This Week in Ford Racing: Kenseth, Busch

The NASCAR Winston Cup Series season is down to the final two races with this week's stop being the NAPA 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Ford drivers Matt Kenseth, driver of the No. 17 DEWALT Power Tools Taurus, and Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 97 Sharpie/Rubbermaid Taurus, spoke about their respective seasons.

MATT KENSETH --17-- DEWALT Power Tools Taurus -- THREE TOP-10 FINISHES IN THE LAST FOUR RACES, DO YOU FEEL YOU'VE TURNED THE CORNER FOR NEXT YEAR? "I hope so, but you never know because things can turn around so fast. We have been running a little bit better. I feel like we're starting to get a little bit better handle on what we need in these cars and what we need to be building. My goal now with only a couple of races to go is just to run the best we can and try to figure out what we need to be building for cars -- what they need to look like and kind of give us a direction to go for next year."

HAVE YOU FOUND ANYTHING THE LAST FEW WEEKS THAT LENDS YOU TO BELIEVE YOU'RE MAKING PROGRESS? "We've just been doing little things differently setup-wise and variations on our bodies compared to what we've been building and it seems like some of that little stuff has been helping. Plus, they've been making some gains in the engine department too, and I think all of that stuff is helping a little bit."

DO YOU FEEL OPTIMISTIC THAT OVER THE WINTER MONTHS YOUR TEAM WILL BE ABLE TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS SO NEXT YEAR IS BETTER? "I'm more optimistic than I was four weeks ago, but I still do have concerns. Most of this year, at least from my expectations, has been fairly dismal. We haven't performed very well and haven't run up front very often at all, so I'm concerned about that but I am a little more optimistic because the last three or four races we have run quite a bit better."

HOW DO YOU FEEL PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY WITH TWO RACES TO GO IN THE SEASON? "I'm a little bit tired and really more tired than what I thought I'd be. I'm kind of ready for it to end or at least have a week off. I think in this last 20-race stretch, if you could have a week off somewhere along the line under normal circumstances, it would make it a little bit easier. I think everybody just having to think about going to Loudon the day after Thanksgiving and having to fly up there Thanksgiving night is taking its toll on a lot of people. That was the light at the end of the tunnel -- Thanksgiving. That's the day you're looking forward to having your first stretch of off time and when that got taken away, I think everybody sort of dreaded the thought of going up there because we're used to spending that time with our families."

IS THIS THE KIND OF SEASON WHERE YOU WANT TO PUT IT BEHIND YOU AS FAST AS POSSIBLE? "The last two years have been tough. Obviously, with all the drivers getting hurt and killed has made it tough on all of us. There have been a lot of different things going on the last couple of years, including the tragedy this year in New York, has resulted in a strange feeling. We haven't had the normal fun racing that we were used to having, but I can't really say I just want it to be over. I look forward to every week because we do our best to improve and get better. I still enjoy racing an awful lot and I look forward to going to the track every week."

BUT DO THE DISTRACTIONS MAKE IT HARDER? "Yeah, it takes its toll a little bit. Obviously, if I wasn't comfortable with my equipment and I wasn't happy with what I do and look forward to go out and racing every week, I'd probably find something different to do. But this is something I still enjoy a lot. There are risks with everything you do in life and you just have to manage them the best you can."

WHAT ABOUT ATLANTA? "Atlanta is great. I think those are two of the best races all year when we go to Atlanta in the spring and fall. I think the track is really neat now that the pavement has started to age a little bit. You can run on the bottom or right up against the wall. It's real easy to pass and it's a real good show. You can always run side by side there and that makes it a lot of fun."

KURT BUSCH --97-- Sharpie/Rubbermaid Taurus -- ATLANTA IS YOUR KIND OF TRACK ISN'T IT? "Yeah, it's a track that demands a lot of engine for qualifying and that's the first step for us -- make the show. Hopefully, everything will shake out to where we do that. The last two races I've raced there I qualified 36th both times and finished 11th and 10th, so we've had great runs throughout the races this year but qualifying has been a whole different story for us. Whether we're down on power or we don't have the tires figured out or we're off on the chassis a little bit, it's just a dramatic difference from Friday to Saturday for the 97 team. I'm looking forward to the race. It's one of the last races of the year and you've got a lot of different personalities with guys that are with a new team or swapping teams. Maybe there's a sponsor leaving or guys that want to prove that they can win, so there's a lot of anxiety around the garage area as to who is gonna do well and who is gonna struggle. Hopefully, we'll be one of those up front that collects a top 10 at the end of the year."

WHEN IT GETS TO THIS STAGE IN OTHER SPORTS YOU HEAR ANNOUNCERS SAY THINGS LIKE, 'HE'S NOT A ROOKIE ANYMORE BECAUSE HE'S BEEN AROUND ALMOST A FULL YEAR.' IS IT TIME TO GET RID OF THAT ROOKIE LABEL? "I am for sure the number one guy that wants to lose that title. Being a rookie last year on the trucks and then this year again in Winston Cup, the officials call me a rookie and the team has given me that rookie title and it's time for that to go. It's been a long, hard road to get through these past two seasons."

HAS IT BEEN A LONG YEAR IN GENERAL FOR YOU? "Yeah, but just because of our results. I think if we had better results, I'd feel different. We've run real well, but they don't pay any points and money for where you run during the race. You have to finish and, hopefully, with the experience that we've gained this year, it's gonna become a shorter season next year just because we'll know what each circumstance requires for a reaction. We'll know how to adapt to different situations and, hopefully, the races will end up with a better result so we can just move on to the next week with no real drought between the races. We have this drought because of our finishes."

DO YOU FEEL SOME OF YOUR STRUGGLES THIS YEAR ARE SIMPLY BECAUSE YOU NEED TIME AND EXPERIENCE WORKING WITH YOUR CREW THAN IT IS ENGINES OR TIRES OR AERODYNAMICS? "I'm confused more than most people on that question just because of the results that I've had in a short amount of time in the Southwest Series and Truck Series. Coming here to Winston Cup, I expected a bit better of a season for us but there have been the two crew chiefs that I've gone through and the four car chiefs that I've gone through and three tire guys. It's been a different scenario working with the people and getting everyone working on the same page. I wish I knew and could understand more about what experience gives you just because I really haven't had to go through that in the past. We've been able to produce results right away and do well out of the box, but I can't understand why it takes time for things to jell so to speak. That's the experience level that I don't have and don't understand just yet, but, hopefully, it will start to come around soon."

YOU MENTIONED BEING ABLE TO GET IN THE SHOW THIS WEEK IN ATLANTA. HAS FRIDAY BECOME THE MOST STRESSFUL DAY FOR YOU BECAUSE OF THE FACT YOU'RE OUT OF PROVISIONALS? "Fridays are the most pathetic time. I can't stand them anymore. I used to look forward to qualifying and now that this new engine rule is coming about next season it's going to be a different kind of challenge that I'm looking forward to. This year, though, it's been a struggle. No matter what I do, we're either in the top 10 or we're 30th or worse. There's been one effort, I believe, where we've been 16th and that was at Texas. At Texas all throughout practice we were in the top five, but I kind of slid in qualifying and knew what I did for my mistake. So we're either top 10 or 30th or worse, there's no in between. We're either on or we're off and I can't stand that. I wish we could take a car that was off a little bit, have the power that we needed, and qualify 20th every week. That would be wonderful, but it's been a big struggle and I can't stand it anymore. Hopefully, next year it will be better and we'll start off on a better foot. The best case scenario would be that after the sixth race of the season we'll be 18th in points and we'll never have to worry about it again."

HOW DO YOU FEEL WITH TWO RACES TO GO? "It just seems like every week we bring a great car to the race track and have great runs going, but then we don't finish them. I'm ready for this bad-luck season to be over with and move on to 2002. That's going to be an even-numbered year and, hopefully, that will be better."