Talladega II: Matt Kenseth preview

MATT KENSETH
Team: No. 17 DEWALT Ford Fusion

Kenseth on racing at Talladega Superspeedway:
"Talladega is just one of those unknown tracks. You could lead 190 laps, then get wrecked or lose the draft and end up finishing 43rd. Last time we raced there we cut a tire on lap 19 and ended up finishing 41st - 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, so really it's anyone's race. My hopes for the DEWALT team are to make sure we're there at the end to get a good finish.

"We have made a lot of improvements over the last two races. Our cars have been really fast and we've been able to lead laps and race up front. But, we've also made some mistakes that have cost us a lot. With six races to go in the Chase and being so far behind from New Hampshire, you just can't afford to have any mistakes. We'll just take it one week at a time, dig hard each week, and try to get 'em."

Crew chief Chip Bolin on racing at Talladega Superspeedway:
"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. 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. And that was the case at Daytona in July. We had a good car and were able to run up front and get a really good finish. Talladega, on the other hand is pretty much a case of 43 cars riding around hoping no one will wreck you because the handling of the car is a nonissue. So, basically we'll unload and hope for the best and wait and see what happens in the race."

-credit: rfr