Kenseth finally shakes bad luck, earning his first top five of 2016

While Kenseth’s No. 20 Toyota has shown plenty of speed this season, he has been beset by bad fortune and untimely incidents preventing him for showcasing his team’s full potential.

Saturday night, Kenseth didn’t appear to have a chance to challenge for the win – the race was won by his JGR teammate Kyle Busch – but he did come home with a season’s best fourth-place finish.

“It’s our best finish of the year so that’s the bright side. I’m sort of happy for Kyle and Adam (Stevens, Busch’s crew chief), but seriously happy for everyone at JGR,” Kenseth said after the race.

“Martin (Truex Jr.) had them covered and I don’t know what happened to him in the pits or whatever. We were about a second to fourth-place car most of the day. I thought we were as good as (Busch) if we could have had the position, but it was tough to stick on that bottom.

“I tried something different there to try to lay back and get the pass, but once they were single file I couldn’t go get them. We were just a little off, but these guys had great pit stops and great adjustments and we seem to be getting closer.”

Coach Gibbs comments

Team owner Joe Gibbs says he sees progress in Kenseth’s team of late.

“He’s had a strong car. He had a strong car again tonight. I felt like we were a little bit off with that car,” Gibbs said after the race. “But in a sport where we have so many great teams, great owners out there, it’s so competitive, this is very, very hard to get on a hot streak.

“So I really appreciate it. I know how hard it is to reel several races off like this, so I’m going to enjoy it.”

JGR drivers have won five of the last six races in the Cup series, including three wins by Busch and two by teammate Carl Edwards. Teammate Denny Hamlin also won the season-opening Daytona 500.