekend the Winston Cup Series heads to Kansas Speedway.

MBNA All-American Heroes 400 • September 22, 2002
Dover International Speedway • Dover, Del.

Matt Kenseth Dover International Speedway Performance Summary

Winston Cup Series
Date	Start	Finish	Laps	Money	Status
09/20/98	16	6	400/400	$42,340	Running
09/26/99	13	4	400/400	$51,160	Running
06/04/00	26	2	400/400	$119,755	Running
09/23/00	31	12	399/400	$64,440	Running
06/03/01	13	16	399/400	$58,435	Running
09/23/01	40	29	390/400	$50,815	Running
06/02/02	1	40	297/400	$72,845	Running

Dover International Speedway Totals
Starts	7
Wins	0
Poles	1
Top 5	2
Top 10	3
Top 15	4
Money won:	$459,790
Laps Completed	2,685/2,800 = 96%

Matt Kenseth’s thoughts on Dover:

“I really like the size of the track and the banking. You can run fast at Dover, and if I had to choose a favorite track Dover would be one of them. I don’t mind racing on the concrete at Dover. Actually, if the track were asphalt the racing would be even better. There would be more side-by-side racing and it would be much easier to pass. When I race at Dover it is enjoyable and I hope that the site of my first Cup race and pole will be the site of another win for this DEWALT Team. We had an awesome car there in the spring, qualified first but lost a motor and had to start in the back. I was up to the top-10 and blew a tire causing a lot of damage to the car. This weekend we hope to follow through with a good run.”

Crew Chief Robbie Reiser’s thoughts on Dover:

“We are taking car 3 to Dover this weekend. It is the same car we won the pole with last race, and we are just going to go there and take another shot at it. We had a little bad luck last time, so hopefully we won’t be too far off of what we had in the spring.”

Spotter Mike Calinoff’s thoughts on Dover:

“Dover is an awesome place to spot. Because it is considered a ‘self-cleaning’ track meaning, when cars wreck they always end up at the bottom of the banking, it makes my job a bit easier. It’s also a fun place to spot since Matt enjoys it so much.”

NOTES OF INTEREST:

BLOOMIN’ FAVORITE…Matt Kenseth leads the series in the Outback Steakhouse Bloomin’ Favorite Driver of the race award. The payoff is $75,000 at the end of the season.

NO DNF’s… Matt Kenseth has been running at the end of 26 consecutive races since his only DNF of the season at the Daytona 500.

LET’S ROLL… The No. 17 will sport a decal in remembrance of the 9/11 attacks on America at Dover.

APPEARANCES… Matt Kenseth will sign autographs at the Home Depot in Christiana, Delaware on Friday, September 20, 2002, from 6–7pm. He will also be at the DEWALT Rolling Thunder Display on Sunday morning from 9–9:30 am for the first 100 people in line.

LOUDON, NH (September 15, 2002) — Matt Kenseth scored his 14th top-10 of the season by finishing tenth in the New Hampshire 300 on Sunday. The rain-shortened event was won by rookie Ryan Newman, who showed the way for 143 of the 207 laps.

Kenseth and the team went back to New Hampshire International Speedway with the same car they dominated the race with in July, but ended up 33rd because of a flat tire. They qualified in 17th position and were in the top-10 during practice sessions throughout the weekend.

Threatening skies played into race strategy, and the first raindrops fell only 19 laps into the race. Kenseth was in 21st position and decided to bring the car into the pits on lap 20 for his DEWALT crew to change tires and pull a spring rubber because the car was tight.

After an hour of waiting, the track was dry and the field went back to green flag racing on lap 22. Kenseth restarted the race in 29th position, but soon worked his way up to 20th. He told crew chief Robbie Reiser the car was coming around and would be pretty good on the long run.

The DEWALT crew changed four tires again on lap 75 and sent Kenseth back out on the track in 15th position. Even though Kenseth told Reiser it was hard to pass cars, he moved up into the top-10 by lap 135.

On lap 197, it started to rain again, and a caution flag flew. The field stayed out on the track under caution until the checkered flags waved on lap 207. Kenseth finished 10th.

“We just could not pass out there,” said Kenseth on the radio after the race. “I am not sure if it was the car or the track or who I was behind, but we just could not get up there. It’s disappointing because we had a great car in practice, but something changed.”

After 27 of 36 events, the Kenseth and the DEWALT team are ninth in the point standings, 220 behind leader and teammate Mark Martin. Next week the Winston Cup Series heads to Dover, the site of Kenseth’s first career start and pole.

New Hampshire 300 • September 15, 2002
New Hampshire International Speedway • Loudon, N.H.

Matt Kenseth’s Performance Summary at New Hampshire International Speedway

Winston Cup
Date	Start	Finish	Laps	Money	Status
07/09/00	22	19	272/273	$54,400	Running
09/17/00	38	17	298/300	$51,625	Running
07/22/01	21	16	300/300	$54,550	Running
11/23/01	16	4	300/300	$82,525	Running
07/21/02	6	33	299/300	$71,225	Running

New Hampshire International  Raceway Totals
Starts	5
Wins	0
Top 5:	1
Top 10:	1
Top 15:	1
Money won:	$314,325
Laps Completed	1,469/1,473 = 99.9%

Matt Kenseth’s thoughts on racing at New Hampshire:

“Last year we could hardly run in the top-20, and this year we have won four races. It is about the cars I drive and the way they are built. We have a lot of good tracks to go back to in the next few weeks. I am really looking forward to going back to Loudon. We had a great race car there in July and ran over a piece of gravel or something with nine laps to go and got a flat tire. We not only lost the lead, we ended up 33rd. In the past New Hampshire has not been one of our stronger tracks, but the past two times there we had really fast cars. I think we might have a shot at it.”

Crew Chief Robbie Reiser’s Thoughts on New Hampshire:

“We are taking car 22 this weekend to Loudon. It is the same car we had there the past two times. We basically repainted it, and are ready to challenge for a win again. Hopefully this will be the start of our charge towards the championship.”

Spotter Mike Calinoff’s Thoughts on New Hampshire:

“My view at Loudon is great – there is not a single blind spot on the track. I am pretty pumped up to go back and run like we did in July.”

NOTES OF INTEREST:

BLOOMIN’ FAVORITE…Matt Kenseth still leads the series in the Outback Steakhouse Bloomin’ Favorite Driver of the race award. The payoff is $75,000 at the end of the season.

LAP LEADERS...Kenseth has led at least one lap in 13 of the 26 races run this season for 586 laps.

NO BULL… Matt Kenseth’s win at Richmond made him eligible for the No Bull 5 at Talladega in October marking the third time this season Kenseth will vie for a million dollars from Winston.

2002 YEAR TO DATE SEASON TOTALS
POINTS	3,191 / 8th
MONEY WON	$2,995,147
LAPS COMPLETED	7,205/7,599 = 95%
STARTS	26
POLES	1 Dover
WINS	4  Rockingham, 2/24 Texas, 4/07 Michigan, 6/16 Richmond, 9/7
TOP FIVE	9
TOP TEN	13

RICHMOND, Va. (September 8, 2002) — Matt Kenseth overcame two flat tires, made up for two laps lost, and the potential for a fuel shortage to win his fourth race of the season Saturday night in the Monte Carlo 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

Kenseth and the DEWALT Team qualified their brand new car in the 25th position. Final practice speeds were indicative the No. 17 car was going to be strong for the event.

After a patriotic tribute to America and those whose lives were changed forever by the events of September 11th, Kenseth’s main focus at the start was getting to the front. Early race cautions for wrecks made for slow going during the first 25 laps. Kenseth broke into the top-20 and was moving up when the right front tire blew on lap 66. A caution came out on the track, but Kenseth lost a lap and was in 37th position when the field went back to racing.

The DEWALT car got back onto the lead lap on lap 104 when he passed race leader Ryan Newman. Kenseth and the team were patient and made slight adjustments on the car because of a loose condition during the pit stop on lap 111. He was in 30th position on the restart on lap 113.

From lap 113 to lap 163 Kenseth charged through the field from 30th to eighth place. On lap 169, Kenseth had another flat right front tire, and fell back to 32nd position, one lap down — again.

He picked off cars one by one as the laps went on the scoreboard. On lap 201, he got his lap back by passing the leader, Michael Waltrip on the way to the caution flag. Kenseth pitted again on lap 208 and capitalized on a few of the lead lap cars missing pit road. He was in fifth position after the DEWALT crew pulled off a 13.85 second four-tire stop.

Crew chief Robbie Reiser realized it was the air pressure settings on the DEWALT car that was causing the right front tires to go flat. Kenseth was cautious of the situation, and careful not to abuse the tires as he raced to the front of the field. He pulled into the second position on lap 238 and was the fastest car. He took the lead on lap 258.

The final pit stop for the DEWALT team was on lap 274. Kenseth came into the pits with the lead, and went back out fourth. On 293 he took the lead back, and lead for the rest of the race.

With 30 laps to go, Reiser radioed Kenseth and said he would be five laps short on fuel. Kenseth said then he would save the five laps. He opened up a 2.7 second lead on the rest of the field and conserved enough fuel to take the checkered flags for the fourth time this season.

Robbie Reiser was overjoyed. “This is a great race team. I’m not the smartest guy in the world and I probably almost killed Matt tonight with an air-pressure problem, but that was a great job by this race team and a great job by Matt. This whole race team deserves this. I don’t deserve it for what we did to ourselves, but it was a great run.”

Kenseth felt the same. “It was awesome to race from the back to the front again. I was worried, we had an awesome car, but man it was frustrating blowing those tires. Fuel was a question, but Robbie has never run me out of fuel. When he said I should go for it, I trusted that. Our car was a rocket tonight, the DEWALT car was awesome. It was good to get back up there and win again, because it’s so hard to do that these days with the level of competition.”

Kenseth and the team will regroup and head to New Hampshire International Speedway next weekend.
     

Monte Carlo 400 with the Looney Tunes • September 7, 2002
Richmond International Speedway • Richmond, Va.

Matt Kenseth’s Performance Summary at Richmond International Speedway

Winston Cup
Date	Start	Finish	Laps	Money	Status
5/06/00	37	15	400/400	$41,660	Running
9/09/00	20	32	376/400	$35,305	Engine
5/05/01	19	8	400/400	$52,475	Running
9/08/01	38	35	301/400	$42,425	Running
05/04/02	7	6	400/400	$68,000	Running

Richmond International  Raceway Totals
Starts	5
Wins	0
Top 5:	0
Top 10:	2
Top 15:	3
Money won:	$239,865
Laps Completed	1,877/2,000 = 94%

Matt Kenseth’s thoughts on racing at Richmond:

“We came from two laps down last Richmond race to finish sixth. I think we should be pretty good on the .75-mile track. I hope we can just forget last week at Darlington, and get back to chasing the points.”

Crew Chief Robbie Reiser’s thoughts on Richmond:

“We are taking a new car No. 23 to Richmond. It is a sister car to the one we raced at Loudon and we are going to try it out. It should run well for us, since we dominated in Loudon before the flat tire ruined our chances for a win.”

Spotter Mike Calinoff’s thoughts Richmond :

“The spotters stand in Richmond offers a decent view from turn one. However, the difficult part is being able to see the cars when they wreck. The sealer that they apply produces thick white smoke and with the reflection of the lights it seems as though a wall is created.”

NOTES OF INTEREST:

APPEARANCE… Matt Kenseth will make an appearance at DEWALT’s Rolling Thunder display at Richmond from 3:30–4:15pm — there will be 300 tickets handed out on race day.

BLOOMIN’ FAVORITE… Matt Kenseth still leads the series in the Outback Steakhouse Bloomin’ Favorite Driver of the race award. The payoff is $75,000 at the end of the season.

LOCAL BOY… Gasman Benjy Grubbs is from Richmond, Va.

LAP LEADERS... Kenseth has led at least one lap in 12 of the 25 races run this season.

2002 TOTALS
POINTS	3,011 / 10th
MONEY WON	$2,831,552
LAPS COMPLETED	6,805/7,199 = 95%
STARTS	25
POLES	1 Dover
WINS	3  Rockingham, 2/24 Texas, 4/07 Michigan, 6/16
TOP FIVE	8
TOP TEN	12