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Kansas Busch & Nextel Cup Preview
September
28, 2006
Kansas Speedway • Kansas City, Kan.
Yellow Transportation 300 • Saturday, September 30 • 3:00 pm/e
TNT
Banquet 400 • Sunday, October 1 • 1:30 pm/e NBC
Nextel Cup Chassis — #17 DeWALT Ford Fusion
•
Primary — RK-385 (Last ran at Indy in Aug. ’06,
led nine laps & finished second)
•
Backup — RK-280 (Has not run in 2006; tested at
Charlotte)
Busch Chassis — #17 Pennzoil Ford Fusion
•
Primary — RK-360 (Last ran Fontana, finished 7th)
Matt Kenseth’s Cup Series performance
summary at Kansas:
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Led |
Reason |
|
10/09/05 |
1 |
5 |
267/267 |
71 |
Running |
|
10/10/04 |
15 |
17 |
267/267 |
0 |
Running |
|
10/05/03 |
37 |
36 |
220/267 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/29/02 |
27 |
7 |
267/267 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/30/01 |
13 |
32 |
238/267 |
14 |
Accident |
Matt Kenseth Cup Series totals at
Kansas:
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
Led |
|
Cumulative |
5 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
85 |
Matt Kenseth’s Busch
performance summary at Kansas:
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Reason |
|
10/08/05 |
16 |
7 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
10/09/04 |
33 |
33 |
108/204 |
Accident |
|
09/29/01 |
11 |
4 |
200/200 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth Busch Series
totals at Kansas:
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
Cumulative |
3 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
Matt Kenseth on racing at
Kansas:
Cup: “Kansas has been a
little bit of a hiccup for us in the past. We’ve had
some pretty good cars there before, but we’ve
struggled at times too. Last season was obviously
our best run at Kansas. We won our first pole of the
season there last year, and I’d love to do the same
this weekend, so that we can make the Bud Shootout.
We’re bringing a car that only has one start and
that was Indy earlier this year, and it ran good
there. It sounds funny to say, ‘we’ll bounce back
this weekend,’ when we finished with a top 10 last
week, but as everyone knows, we had the dominant car
and didn’t win, and that’s always frustrating. You
have to keep things in perspective though. It could
have been a lot worse. We still finished 10th, we
still cut into the points lead and most importantly,
Robbie and the guys gave me an excellent car that
was, for most of the day, the class of the field.
Hopefully, we can have the same this weekend, just
improve on the finish.”
Busch: “Jimmy and the guys
did a great job at Dover and we were extremely close
to pulling out the win. If it wasn’t for that last
caution, I think we could have done it, but what’s
promising is how well we ran and were able to
compete all day. That was one of the more solid runs
we’ve had all year as far as the setup, or
adjustment and our job in the pits. We just ran out
of time at the end. But, on the bright side, we’re
carrying a ton of momentum into Kansas this weekend.
Kansas has been a decent track for us. I enjoy it as
a driver. It’s smooth and wide and a lot like
Chicago without as much banking. It’s definitely
multi-grooved and that’s always a lot more fun
because you can move around on the track and find
the line that works best for you. We’ve had a car
that’s been able to compete for the win the last
couple times we ran, and I don’t expect anything
different this week. Pennzoil is back on the car, so
hopefully we can get these guys into victory lane.”
Nextel Cup Crew Chief Robbie Reiser on racing at
Kansas:
“This week we’re bringing our Indy car. It
finished second at Indy and we think it’ll be good
at Kansas too. Last weekend wasn’t how we wanted to
finish, but we can’t dwell on that. I can understand
everyone’s frustration… believe me, there was nobody
more frustrated than I was, but we’ll put this
behind us. That was last week and we’ll move on.
We’re still in good shape in the points and if we
continue to perform at this level, we’re going to be
OK. Kansas was good to us last year and we believe
we’re bringing a better car back this year. If we
can go out Sunday, run up front, be a contender and
maybe improve on last year’s finish, that will be
the best way to put last week behind us.”
Busch series crew chief Jimmy Fennig on racing at
Kansas:
“We are very excited to have Pennzoil back with
us this weekend in Kansas. The team pulled off a
great run last weekend in Dover, so hopefully we can
carry that momentum over into this weekend and go
for the win.”
Kansas Fast Facts
n
Matt Kenseth led for 215 laps at Dover and has
now led the most laps in the 2006 NEXTEL Cup season
with 1108.
n
Kenseth’s 1108 laps led this season marks the
highest single-season laps led total of his career,
besting 2005’s total of 1001.
n
Kenseth scored the third pole of his Cup career
at Kansas last year. It is the only “Chase track”
where Kenseth has recorded a pole.
n
Kenseth’s average finish of 19.4 at Kansas
Speedway ranks seventh among the 10 tracks in the
Chase.
n
Kenseth’s “Chase stats” at
Kansas:
|
|
|
Start |
Finish |
Laps |
Led |
Rank |
|
|
2005 |
1 |
5 |
267/267 |
71 |
8th |
|
|
2004 |
15 |
17 |
267/267 |
0 |
7th |
n
By leading the most laps in the Dover 400, Kenseth has
accumulated 115 bonus points in 2006, more than any driver
in the NEXTEL Cup Series.
Kenseth finishes 10th at Dover
September 25, 2006
n
Photos from Dover
No. 17 DeWALT Ford Fusion Recap
DOMINANT DAY ENDS IN DISAPPOINTMENT
FOR KENSETH AT DOVER
After dominating the majority of the race, Matt
Kenseth and the No. 17 DEWALT team saw their promising
top-five finish and possible victory run out of gas only
two laps shy of the finish. Kenseth started third and
led 215 of 400 laps, but the team elected to stay out
while leading when the caution flag flew on lap 323 when
all but three cars came to pit road for fuel. Having
last pitted on lap 299, Kenseth’s crew believed they had
enough fuel for the distance, but that miscalculation
proved costly. After putting up a valiant effort,
fighting off eventual winner Jeff Burton for the lead
during a fantastic 20 lap battle, Kenseth’s troubles
worsened when his No. 17 Ford ran out of gas with just
two laps to go. A certain second-place finish and
significant points lead slipped away in the process, but
Kenseth still managed to get to pit road for a splash of
fuel and continue on to a 10th-place finish; his sixth
consecutive top 10.
Under threatening skies but perfect temperatures,
Jeff Gordon led the field to the green flag in front of
a packed house at the “Monster Mile,” at 1:10 PM
Eastern. Kenseth entered the race third in the
Championship points standings just 41 behind leader
Kevin Harvick. Matching his best starting position of
the season, Kenseth rolled off third in the same car he
raced to victory at Dover back in June.
Together, Kenseth and chassis number 267 picked up
where they left off in June, and it wasn’t long before
the field knew that the No. 17 was the car to beat.
Reporting the car as being loose from the center of the
turn to the exit, Kenseth prepared the Robbie Reiser-led
crew to make the first adjustments of the day when he
brought the car in for service on lap 49. After
restarting fourth, Kenseth began his march to the front
and on lap 74 led for the first time of the day.
Over the next 90 laps, Kenseth and the No. 17 crew
kept the DEWALT car out in front of the pack. But, on
lap 166 as the leaders headed to pit road under caution,
Kenseth stopped his car for service with his right-front
tire on the pit box line. NASCAR’s rules state that
before the crew can begin servicing the car it must be
“inside the box.” In order not to violate the rule and
avoid a penalty, Kenseth had to back up and correct his
position before the crew could start their service. The
mistake cost the No. 17 team, which came to pit road in
first place, to exit in the 20th position.
That valuable track position was regained when under
the next caution period, Reiser elected to keep Kenseth
on the track while others pitted. Restarting eighth on
lap 190, Kenseth needed another caution at the right
time in order to get in sync with the other lead lap
cars. The caution he needed flew on lap 205 and the
majority of the field returned to pit road for fresh
tires. Kenseth came in sixth and with a lightning-fast
stop of 12.06 seconds by the “Killer Bees” returned to
the track fourth among those that pitted and 11th
overall.
The lap 214 restart signaled the beginning of the
race’s longest green-flag run, and Kenseth was ready. By
lap 225, Kenseth had maneuvered into the ninth position
and was consistently the fastest car on the track. After
cracking the top five on lap 237, Kenseth regained the
lead on lap 264 and set sail, leading the next 131 laps.
The drama began to unfold when Kenseth led the field
to pit road on lap 299. Kenseth’s huge on-track lead
translated into more leeway on pit road. The crew had
finished changing the tires but were afforded the luxury
of making sure the fuel cell was as full as possible;
waiting an extra two seconds before sending Kenseth back
to the track, still with the lead, for what they hoped
to be the final stop of the day.
Reiser knew they were going to be close on fuel and
advised Kenseth to conserve as much gas as possible.
But, when the last caution flag flew on lap 323, the
team was confident that it was the relief they needed to
make the distance on fuel. As a result, the No. 17 team
elected to stay out along with three other cars while
the rest of the field pitted.
On the lap 328 restart, Kenseth quickly pulled away
from his pursuers and amassed a substantial lead. But,
it became apparent by lap 347 that Burton, on fresher
tires, was coming, when Reiser radioed as much to
Kenseth. Kenseth’s car began to pick up a “tight”
condition that only worsened the longer the run wore on.
By lap 370, Burton had caught Kenseth and over the next
24 laps, Kenseth did everything in his power to keep him
at bay. The two well-respected drivers put on an amazing
battle for the lead as Burton drove low into the turns,
but Kenseth held him off up high on the exit. This went
on for 24 laps before Burton was finally able to make it
around with just six to go.
Kenseth’s troubles suddenly became less about Burton,
running directly in front of him, and more about his
fuel. With only two laps remaining Kenseth reported to
his crew that he was out of gas. Coasting to pit road as
the field took the white flag, Kenseth received the
splash of gas needed to turn one more circuit.
Thankfully, due to the torrid pace that Kenseth had set
for the final half of the race, only nine cars were on
the lead lap, and Kenseth was able to finish 10th, the
first car one lap down. As a show of sportsmanship and
mutual respect, Kenseth drove around one more time to
congratulate his good friend Burton on his first victory
in nearly five years.
Kenseth’s 10th-place finish marks the sixth
consecutive top 10 for the No. 17 team, dating back to
the win at Michigan on Aug. 20. Despite having a
seemingly disastrous ending, Kenseth still managed to
make up ground in the Chase for the Championship and now
sits in third, just 18 points out of first. By leading
215 laps on Sunday, Kenseth has now led the most laps of
any driver in the NEXTEL Cup Series in 2006, bringing
his total to 1,108. Kenseth’s 18 top-10 finish of 2006
is also tops in the Cup Series.
“We had a good car,” said a frustrated Kenseth
immediately following the race. “We had older tires than
everybody and for some reason that last set didn’t like
my car as much. We had a couple problems with the car. I
messed up in the pit box and I was pretty pumped up that
we were able to come back and pass the whole field for
the lead. I just don’t understand what we did there at
the end. We gambled for fuel, but there was really no
reason to gamble because we had the best car. Even if we
would have lost two or three spots, we had the car to
beat so I don’t understand how we can run out of fuel on
the last lap.
“It was fun (racing with Burton at the end). I was
hogging a lot of the track and I was real tight. If I
couldn’t win, honestly, there’s nobody else I’d rather
see win the race. Jeff Burton is a great guy. He’s a
great friend of mine and I’m as happy as I can be that
he won.”
RACE SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth • Started: 3rd • Finished:
10th
POINTS SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth • Race Total:
144 points • Season
Total: 5333 points, Ranked 3rd, 18 points out of first.
NEXT UP:
Banquet 400 • Kansas Speedway •
Sunday, October 1
Kenseth 2nd in Dover Busch
race
September 24, 2006
No. 17 DeWALT Ford Fusion Recap
KENSETH SCORES 11TH TOP-FIVE OF 2006
IN ONLY 16TH START
Matt Kenseth and the No. 17 Ameriquest team rolled
off eighth on Saturday afternoon at “The Monster Mile”
and turned in one of the most solid performances of the
season. Spending much of the 200-lap event in the top
ten, Kenseth returned to the track in the third position
after his final pit stop on lap 120. In a race that saw
the yellow flag wave 13 times for 46 laps, the caution
was displayed six times in the final 80 laps keeping the
field bunched together down the stretch. Kenseth
exchanged the lead with Clint Bowyer during the last 30
laps and appeared poised to make the winning pass with
just under five laps remaining. But, a
green-white-checker finish ruined Kenseth’s chances for
one final move, relegating him and the No. 17 team to a
second-place finish.
Scott Riggs led the field of 43 to the green at 3:05
PM Eastern in Dover, Del. Kenseth qualified eighth, his
14th top-10 qualifying effort of the season, and quickly
began to make his way forward. Early in the race,
Kenseth reported the car being too loose off the turn
claiming, “It feels like the rear end isn’t down on the
track.”
Crew Chief Jimmy Fennig had just the remedy when
Kenseth came to pit road for the first time on lap 59.
Making a track bar and air pressure adjustment, in
addition to changing fours tires and getting fuel,
Kenseth lost several spots on pit road and returned to
the track in the 15th position. While short on track
position, Kenseth wasn’t short on experience and
horsepower, quickly making his way back inside the top
10.
The longest green-flag run of the race occurred from
lap 71 to lap 118 and during that span, Kenseth moved
from 13th to sixth. Coming to pit road for the final
time on lap 120, Kenseth entered in the sixth position
but the No. 17 crew clicked off one of their best pit
stops of the season and picked up three positions,
turning Kenseth out in the third position.
Over the final 80 laps, the caution flag flew six
times, keeping the leaders close to one another. Kenseth
worked his way into the second position and on lap 170,
just 30 laps shy of the finish, overtook Bowyer for the
top spot. The two put on a spirited battle for the lead
over the final 20 laps. Bowyer regained the lead with 21
laps to go and, for a moment, appeared to be cruising to
the victory as his lead stretched to over one second.
But, Kenseth’s car came to life and by lap 190, just 10
laps from the finish he had made his way back onto the
rear bumper of Bowyer’s car.
The caution flag flew for the final time with just
under five laps to go setting up a green-white-checker
finish. But, the caution wasn’t what Kenseth needed.
While under green, Kenseth was right behind Bowyer,
threatening to pounce at any second, but Kenseth needed
several laps to get going; something he was not afforded
on the two-lap shootout. Kenseth ran out of time and was
unable to make the final charge needed. Kenseth’s
second-place finish was his seventh top-three finish of
2006 and his 11th top-five is the third most of any
driver in the Busch Series despite having started 13
fewer races.
“This was a good run for us,” Kenseth said following
the race. “We didn’t need that final caution flag. I
thought we were done when the No. 2 passed us with about
20 to go. But, I kept running the high groove and it
just suddenly took off. We closed on him in a hurry and
I really thought we were going to have a heck of a
finish. But, then we had that last caution and there
just wasn’t anyway I could pass him in two laps. We
needed about three or four more laps to have a chance.
Still, it’s a good run and we’ll carry this momentum to
Kansas.”
RACE SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth • Started: 8th • Finished:
2nd
NEXT UP:
Yellow
Transportation 300 • Kansas
Speedway • Saturday, September 30
Dover Busch & Nextel Cup Preview
September
20, 2006
Dover International Speedway • Dover, Del.
Dover 200 • Saturday, September 23 • 3:00 pm/e
TNT
Dover 400 • Sunday, September 24 • 12:30 pm/e
TNT
Nextel Cup Chassis — #17 DeWALT Ford Fusion
•
Primary — RK-267 (Last ran at Dover where it led
83 laps en route to victory; also in 2006: finished
third at Darlington and 13th at Atlanta)
•
Backup — RK-280 (Has not run in 2006; new car;
tested Charlotte)
Busch Chassis — #17 Ameriquest Ford Fusion
•
Primary — RK-295 (last ran Bristol, finished 1st)
Matt Kenseth’s Cup Series performance
summary at Dover:
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Led |
Reason |
|
06/04/06 |
19 |
1 |
400/400 |
83 |
Running |
|
09/25/05 |
11 |
35 |
367/400 |
0 |
Accident |
|
06/05/05 |
23 |
7 |
400/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/26/04 |
8 |
32 |
319/400 |
58 |
Accident |
|
06/06/04 |
39 |
22 |
381/400 |
0 |
Accident |
|
09/21/03 |
1 |
9 |
400/400 |
1 |
Running |
|
06/01/03 |
4 |
7 |
400/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/22/02 |
17
|
4 |
400/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
06/02/02 |
1 |
40 |
297/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/23/01 |
40 |
29 |
390/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
06/03/01 |
13 |
16 |
399/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/24/00 |
31 |
12 |
399/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
06/04/00 |
26 |
2 |
400/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/26/99 |
13 |
4 |
400/400 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/20/98 |
16 |
6 |
400/400 |
0 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth Cup Series totals at
Dover:
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
June race |
7 |
1 |
2 |
4 |
1 |
|
Sept. race |
8 |
0 |
2 |
4 |
0 |
|
Cumulative |
15 |
1 |
4 |
8 |
1 |
Matt Kenseth’s Busch
performance summary at Dover:
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Reason |
|
06/03/06 |
18 |
26 |
197/200 |
Running |
|
09/24/05 |
14 |
38 |
1/200 |
Accident |
|
06/07/04 |
22 |
35 |
62/200 |
Accident |
|
05/31/03 |
3 |
4 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
09/22/01 |
20 |
10 |
199/200 |
Running |
|
06/02/01 |
9 |
2 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
09/23/00 |
14 |
1 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
06/03/00 |
16 |
3 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
09/25/99 |
1 |
38 |
120/200 |
Accident |
|
06/05/99 |
14 |
32 |
154/200 |
Accident |
|
09/19/98 |
4 |
1 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/30/98 |
2 |
40 |
136/200 |
Accident |
|
09/20/97 |
15 |
3 |
200/200 |
Running |
|
05/31/97 |
32 |
11 |
199/200 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth Busch Series
totals at Dover:
| |
Races |
Wins |
Top 5s |
Top 10s |
Poles
|
|
Cumulative |
14 |
2 |
6 |
7 |
1 |
Matt Kenseth on racing at
Dover:
Cup: “Dover is a tough racetrack and one
of the most physically demanding tracks we race at.
It will always be special to me and winning there
this past June made it even more special. It was the
site of my first Cup start back in ’98 when I
replaced Bill Elliott, whose Dad had passed away. No
one knew who I was and we got a sixth-place finish
that day. It seems we’ve been real hit or miss at
Dover. Sometimes we’re real good and finish in the
top 10, other times something freak will happen and
ruin our day. Hopefully, we can hit on the setup
again this weekend, with the same car we won with in
June, and maybe pull out another top-five finish.
Maybe, with a little luck, even challenge for the
win.”
Busch: “We can only improve from the last
time we went to Dover. Jimmy (Fennig) and the guys
had done a great job setting up the car and I though
we were going to have a great day and maybe
challenge for the win, but right after we fired the
engine we discovered a problem with one of the spark
plugs. By the time we got it fixed we were already a
lap down and it was hard to do anything at that
point. If the car is as good this weekend as it was
in practice back in June, then we should be able to
compete for another win. Someone pointed out to me
that the last three Busch Series winners have gone
on to win the Cup race the next day... if that’s the
case, it becomes even more important for us to put
this Ameriquest car in victory lane on Saturday.”
Nextel Cup Crew Chief Robbie Reiser on racing at
Dover:
“We’re bringing the same car we won with there in
the spring. Chassis 267 has been pretty good every
time we brought it to the track this year. We
finished third with it at Darlington and of course
won with it at Dover. Actually, it was a top-five
car at Atlanta earlier this year but we got a little
too aggressive with the setup and had some tire
issues. New Hampshire wasn’t good to us, but we
managed a top-10 finish anyway. That shows the kind
of determination this team has. We probably didn’t
have a top-10 car, but we kept at it, had good pit
stops to maintain track position and then Matt drove
one heck of a race down the stretch. We have to
maintain that focus this weekend and hopefully come
out of Dover with a top five.”
Busch series crew chief Jimmy Fennig on racing at
Dover:
“We are taking the same car that got us a win in
Bristol to Dover this weekend, so hopefully we can
get it back into victory lane where it belongs and
earn another win for Ameriquest. The whole team had
a weekend off so we are all ready to get back to
racing.”
Dover Fast Facts
n
Matt Kenseth made his Cup debut at Dover
International Speedway in September of 1998 at the
age of 26. He substituted for Bill Elliott that day
and drove to a sixth place finish.
n
Kenseth scored the first pole of his Cup career
at Dover in June of 2002.
n
Dover International Speedway is one of four
“Chase” tracks where Kenseth has recorded a Cup
victory.
n
Kenseth’s “Chase stats” at
Dover:
|
|
|
Start |
Finish |
Laps |
Led |
Rank |
|
|
2005 |
11 |
35 |
367/400 |
0 |
9th |
|
|
2004 |
8 |
32 |
319/400 |
0 |
7th |
n
By leading a lap last week in the Sylvania 300,
Kenseth has led at least one lap in 18 of the
series’ 27 races in 2006; tops among drivers in the
2006 NEXTEL Cup series.
n
Kenseth was in the Guinness Book of World Records
for approximately 24 hours last week, as he pelted
talk-show host Kelly Ripa (of Regis & Kelly) with 17
custard pies in less than one minute; breaking the
old mark of 15 pies. Ripa fired back on Friday
breaking Kenseth’s mark by scoring 24 hits in one
minute on another celebrity guest.
New Hampshire articles
n
Kenseth brings undeniable swagger into Chase
n
Chase Diary Week 1: Kenseth chases title
n
NASCAR hits Big Apple to promote Chase
n
Chase case can be made for all, but the pick here is Kenseth
n
Charting the Chase: Try to catch Kenseth
n
Kenseth’s edge in Chase: Fewer teammates
n
King Kenseth…The easy
pick
n
Chase case can be
made for all, but the pick here is Kenseth
n
Drivers show bias when talking NASCAR tracks
n
Deep cut to the Chase as only three drivers return to make run
at title
n
Kenseth looks like
man to beat in Chase
n
Kenseth taking it one race at a time
n
Chase-tested veterans making case as postseason favorites
n
Let us help you cut to the NASCAR Chase
n
What you need to know about NASCAR’s Chase
n
Analyzing
the top 10
n
Chase predictions
n
Kenseth enters Chase on a roll
n
Consistency a Chase virtue worth having
n
Chase takes center stage in Loudon
Kenseth finishes 10th at NH
September 18, 2006
No. 17 DeWALT Ford Fusion Recap
KENSETH AND CREW LABOR FOR TOP-10
FINISH AT THE ‘MAGIC MILE’
Nothing was easy for Matt Kenseth and the No. 17
DEWALT team this weekend at New Hampshire International
Speedway. From the time the team unloaded on Friday
until the start of the race, the Robbie Reiser-led crew
tried everything in order to find more speed throughout
the three practice sessions, and while they picked up
from 32nd fastest in the first session, to 14th fastest
in the final session, everyone knew it was going to be
an uphill battle on Sunday. “If we can come out of here
with a top-10,” Reiser explained before the race, “with
the way we’ve been running this weekend, it will almost
be like a win.” Starting 25th on a track difficult to
pass, Kenseth and company had their work cut out for
them, but in typical “championship-like” fashion the No.
17 team took a potentially bad day and through good pit
strategy, cerebral driving and excellent pit stops was
able to grind out a 10th-place finish – the team’s 17th
of 2006.
On a warm, sunny day in southeastern New Hampshire,
Kevin Harvick, the eventual race winner, led the field
to the green to kick off the first of 10 races in the
2006 Chase for the NEXTEL Cup. Kenseth began the day in
25th and knew from the outset that he needed long
green-flag runs in order to make up ground.
Coming to pit road for the first time on lap 30, the
“Killer Bees” went to work attempting to free the car up
from the center of the turn to exit, as Kenseth was
reporting the car handling as, “tight, tight, tight.”
The adjustments appeared to help the machine as 19 laps
into the next run the No. 17 began to make its move.
By lap 53, Kenseth had worked his way into the top 20
and was picking off cars at an increasingly rapid pace.
Kenseth cracked the top 15 on lap 76 where he remained
the rest of the afternoon. It was apparent that Kenseth
needed about 20 laps under green before he could begin
moving forward, so over the course of the long run, he
was fine. But, early in a run, Kenseth struggled to hold
on to what he had.
Finally on lap 146, 42 laps into a green-flag run,
Kenseth broke into the top 10, but 12 laps later he
began reporting that his brakes were beginning to go
away, a problem that has plagued the team at flat tracks
all year. Thirty laps later, still under green, Kenseth
came to pit road, but not before he stayed out to lead a
lap and receive five bonus points.
When the caution flag fell on lap 193 for debris in
turn two, everyone came to pit road to fill up with gas
hoping they could make it the rest of the way. At a
place where track position is so important, Reiser
couldn’t afford to let his driver fall behind. Making
the call for two tires only, Reiser and the crew turned
Kenseth out in the fifth position. The caution flag flew
again, just four laps after the restart and everyone was
faced with a similar decision. Now, well within the fuel
window, teams again came to pit road to top off with
fuel. Reiser called for gas only and again kept his
driver in good shape, restarting in the fourth position.
But, just as it seemed the teams were all set with
pit strategy, the caution flag waved yet again at lap
266, with only 34 laps remaining. Kenseth sat in the
seventh position, and Reiser was faced with yet another
gut-wrenching decision; he could leave his driver out on
the track in seventh and risk everyone behind him coming
to pit road for fresh tires, or he could set the trend.
Reiser was proactive and brought Kenseth down to pit
road one final time for four tires and fuel and the
majority of teams behind him did the same.
The field took the green on lap 271 and Kenseth
restarted 10th. Over the course of the next 29 laps,
with his brakes nearly gone and fighting a loose
racecar, Kenseth displayed a great amount of skill and
patience, and held off Dale Earnhardt Jr. and several
other faster cars over the course of the final 20 laps
in order to secure his 17th top-10 finish of the season.
The top-10 finish was also Kenseth’s fifth straight
dating back to his win at Michigan on Aug. 20th, and his
ninth top-10 in the past 11 races at New Hampshire.
“The result was actually good for how we ran,”
Kenseth explained afterwards. “I kind of messed up that
last restart or maybe we could have gained a couple
spots, but we weren’t good on the short run. We were
kind of good on the long run, but then we just didn’t
have any brakes. We’ve been fighting brake issues all
year. I don’t really understand why. We never used to
have them, but we’ve been having them all year. I drove
the last half of the race with basically zero brakes, so
that was a good finish for all the problems we had.”
RACE SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth • Started: 25th • Finished:
10th
POINTS SUMMARY
Matt Kenseth • Race Total:
139 points • Season
Total: 5189 points, Ranked 3rd, 41 points out of first.
NEXT UP:
Dover 400 • Dover International
Speedway • Sunday, September 24
New Hampshire Nextel Cup Preview
September
13, 2006
New Hampshire International Raceway • Loudon, N.H.
Sylvania 300 • Sunday, September 17 • 12:30 pm/e
TNT
Nextel Cup Chassis — #17 DeWALT Ford Fusion
•
Primary — RK-353 (Last ran Loudon in July,
finished 14th; Also ran Phoenix in Apr., finished 3rd)
•
Backup — RK-150 (Tested
earlier in ’06 at Vegas; Ran Loudon Sep. ’05, finished
3rd)
Matt Kenseth’s Cup Series performance
summary at NHIS:
|
Date |
S |
F |
Laps |
Led |
Reason |
|
07/16/06 |
24 |
14 |
308/308 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/19/05 |
4 |
3 |
300/300 |
0 |
Running |
|
07/17/05 |
16 |
10 |
300/300 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/19/04 |
5 |
2 |
300/300 |
0 |
Running |
|
07/25/04 |
31 |
4 |
300/300 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/14/03 |
19 |
7 |
300/300 |
7 |
Running |
|
07/20/03 |
1 |
3 |
300/300 |
1 |
Running |
|
09/15/02 |
17 |
10 |
207/207 |
0 |
Running |
|
07/21/02 |
6 |
33 |
299/300 |
77 |
Running |
|
11/23/01 |
16 |
4 |
300/300 |
0 |
Running |
|
07/22/01 |
21 |
16 |
300/300 |
0 |
Running |
|
09/17/00 |
38 |
17 |
298/300 |
0 |
Running |
|
07/09/00 |
22 |
19 |
272/273 |
0 |
Running |
Matt Kenseth Cup Series totals at
New Hampshire:
| |
