Matt Kenseth Sweeps Bristol
Matt Kenseth Pulls Out The Broom On Bristol Weekend
In true championship form, Matt Kenseth made a statement this weekend in Bristol.
After qualifying fourth for both the Busch Series and Nextel Cup series events, Kenseth pulled out the broom and swept Bristol weekend.
In the Busch Series event, Kenseth made a noteworthy pass on Kevin Harvick on the outside. Passing on the outside is an arduous task at the half-mile bullring. And to pass Busch Series points leader Kevin Harvick, a driver who Kenseth has had several run-ins with over the past several years, was undoubtedly remarkable.
In the Nextel Cup event, Kenseth spent most of the evening gazing at the rear bumper of Jeff Burton's Chevrolet. Burton led 262 of the 500 laps paced around Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday night, but he faded to a ninth place finish. Meanwhile, Kenseth's Ford Fusion only improved towards the latter stages of the NASCAR event.
"If we can go into the Chase like this, we'll have a shot at the championship. The guys are operating at a championship level." Kenseth said, and he couldn't have said it any better. His recent string of results is similar to Tony Stewart's last season, and we all know that Stewart ended up hoisting the NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship trophy.
Back to Jeff Burton. This is not the first time he has dominated most of a NASCAR race, only to diminish towards the end. At Indianapolis earlier this month Burton won the pole and appeared to have the car to beat. Ultimately, he would fade out of the top ten.
"We have fast race cars," Burton said. "It just seems like at the end of these races we don't have it as good as we need to be. I am disappointed, but by Monday I will realize things aren't as bad as they feel like I am right now."
Kasey Kahne's 12th place finish at Bristol failed to be obliging in his quest for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Chase for the Championship. He sits 90 points out of tenth place Mark Martin in the Nextel Cup standings.
"It's just a rough day when all the guys in front of you in points finish ahead of you in the race. There are so many good teams right now. We've got to figure out how to be better than them." Kahne said.
Toyota's 2007 Nextel Cup plans continue to fall into place as Jeremy Mayfield was officially announced as driver of Bill Davis Racing's Toyota Camry's. Mayfield joins Dave Blaney, Dale Jarrett, Michael Waltrip, and Brian Vickers on the Toyota roster. Red Bull Racing and Michael Waltrip Racing still have a seat to fill- David Reutimann, Bill Elliott, Ward Burton, or Ricky Rudd?
Quote of the week
Scott Riggs on his late race battle with Jeff Gordon
"He was holding me up a little bit and he knew it...I just tried to tell him good job, good race. ...I could have dumped him, but I didn't."
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