Matt Kenseth
Watkins Glen International
2.45-mile road course located in Watkins Glen, N.Y.
NNCS: AMD at The Glen, Sunday, Aug. 13
FAST FACTS
Matt Kenseth has now recorded 11 top-five finishes in 2006, two better than any other competitor in the NEXTEL Cup Series.
Kenseth has led a total 649 laps in 14 different races in 2006; the third highest total in the series.
Watkins Glen is one of only two tracks that Kenseth has yet to record a top-five finish; the other is Sonoma.
Kenseth’s average start at Watkins Glen is 14.2; career best among 23 Cup tracks and seven spots better than his career average for all tracks of 21.2.
Kenseth has led only one lap in six races at Watkins Glen; third worst among tracks ahead of only Homestead and Sonoma.
Matt Kenseth – NNCS ADVANCE
Team: No. 17 DEWALT Ford Fusion
Crew Chief: Robbie Reiser
Chassis: RK-250 Last ran Sonoma, June ’06; finished 17th
RK-211 Backup, has not ran in ’06
Kenseth on racing at Watkins Glen International:
“I feel much better about going to Watkins Glen this year than I did last year. No, I still don’t believe we’re safely in (The Chase) and even if that was the case it’s important to maintain momentum and we grabbed some of that back at Indy last week. But, I can remember back to last year and how we were still over 150 points out of 10th place and sitting somewhere around 15th in the standings and I’m thinking, ‘man, I wish we were going to anywhere but a road course.’ It’s no secret that I’m not a huge fan of road courses, but that being said, I do like The Glen better than Sonoma. It’s a little wider, there’s maybe a little more room to pass and we seem to run a little better there.”
Crew Chief Robbie Reiser on racing at Watkins Glen International:
“We’re bringing the same car we ran at Sonoma and hoping for some better results. We had some issues at Sonoma that we feel like we’ve improved upon since then and we’ll see this weekend just how good we’ve fixed them. Indy was a much needed strong run for this team after a couple of sluggish runs the two weeks before. This team had an excellent weekend, top to bottom, from the driver to the pit crew. We just didn’t have anything for the 48 at the end, but all in all it was a great weekend and we’ll be looking to carry that momentum this week at The Glen. Road courses allow for very little room for error in the track position game because they’re so tight and are so hard to pass. We have to be on top of our game again this week, play pit strategy well and make no mistakes on pit road if we’re going to be a factor.”
