| | | | | | THE YEAR? | Kenseth has strong record at Talladega but has yet to win | |
| | By SceneDaily Staff Matt Kenseth always seems to run well at Talladega Superspeedway, which hosts the Aaron’s 499 Sprint Cup Series race this weekend, but he’s still looking for his first victory.
Kenseth has three top-five finishes at the 2.66-mile track, with a best finish of third in 2005. Restrictor-plate races like those at Talladega are often a crapshoot, and sometimes Kenseth has found himself in the wrong position in the closing laps.
That’s simply the nature of the draft at Talladega, the Roush Fenway Racing driver said.
“Talladega is just one of those unknown tracks,” Kenseth said. “You could lead 190 laps, then get wrecked or lose the draft and end up finishing 43rd. Last time we raced there it was a single-file line for most of the race and 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 with the new cars, so hopefully the racing will be better this time around. My hopes for the Dewalt team are to make sure we’re there at the end to get a good finish.”
A lot of drivers raced conservatively last October at Talladega, but Kenseth’s crew chief, Chip Bolin, said that wasn’t an option for the No. 17 team.
“Matt is a fierce competitor, and that plan does not suit him or his racing style,” Bolin said. “So our plan of attack this time is to simply stay out of trouble. 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.
“Talladega is pretty much a case of 43 cars riding around hoping no one will wreck you because the handling of the car is a non-issue. 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.”
Being solid is one of Kenseth’s characteristics, but consistency has been a struggle this season. He’s had four top-10 finishes in 2008, but only two of them have been consecutive. And Kenseth also has finished 30th or worse three times.
“We’re a good team with great resources and the capabilities of running well each week,” Kenseth said. “We’ve just not been living up to our potential so far. So for Talladega, I’m hoping that our situation will turn around and we’ll start getting the consistent top-five, top-10 finishes we’re capable of."
| | Posted April 25, 2008 , 6:57 pm EST
| | | | | | | | | | |
