|
Coca-Cola 600 Recap
May 29,
2006
n
Race photos by ASP
No.17 R+L Carriers/DeWALT Ford Fusion Recap:
Kenseth
fights for another top-five finish; Takes over second in
points chase
In front of an estimated Lowe’s Motor Speedway crowd
of 175,000, Kasey Kahne led the field to the green flag
for the start of the Nextel Cup Series’ longest event,
the Coca-Cola 600. Matt Kenseth and the R+L
Carriers/DeWALT Ford Fusion started sixth when the race
began just after 5:40 PM Eastern under hot sunny skies.
The track temperature at the start of the race was
122 degrees which meant the already notoriously slick,
newly paved surface was treacherous from the start.
Kenseth along with many other cars started out fighting
a loose condition, especially on entry into the corners.
But the story of the evening would be pit stops and pit
strategy.
With the reduced fuel cells, 14 gallons from the
usual 22 gallons, teams had to stop for fuel every 30 to
40 laps. NASCAR reduced the fuel cell as a precautionary
measure to tire wear and increasing speeds. However,
with 400 laps scheduled for the event, this meant that
teams would stop at least 12 to 13 times for fuel alone.
In all, the No. 17 team stopped 16 times on the evening.
During the numerous pit stops, some four-tire stops,
some two-tire stops, and some gas only, the Robbie
Reiser-led crew worked tirelessly to improve the
handling of the racecar, which Kenseth reported
throughout the race as being tight from the center of
the corner out.
In all, it was a roller coaster race for Kenseth and
the No. 17 Ford team. After beginning sixth Kenseth
quickly worked his way up to the fourth position, but
would slide back while trying to get a handle on the
racecar. Kenseth remained in the top 15 until a pit-stop
on lap 93, when a loose lug nut forced a return trip to
pit road which dropped the 17 machine back to the 33rd
position.
Down but not out Kenseth came roaring back to the
front with a little help from pit strategy which helped
pick up valuable track position. By lap 291, Kenseth
gained the lead during a round of green-flag pit stops.
Saving their best for last, Kenseth and the No. 17 team
climbed back into the top five in the final 100 laps,
where Kenseth would hang on for a fifth-place finish,
his seventh top five of the 2006 season, and his fifth
top five in seven starts in the Coca-Cola 600.
For the race, Kahne took the lead from Carl Edwards
late in the race and held off a hard charging Jimmie
Johnson for the win. The win by Kahne, broke Johnson’s
three-year reign as the Coca-Cola 600 champion.
“Tonight we didn’t necessarily have a great car,”
Kenseth said. “But, we had a great effort by the team to
give me good pit stops, make the right calls at the end
and get our R&L Carriers car in position to get a good
finish. It feels good to get out of here fifth. You
always want to win, but we just couldn’t figure it out
all weekend. As bad as I thought we ran, we still
finished really good.”
NEXT RACE:
Neighborhood Excellence 400
1-mile Dover International Speedway, Dover, Del.
Sunday, June 4, 2006
RACE SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Started:
6th • Finished:
5th
POINTS SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Race Total: 160
• Season Total:
1752 points, Ranked 2nd,
109 points behind first
Charlotte Busch Recap
May
27,
2006
No.17
Ameriquest Ford Fusion Recap
Mechanical
failure spoils Kenseth’s dominant run
Matt Kenseth and the No. 17 Ameriquest Ford
Fusion led the field of 43 cars to the green flag in
Saturday night’s Carquest Auto Parts 300 at the
Lowe’s Motor Speedway after winning the pole with a
lap of 29.346 seconds, 184.011 miles per hour. The
pole was Kenseth’s second Busch Pole Award of 2006
(Las Vegas) and the 10th of his NASCAR Busch Series
career.
Kenseth survived a few early caution flags and
led sporadically throughout the early going. But,
when he drove the black Ameriquest Ford to the front
on lap 41, Kenseth began to exert his dominance on
the field. Over the next 92 laps, Kenseth paced the
field 76 times.
During the only green-flag pit stop of the event,
Kenseth wheeled the No. 17 down pit road in first
place, and at the attention of crew chief Jimmy
Fennig and crew, actually improved the car’s
handling, which Kenseth reported as being a little
tight on exit. After regaining the lead on lap 81,
Kenseth set sail, opening up a wide margin and
lapping nearly half the field in the process.
If appeared as if Kenseth’s Busch Series efforts
were finally going to land him in victory lane until
lap 133. Coming to a restart, Kenseth felt something
amiss with the engine. His fears were confirmed when
the green flag waved. Something had gone awry with
the No. 17 Ford’s power plant. Kenseth quickly and
wisely moved out of the racing groove as the field
zoomed past. Several laps, the mechanical failure
officially ended Kenseth’s dominating performance as
he coasted the car behind the wall. After leading a
race high 83 laps, Kenseth and the No. 17 Ameriquest
Ford team finished 38th; their first finish outside
the top ten in nine starts this season.
While Kenseth and company were loading up,
teammate Carl Edwards, in a very similar Ameriquest
Ford of his own, passed Casey Mears on the final
restart and held off Kurt Busch for his first Busch
Series win of the season.
“That’s a tough one,” Kenseth lamented in the
garage afterwards. “We definitely had a car capable
of winning. Our Busch Series’ cars are running as
good as anyone in the garage right now. Jimmy
(Fennig) and the guys are doing a great job setting
these cars up and right now, it’s a lot of fun to
drive. I hate it for these guys who have obviously
done an awesome job setting this car up, to run as
good as we have, and not have a win to show for it.”
NEXT BUSCH RACE:
Stonebridgeracing.com 200
1-mile Dover International Speedway, Dover, Del.
Saturday, June 3, 2006
RACE SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Started:
1st • Finished:
38th
POINTS SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Race Total:
59 • Season Total:
1350 points; Ranked 13th (Kenseth has
raced in nine of a possible 13 starts in the Busch
Series)
Charlotte Busch & Nextel Cup Preview
May 24,
2006
Lowe’s Motor Speedway • Concord, NC
Carquest Auto Parts 300 • Saturday, May 27 • 7:30 pm/e Fx
Coca-Cola 600 • Sunday, May 28 • 5:00 pm/e Fox
Nextel Cup Chassis — #17 17 R+L
Carriers/DeWALT Ford Fusion
Primary — RK-323 (Last
ran in Texas, Apr. ’06; finished 2nd; Won Fontana in
Feb. ’06; Finished 2nd in Las Vegas Mar. ’06)
Backup — RK-280 (Tested at Charlotte; Last ran Michigan,
June ’05, finished 4th)
Busch Chassis — #17 Ameriquest Ford Fusion
Primary — RK-346 (Last ran Atlanta ’06, finished fourth;
Also in ’06 ran Las Vegas, finished second, and Fontana,
finished sixth)
Backup —
RK-360 (Brand new car)
Matt Kenseth’s Cup Series performance
summary at LMS
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Reason |
|
10/11/99 |
27 |
40 |
231/334 |
Accident |
|
05/28/00 |
21 |
1 |
400/400 |
Running |
|
10/08/00 |
26 |
9 |
334/334 |
Running |
|
05/27/01 |
40 |
18 |
399/400 |
Running |
|
10/07/01 |
32 |
12 |
334/334 |
Running |
|
05/26/02 |
21 |
2 |
400/400 |
Running |
|
10/13/02 |
7 |
34 |
254/334 |
Running |
|
05/25/03 |
18 |
2 |
276/276 |
Running |
|
10/11/03 |
29 |
8 |
334/334 |
Running |
|
05/30/04 |
37 |
3 |
400/400 |
Running |
|
10/16/04 |
36 |
11 |
334/334 |
Running |
|
05/29/05 |
3 |
37 |
254/400 |
Accident |
|
10/15/05 |
18 |
26 |
326/336 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth Cup Series totals at
LMS:
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
Spring |
6 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
0 |
|
Fall |
7 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
Cumulative |
13 |
1 |
4 |
6 |
0 |
Matt Kenseth’s Busch
Series performance summary at LMS:
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Reason |
|
10/14/05 |
16 |
25 |
183/200 |
Suspension |
|
10/15/04 |
13 |
2 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/24/03 |
9 |
1 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
10/06/01 |
14 |
16 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/26/01 |
10 |
2 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
10/07/00 |
1 |
1 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/27/00 |
5 |
30 |
196/200 |
Accident |
|
10/09/99 |
1 |
7 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/29/99 |
9 |
3 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
10/03/98 |
2 |
2 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/23/98 |
5 |
5 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
10/04/97 |
38 |
12 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/24/97 |
35 |
22 |
199/200 |
Running |
|
05/25/96 |
37 |
31 |
194/200 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth Busch Series totals at
LMS:
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
Cumulative |
14 |
2 |
7 |
8 |
0 |
Matt Kenseth on
racing at LMS:
Nextel Cup:
“The 600 should be interesting this year.
Well, it’s usually interesting every year, because
so much can happen in that extra 100 miles. But,
this year particularly with the harder tires and the
smaller fuel cells. There are going to be so many
pit stops and stops where 40 or more cars are on pit
road, because you’re going to have to come down for
fuel at least every 30 laps, and that’s assuming it
stays green. Pit road becomes very crowded in that
situation and that usually means that your chances
of running into someone are a lot higher. When you
think about it, whether you’ve been out eight or 28
laps, when a caution comes out you’re going to have
to pit in order to stay in sequence on fuel.”
Busch: “I like the new pavement at Lowe’s.
The track did a good job re-paving and it’s probably
the smoothest it’s ever been. The tire is a little
too hard and you slid around a lot, but it should
make for an interesting race. So far this Busch team
has been hard to beat. We’ve run eight races and
scored eight top tens. I love coming to Charlotte.
This track has always been good to me, so hopefully
we can continue both of those trends this weekend.”
Nextel Cup Crew Chief Robbie Reiser on racing at
LMS:
“The pit crews will definitely get a work out
this weekend. If the race went green from start to
finish, which we all know it won’t, but if it did,
you’re going to have to make 13 stops minimum for
fuel alone. It’s going to be interesting to say the
least. Keeping up with what the other teams are
doing on pit strategy is going to be next to
impossible, so you better make sure that you have
your plan and stick as close to it as possible.
We’re running a chassis that has been real good to
us so far this year. It won in Fontana and has a
couple of second place finishes to go along with
that. It’s going to be painted in the R+L Carriers
colors this weekend, but we’re hoping for the same
result.”
Busch Crew Chief Jimmy Fennig on racing at
LMS:
“Matt’s done really well at Charlotte over the
years and I’m hoping we don’t let him down this
weekend. We’re bringing one of our favorite cars
this weekend. This car has come close to winning a
few times already in 2006. Maybe this weekend, we’ll
finally break through.”
Charlotte Fast Facts
n
Matt Kenseth is the only
driver in NASCAR history to win the Coca-Cola 600 as
a rookie, when he did so in 2000.
n
Kenseth has scored four
career victories at Lowe’s Motor Speedway; 2000
Coca-Cola 600, 2004 All-Star Race, and two Busch
Series wins.
n
Tracking Kenseth’s
turnaround; at this point in 2005 compared to this
season
| |
Rank |
Points |
Behind |
Wins |
Top 5’s |
Top 10s |
|
2006 |
3 |
1592 |
-94 |
1 |
6 |
7 |
|
2005 |
21 |
1097 |
-465 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
n
Kenseth has four top-five
finishes in six starts in the Coca-Cola 600.
n
Kenseth made his first
career NASCAR Busch Series start at Lowe’s Motor
Speedway in May of 1996, driving a Chevrolet for
Wegner Racing; he finished 31st.
n
Kenseth is 12th in the NBS
point standings heading into Darlington despite
having started only eight of the series 12 events.
Remarkably, Kenseth is ahead of 13 drivers who have
started in all 12 NBS races this season.
Matt Kenseth and R+L Carriers at Coca-Cola 600
May 24,
2006
n
Visit the R+L Carriers website
R+L
Carriers returns to NASCAR as primary sponsor for the
first time since 1997
CONCORD, N.C. — This Sunday at Lowe’s Motor Speedway,
Matt Kenseth will pilot the yellow and green No. 17 R+L
Carriers/DeWALT Ford Fusion. R+L Carriers joined Roush
Racing in January as an associate sponsor on the No. 17
DeWALT team, but this weekend becomes the primary on the
car driven by Kenseth, the 2003 Nextel Cup Champion.
For the first time since 1997 R+L Carriers, the
family owned trucking company out of Wilmington, Ohio,
will be the primary sponsor on a car in NASCAR’s top
division. The Coca-Cola 600 marks the first of three
races during the 2006 season in which R+L Carriers will
serve as the primary sponsor for Kenseth and Roush
Racing’s No. 17 Nextel Cup team. The other two races are
the July race at Daytona International Speedway and the
October race at Martinsville Speedway.
“Any time a new sponsor comes on board, you’d like to
go out and win their first race,” said Kenseth, the 2000
winner of the Coca-Cola 600. “We’ve already had a number
of events with R+L Carriers and they’ve been great to
work with. I know they’re excited about the race this
weekend and they probably picked a pretty good track for
their first race. Charlotte has been a good track for
me. I’ve been fortunate enough to win there several
times. Hopefully we can add one more to that on Sunday
and really make this weekend a memorable one for our new
sponsor.”
Based out of Wilmington, Ohio, R+L Carriers is a
family owned and operated company that with over 40
years of committed service to their customers, has grown
to be one of today’s leaders in the Less than Truckload
(LTL) industry. With nearly 10,000 employees, R+L
Carriers Inc. currently services 49 states, as well as
Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and all of Canada.
R+L Carriers continues to be the “The ONE CALL — ONE
CARRIER” that you can count on.
Nextel All-Star Challenge Recap
May 21,
2006
n
Race photos by ASP
Wild night
ends in disappointment for Kenseth
Saturday night’s Nextel All-Star Challenge, the
annual three-segment shootout that pits all of the
winners of the previous year, past Nextel Cup Champions
and past event winners against one another for a
winner’s purse of one million dollars, lived up to its
raucous reputation. In front of a slightly dwindled
crowd, due to several rain delays, 20 cars, led by Kasey Kahne, took the green flag at Lowe’s Motor Speedway at
10:23 PM Eastern.
With help from his pit crew, Matt Kenseth qualified
seventh for the event, but Kenseth, like the rest of the
field, entered Saturday night’s race with a lot of
unknowns considering it was their first race on the
newly paved surface at LMS. Kenseth started in seventh
but struggled in the early on with handling concerns,
fighting a loose condition on both entry and exit in the
turns. At the hands of the Robbie Reiser-led Killer
Bees, Kenseth not only improved the handling of his
racecar but picked up two positions in the process
during the mandatory pit stop in the first 40-lap
segment.
The rains came, yet again, on lap 35, this time only
halting the action for 23 minutes. This allowed the No.
17 DeWALT team to continue to make changes and
adjustments on the car. By the time the mandatory
caution signaled the end of segment one on lap 40,
Kenseth was in the sixth position. As the customary
“random draw” inverted the first 10 cars after the first
segment, Kenseth restarted fifth for segment two, which
lasted 30 laps.
Kenseth started sliding back on new tires at the
beginning of segment two, but starting picking off
positions, one at a time, as the run continued. On lap
49, Kenseth was forced into an evasive maneuvered when
the two cars leading the pack got together off of turn
two and nearly collected the entire field. The No. 17
Ford Fusion sustained damage on the right side, but not
enough to slow it down. Another red flag, this time for
cleanup due to the carnage, halted the action for a
second time and Kenseth restarted fourth.
As the mandatory caution signaled the end of segment
two, Kenseth came to pit road in the fifth position, but
due to a quick pit stop, exited in third for the start
of the third and final, 20 lap segment. Kenseth was
still running in third, with a shot a the million-dollar
purse, when on lap 71, just one and a quarter circuits
into the final segment, Kenseth’s night came to an end.
Battling with Tony Stewart, the two got together
going into turn one. Stewart’s car slid up the track and
into Kenseth and the two cars slammed into the outside
retaining wall, where they stayed locked together
through turns one and two. With their machines heavily
damaged, both Cup Champions’ respective nights were
over. Kenseth drove his wrecked Ford Fusion back to the
garage, but with the already high attrition rate still
managed an 11th place finish.
“I don’t know what happened,” said a dejected Kenseth
after he emerged for his No. 17 machine. “At the
start/finish line I could see that Tony was getting a
run and I was going to try to stay on the bottom. I came
across the second part of the tri-oval, I thought I was
on the grass, and right before we got to the corner Bob
(Jeffrey, spotter) told me he was looking inside. As
soon as he said that I moved up but we made contact and
I got turned around, so I don’t know. Maybe he was way
in the there and I squeezed him off, I don’t really
know. I didn’t think he could have got in there that
good to have that good of a run, but he must have.”
INTERVIEWER: TONY HAD SOME WORDS WITH ROBBIE
REISER; ANY CARRYOVER FROM PREVIOUS PROBLEMS? “Tony
is always mad at somebody,” Kenseth said. “I’m not going
to go out there and do the name calling like he does
every week. He’s always mad at somebody. If he was under
there and I cut him off and made a mistake, then I made
a mistake. There’s nothing else I can do about that
right now.”
Nextel All-Star Challenge Preview
May 18,
2006
Lowe’s Motor Speedway • Concord, NC
NASCAR Nextel
All-Star Challenge • Saturday, May 20 • 7:00 pm/e Fx
Chassis — #17 DEWALT Ford Fusion
Primary — RK-317 (Last ran Homestead, Nov. ‘05; finished
3rd, Won pole at Kansas, Oct. ’05; finished 5th)
Backup — RK-280 (Tested at Charlotte, last ran Michigan,
Jun. ’06; finished 4th)
Matt
Kenseth’s All-Star Race performance summary
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Reason |
|
05/21/05 |
10 |
11 |
89/90 |
Running |
|
05/22/04 |
3 |
1 |
90/90 |
Running |
|
05/17/03 |
17 |
6 |
90/90 |
Running |
|
05/18/02 |
1 |
3 |
90/90 |
Running |
|
05/19/01 |
13 |
14 |
70/70 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth
All-Star Race totals
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
Cumulative |
5 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
Kenseth on racing in the NEXTEL All-Star Challenge:
“The All-Star race is a lot of fun. It’s pretty
cool to go out there and really have nothing to
lose. You don’t have to worry about the points or
anything like that. It’s pretty much, go all out and
try to win the thing and don’t worry about salvaging
a second-place or a top five or something like that.
One of my favorite moments in NASCAR was a couple of
years ago when we won this race. I had a great a
time battling Ryan (Newman) over the final laps and
we ended up on top. It was a great night for all of
the guys on the team and we had a blast celebrating
on the stage afterwards.”
Crew Chief Robbie Reiser on racing in the NEXTEL
All-Star Challenge
“The All-Star week as a whole is just a different
animal. The Pit Crew Championship is on Wednesday
night, and our guys are really looking forward to
that. They do a great job all year and it’s nice
that they have the spotlight for at least one night
to showcase their talent. Then, Saturday night is
really a spot for our team to showcase our talent as
a group. We’ve been running really well lately and
it would be nice to go get that winner’s purse on
Saturday night, which is really what this week is
all about; it’s that all or nothing approach that
the teams take this weekend that make it special.”
All-Star Fast Facts
n
Matt Kenseth has competed in the All-Star
race every year starting with his sophomore season
in the NEXTEL Cup Series.
n
Kenseth has scored four career victories at
Lowe’s Motor Speedway; 2000 Coca-Cola 600, 2004
All-Star Race, and two Busch Series wins.
n
In the past five All-Star events, Kenseth has
completed all but one lap (429 of 430).
n
Kenseth won $1,044,000 in prize money after
winning the 2004 All-Star race, which remains the
largest, single-race purse that Kenseth has won in
his career.
n
Chassis number RK-317, which Kenseth will
pilot in Saturday night’s event, has three top-five
finishes in its last three outings, all in 2005 (3rd
at Homestead, 3rd at Texas, and 5th at Kansas).
Meet the Killer Bees
May 16,
2006
INTRODUCING THE KILLER BEES
Meet the pit crew for Matt Kenseth and the No. 17
DEWALT Ford Fusion team
 CONCORD, N.C. — Held in high regard by their fellow
competitors, the seven over-the-wall members of the No.
17 DEWALT Ford Fusion team are consistently one of, if
not the best pit crew in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series.
Dressed in yellow and black and known for their
relentless and superior efforts week in and week out on
pit road, the aptly named “Killer Bees” have won two
National Pit Crew Championships (2001 & 2002) in
addition to their 2003 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Championship.
Wednesday night, they will be looking to add another
championship as the NASCAR NEXTEL Pit Crew Challenge
takes place at Bobcat Arena in Charlotte, N.C. The
competition will air on FX Saturday, May 20 as the
lead-in to the NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge.
“The Pit Crew Championship is something my guys take
a lot of pride in,” said Robbie Reiser, crew chief and
mastermind behind the Killer Bees. “They work extremely
hard every week on pit road and really do a great job
for us. It's nice that NEXTEL has made this event even
bigger than before. It gives these guys the spotlight
they deserve for at least one evening.”
“I’m not sure where I’d be without them,” said Matt
Kenseth. “Those guys are the best on pit road. It seems
like every week we pick up several spots in the pits
because of those guys, and when we get out front, they
keep us out front. I really can’t say enough about them.
They’re the best at what they do, and I’m thankful
they’re on my side. I think they’ll do a good job
Wednesday, even though the competition is a little
different than the actual pit stops on race day.”
From left to right: Ebert, McDonald, West, Yarnot,
Strupp, Nottestad, Brook
Credit: Action Sports Photography, Inc.
THE SWARM
RUSS STRUPP, Jackman
Home: Allenton, Wis.
Age: 43 Height: 5'7" Weight: 195
Years over the wall: 13 — Began in 1994, Reiser
Enterprises in the NBS
Years with No. 17 team: 8 — ORIGINAL MEMBER — Began in 1999
 JUSTIN NOTTESTAD,
Front Tire Changer
Home: Cambridge, Wis.
Age: 29 Height: 5'11" Weight: 180
Years over the wall: 6 — Began with Roush Racing’s No.
17 NNCS team
Years with No. 17 team: 6 — Began in 2001
CHRIS BROOK, Front Tire Carrier
Home: Davie, Fla.
Age: 35 Height: 6'0" Weight: 265
Years over the wall: 7 — Began in 2000, Sonntag
Racing in NCTS
Years with No. 17 team: 4 — Began in 2003
JEREMY WEST, Rear Tire Changer
Home: Los Angeles, Calif.
Age: 28 Height: 5'10" Weight: 170
Years over the wall: 12 — Began in 1995, Butch
Gilliland in Winston West Series
Years with No. 17 team: 4 — Began in 2003
GREG EBERT, Gasman
Home: Marshall, Wis.
Age: 28 Height: 5'9" Weight: 215
Years over the wall: 6 — Began in 2001, Roush
Racing’s No. 50 NCTS team
Years with No. 17 team: 2 — Began in 2005
DAVE MCDONALD, Catch Can Man
Home: Clinton, Mich.
Age: 37 Height: 6'1" Weight: 200
Years over the wall: 3 — Began in 2002, Ganassi
Racing’s No. 41 NNCS team
Years with No. 17 team: 2 — Began in 2005
 ZAK YARNOT, Rear Tire Carrier
Home: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Age: 27 Height: 5'9" Weight: 160
Years over the wall: 4 — Began in 2003, Team Rensi
Motorsports’ No. 25 NBS team
Years with No. 17 team: 2 — Began in 2005
Killer Bees By the Numbers
|
197 |
Average weight |
|
65 |
Gross positions gained during
competitive four tires & fuel pit stops in 2006 |
|
51 |
Total years of experience over the wall |
|
32.42 |
Average age. Eldest = Strupp, 43;
Youngest = Yarnot, 27 |
|
13.67 |
Average time on competitive four tires &
fuel pit stops in 2006 (66 total) |
|
11.98 |
Fastest four tires & fuel pit stop to
date in 2006 (Texas) |
|
7 |
“Killer Bee Kids,” with one more on the
way |
|
5'10" |
Average height |
|
3 |
“Cheese Heads,” a.k.a. Wisconsin
natives: Ebert (Marshall), Nottestad
(Cambridge), Strupp (Allenton) |
|
2 |
Remaining crew members from 2001 & 2002
Pit Crew Championship teams: Nottestad & Strupp |
|
1 |
Kenseth relative: Brother In-Law Nottestad
(Married to Katie Kenseth’s sister, Julie) |
The Killer Bees in action at Darlington Raceway
Credit: Action Sports Photography, Inc.
Darlington Nextel Cup Recap
May 14,
2006
n
Race photos by ASP
KENSETH EXORCISES RECENT DARLINGTON DEMONS
Mark one more off the list of “Tracks Where Matt
Kenseth Has Not Scored a Top-Five Finish,” which, by the
way, is now down to three. Going into Saturday night’s
Dodge Charger 500 at the “Track Too Tough To Tame,” The
Darlington Raceway, Kenseth, in 12 NEXTEL Cup races, had
never scored a top-five finish, netted only three top
10s, and finished on the lead lap only three times. But,
that fortune changed on Saturday night.
Blue skies and near perfect temperatures greeted the
capacity crowd on hand as Kasey Kahne led the field of
43 cars to the green flag at 6:55 PM Eastern. Kahne led
for much of the early portion of the race, until the
Roush Racing cars of Kenseth and eventual winner, Greg
Biffle, began to flex their muscle.
Starting in the 31st position, the same position they
won from earlier in the year at Fontana, the No. 17
DEWALT Ford Fusion team had their work cut out for them
on one of the toughest tracks on the circuit. Kenseth
and company were steady and strong in the early on,
moving into the top 20 by lap 20, then into the top 10
by lap 69. While the car was steadily picking up
positions on the track, the pit crew was consistently
picking up positions on pit road.
In fact, as the field entered pit road on lap 95, for
the third time of the evening, Kenseth sat in the fifth
position, but after The Killer Bees executed a
12.05-second pit stop (four tires, gas and a slight air
pressure adjustment) Kenseth exited pit road in third.
To that point in the race, Kenseth had already gained
six positions in the pits.
On lap 114, after starting the race in 31st, Kenseth
gained the lead for the first time on the evening. Soon
after, Kenseth’s yellow and black No. 17 Ford took off
and dominated the next 50 to 60 laps. Even after
relinquishing the lead to Jimmie Johnson, Kenseth
remained in the top five for the rest of evening.
As nightfall set in, Kenseth’s machine began to fight
a tight condition that would not go away. Despite the
handling concerns, Kenseth was fully able to keep his
position on the track, but not quite fast enough to
challenge for the win. Over the final four laps Kenseth
held off a hard-charging Johnson to bring home a
third-place finish, his best career Darlington finish in
NEXTEL Cup competition and his sixth top-three finish of
2006.
“I feel good,” said Kenseth after climbing from his
vehicle on pit road. “I feel like our team is on the
right track. When you run good at your good places,
that’s one thing, but when you run good at your weaker
tracks that’s another. I feel like the team is pretty
strong right now. They’re giving me competitive cars at
every race track we go to and I don’t know if we’ve ever
had a year like that. It’s still early in the year, but
it feels good that we’re competitive at most of these
places we go to.”
NEXT UP:
NEXTEL All-Star Challenge
1.5-Mile Lowe’s Motor Speedway, Concord, N.C.
Saturday, May 20, 2006
RACE SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Started:
31st • Finished: 3rd
POINTS SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Race Total: 170
• Season Total: 1592 points, Ranked 3rd, 94 points behind first
SEASON SUMMARY
|
Starts |
Wins |
Top Fives |
Top 10s |
Poles |
|
11 |
1 |
6 |
7 |
0 |
Darlington Busch Recap
May
13,
2006
SECOND PLACE FINISH MAKES KENSETH EIGHT FOR
EIGHT IN NBS
To this point in 2006, every time Matt Kenseth
and the No. 17 Ameriquest Ford Fusion team have come
to a racetrack, they leave with a top-10 finish.
That streak continued on Friday night at Darlington
Raceway as Kenseth and company nearly brought home
their first NASCAR Busch Series win of the season.
Denny Hamlin led the field to the green flag just
after 8:30 PM Eastern under the cover of darkness
that helped lower temperatures to the cool side of
comfortable. Kenseth qualified fifth but gained one
position before the green flag as second-place
qualifier Carl Edwards was forced to the rear of the
field.
The No. 17 Ameriquest Ford was good from the
start; quickly moving into the second position by
the time the field circuited the 1.366-mile,
egg-shaped oval to put the first lap in the record
books. Throughout the evening, as the track
continued to cool, the Jimmy Fennig-led crew kept
Kenseth running with the leaders with good pit stops
and minor adjustments to keep up with the slight
track changes.
Though Kenseth led for one lap early, it wasn’t
until lap 68 that the No. 17 Ford began to exert its
will. Under the longest green-flag run of the
evening, Kenseth led for 48 straight laps and was in
great condition to contend for the win. When Kenseth
pitted under caution for the final time of the
night, he went to pit road in first but exited in
second.
Kenseth was better than the leader, Hamlin, on
the longer runs, however, during the final 32 laps,
the caution flag waved five separate times for a
total of 23 laps and Kenseth was never afforded the
opportunity of more than several laps under green.
This doomed Kenseth and the No. 17 team to a
second-place finish.
One final two-lap dash to the checkers wasn’t
enough, but with the second-place finish, Kenseth
notched his sixth top-five finish in only eight NBS
races this season, and he has finished in the top 10
in every one of those starts. Kenseth has now
finished in the top 10, eleven straight times in the
NBS race at Darlington, his worst finish in 12
starts is 12th. In 12 NBS races at Darlington,
Kenseth has completed every lap (1764).
“That’s another good run for these guys,” Kenseth
said after the race. “Had we been in front at the
end, I don’t think Hamlin could have gotten around
us, kind of like we couldn’t get around him. We
never had enough green-flag laps at the end to make
it work. It seemed like there was a caution every
two or three laps. I think we had a car good enough
to win, but we just didn’t have the opportunity at
the end. But, Jimmy (Fennig, Crew Chief) and the
guys have done a great job setting the cars up each
week. It’s fun to come to the track when both the
Busch car and Cup car are running this good right
now.”
NEXT UP:
Car Quest Auto Parts 300
1.5-Mile Lowe’s Motor Speedway, Concord, N.C.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
RACE SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Started:
5th • Finished: 2nd
POINTS SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth
• Race Total:
180
• Season Total:
1266
points, Ranked 12th
SEASON SUMMARY
|
Starts: |
Wins: |
Top Fives: |
Top 10s: |
Poles:
|
|
8 |
0 |
6 |
8 |
1 |
Darlington Busch & Nextel Cup Preview
May 10,
2006
Darlington Raceway • Darlington, SC
Diamond Hill
Plywood 200 • Friday, May 12 • 8:00 pm/e Fx
Dodge
Charger 500 • Saturday, May 13 • 6:30 pm/e Fox
Nextel Cup Chassis — #17 DEWALT Ford Fusion
Primary — RK-267 (Last ran in Atlanta, Mar. ’06;
finished 13th)
Backup — RK-280 (Tested at Charlotte,
last ran Michigan, Jun. ’06; finished 4th)
Busch Chassis — #17 Ameriquest Ford Fusion
Primary —
RK-295 (Last ran at Bristol in March ’06; finished
third)
Backup —
RK-355 (Yet to run in ’06)
Matt
Kenseth’s Cup Series performance summary at
Darlington
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Reason |
|
08/22/99 |
31 |
37 |
145/270 |
Crash |
|
03/19/00 |
16 |
6 |
293/293 |
Running |
|
09/03/00 |
24 |
33 |
286/328 |
Running |
|
03/18/01 |
30 |
19 |
292/293 |
Running |
|
09/02/01 |
28 |
23 |
365/367 |
Running |
|
03/17/02 |
34 |
8 |
293/293 |
Running |
|
09/01/02 |
9 |
37 |
325/367 |
Running |
|
03/16/03 |
12 |
8 |
293/293 |
Running |
|
08/31/03 |
6 |
14 |
367/367 |
Running |
|
03/21/04 |
15 |
31 |
289/293 |
Running |
|
11/14/04 |
9 |
20 |
365/367 |
Running |
|
05/07/05 |
31 |
26 |
367/367 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth Cup Series totals at Darlington
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
Cumulative |
12 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
Matt
Kenseth’s Busch Series performance summary at
Darlington
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Reason |
|
08/30/97 |
14 |
12 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
03/21/98 |
13 |
4 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
09/05/98 |
11 |
6 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
03/20/99 |
9 |
1 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
09/04/99 |
6 |
3 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
03/18/00 |
3 |
2 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
09/02/00 |
15 |
8 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
03/17/01 |
3 |
2 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
09/01/01 |
9 |
7 |
147/147 |
Running
|
|
11/13/04 |
32 |
5 |
147/147 |
Running |
|
05/06/05 |
24 |
1 |
147/147 |
Running
|
Matt Kenseth Busch Series totals at Darlington
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
Cumulative |
|
