MATT KENSETH - Talladega
Advance
MATT KENSETH Team: No. 17
DEWALT Ford Fusion Crew
Chief: Chip Bolin Chassis:
RK-582 Raced Talladega in
April of this year (started
13th, finished 41st) and
Daytona in July (started
19th, finished third).
Kenseth, NSCS at
Talladega Superspeedway:
Date Event S F Laps Led
Status Money 4-12-08 Aaron’s
499 13 41 150/188 0 Running
$125,741 10-3-07 UAW-Ford
500 25 26 171/188 0 Running
$120,066 4-29-07 Aaron’s 499
17 14 192/192 3 Running
$137,641 10-8-06 UAW-Ford
500 19 4 188/188 21 Running
$167,216 4-30-06 Aaron’s 499
12 6 188/188 23 Running
$159,841 10-2-05 UAW-Ford
500 11 3 190/190 23 Running
$179,511 5-1-05 Aaron’s 499
23 11 194/194 0 Running
$136,586 10-3-04 EA Sports
500 7 14 188/188 0 Running
$116,973 4-25-04 Aaron’s 499
31 42 59/188 0 Engine
$112,298 9-28-03 EA Sports
500 37 33 158/188 1 Engine
$61,125 4-6-03 Aaron’s 499
27 9 188/188 9 Running
$104,730 10-6-02 EA Sports
500 8 14 188/188 15 Running
$67,295 4-21-02 Aaron’s 499
37 30 180/188 18 Running
$80,905 10-21-01 EA Sports
500 24 4 188/188 3 Running
$77,550 4-22-01 Talladega
500 40 19 188/188 11 Running
$58,395 10-15-00 Winston 500
36 10 188/188 2 Running
$65,100 4-16-00 Die Hard 500
42 18 187/188 2 Running
$50,260
Races Wins Top-5s Top-10s
Poles Led Money 17 0 3 6 0
131 $1,821,233
QUOTES Kenseth on racing
at Talladega Superspeedway:
“Talladega is just one of
those unknown tracks. You
could lead 190 laps, then
get wrecked or lose the
draft and end up finishing
43rd. Last time we raced
there we cut a tire on lap
19 and ended up finishing
41st - not a lot of fun.
It’s hard to say what the
race will be like this time.
Everyone’s made a lot of
progress, so really it’s
anyone’s race. My hopes for
the DEWALT team are to make
sure we’re there at the end
to get a good finish.
“We have made a lot of
improvements over the last
two races. Our cars have
been really fast and we’ve
been able to lead laps and
race up front. But, we’ve
also made some mistakes that
have cost us a lot. With six
races to go in the Chase and
being so far behind from New
Hampshire, you just can’t
afford to have any mistakes.
We’ll just take it one week
at a time, dig hard each
week, and try to get ’em.”
Crew chief Chip Bolin on
racing at Talladega
Superspeedway: “For me, the
racing at Talladega isn’t my
most favorite. I just hope
we can make it to the end
without trouble and get a
solid top-10 finish. If you
have a fast car, you can
make your own luck at
Daytona, because the faster
cars will work their way to
the front and be able to
stay out of trouble. And
that was the case at Daytona
in July. We had a good car
and were able to run up
front and get a really good
finish. Talladega, on the
other hand is pretty much a
case of 43 cars riding
around hoping no one will
wreck you because the
handling of the car is a
nonissue. So, basically
we’ll unload and hope for
the best and wait and see
what happens in the race.”
FAST FACTS •Matt Kenseth
will make his 18th NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series start at
Talladega Superspeedway this
weekend in the AMP Energy
500. •For the Record… In 17
starts, Kenseth has achieved
three top-five and six
top-10 finishes. •All three
of Kenseth’s top-five
finishes have been achieved
in the fall race at
Talladega. •Kenseth has
completed 2985 of 3208 (93.0
%) laps attempted at
Talladega – he has led a
total of 131 laps there – 70
of which have been led over
the past three years. •On
the track…The No. 17 DEWALT
team will be unloading
RK-582 this weekend at
Talladega. Kenseth has raced
this car twice this year.
First at the spring
Talladega race. He started
that race 13th and finished
41st after the No. 17
suffered a blown tire on lap
19. Kenseth also raced this
car at Daytona in July of
this year. He started that
race 19th and finished third
– a career-best for Kenseth
at Daytona. •Rewind… In a
rollercoaster of a day
filled with highs and lows,
Kenseth and company overcame
many obstacles en route to a
fifth-place finish. After
securing a season-best
third-place qualifying
effort and turning fast
times during the weekend’s
practice sessions, it looked
as though the DEWALT team
would be serious contenders
in Sunday’s 267-lap event.
However, a mishap in the
pits and an incident on the
track set the No. 17 team
back. In spite of the
problems, the determined
DEWALT team forged ahead and
succeeded in the end. •The
CHASE is on… Three races in
the Chase for the Sprint Cup
are complete and Kenseth is
currently ranked ninth in
the point standings with
5383 points - 192 points
behind the leader, Jimmie
Johnson.
Kenseth in the 2008
Sprint Cup points standings:
29 of 36 races Rank Points
Dif. 1st Wins Top 5s Top 10s
Poles Earnings 9th 5383 -192
0 8 17 0 $4,566,677