NASCAR Cup

BUSCH: Matt Kenseth Michigan preview

FAST FACTS * Since the beginning of 2000, Matt Kenseth has collected more top-five finishes and top-10 finishes on the two, two-mile ovals (Fontana and Michigan) than any other Cup driver during that span. Kenseth has scored 10 top fives and 17 ...

Edited: Apr 16, 2008, 12:40 AM

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FAST FACTS

* Since the beginning of 2000, Matt Kenseth has collected more top-five finishes and top-10 finishes on the two, two-mile ovals (Fontana and Michigan) than any other Cup driver during that span. Kenseth has scored 10 top fives and 17 top 10s in a combined 27 starts a two-mile ovals.

* Matt Kenseth's 11.4-average finish this season ranks third among Cup drivers who have competed in all 22 events.

* Matt Kenseth's average finish of 10.1 at Michigan is tied for second best among the 23 tracks that he has raced at in his NEXTEL Cup career, trailing only Las Vegas (7.6) and tied with Chicago.

* Kenseth's average finish at Michigan, 10.1, is third best all-time among drivers with two or more starts at Michigan.

* Until Kenseth's uncharacteristic DNF in June's race at Michigan, he had never finished worse than 17th in 15 starts at the two-mile oval. The DNF also broke a streak of 44 races where Kenseth was running at the finish.

* Also, until Kenseth's wreck on lap 75 at Michigan in June, he was the last driver standing in terms of completing every lap in the NEXTEL Cup Series in 2007, completing the first 4,634 laps of the season.

NNCS:

Kenseth on racing at Michigan International Speedway:

"I look forward to going to Michigan. That's for sure one of my favorite tracks. It's up in the Midwest and we've had good cars there in the past. That's one that I definitely always look forward to.

"Like any track, success at Michigan is about having good cars. Michigan is not a super difficult track to drive if you have a car handling the way it needs to handle, so we've just been able to get the cars to drive like I need them to drive to be able to run good at that track. We've always had good engines, good aerodynamics and good handling cars there and that is what you need. You kind of need it all there. It's just a big ole sweeping track and if you can get your car to handle the right way it's a lot of fun.

"The last time we went there in June, we kind of ran into some bad luck. We had a good car and had raced up to about the eighth position when we got caught up in a wreck. You hate wrecking anytime, but especially when you feel like you've got a car that can compete at a place where you've enjoyed success. Hopefully we can avoid something like that this weekend and build some momentum with a good finish".

Crew Chief Robbie Reiser on racing at Michigan International Speedway:

"We're bringing the same car that we raced there in the June race. It got wrecked pretty good in that race, but we've raced it since at Chicago and it finished second there. It's probably our most dependable piece and we've ran it a good bit over the past two years. It's been really good on two-mile tracks, winning at Michigan and Fontana last year, and it raced really good in June up until the point we were wrecked.

"These next four races are extremely important for us to build momentum heading into the Chase. We need to improve our car's performance in order to give us a shot in the final 10 races. The guys at the shop have done a great job building these cars and out pit crew is probably the 'glue' that holds it all together on race day; so I'm happy with the job our guys are doing. But, we've got to get the car to perform better, and that falls on me, our engineer and our driver. We've got to figure it out and get it back to where we're competing for top fives and wins."

NBS:

Kenseth on racing in the Busch Series at Michigan International Speedway:

"Michigan is one of my favorite tracks to race at. It's nice to go to a track that has multiple grooves to pass on and where if you have your car handling well you can contend for the win. We haven't been very successful there in the Busch car, but have gotten a couple of wins in the Cup car. We managed to finish fourth a year ago so hopefully we can improve on that."

Crew Chief Drew Blickensderfer on racing at Michigan International Speedway:

"Michigan should be a good track for us. We are bringing the same car that we took to Darlington, which didn't fare so well in Darlington, but this time around it has a new body and I think we can get it handling well. The team is really coming together and I think we can get a good finish for the No. 17 Arby's Ford Fusion."

-credit: rfr

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