Chat with Matt Kenseth
Welcome to The Show! On Wednesday, NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth will stop by for the second of many in our Prelude chat series, which kicked off with Dave Blaney on Tuesday.
HBO PPV will host the third annual "Nextel Prelude to the Dream," on Wednesday, June 6 starting at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. The event will take place on the dirt track, bringing racing back to its old school dirt track roots.
Tony Stewart, Juan Pablo Montoya, Jeff Gordon, Dave Blaney, Matt Kenseth, Kyle Petty, Mark Martin and others form a 27-driver field from all types of disciplines. All will drive a 2,300-pound dirt late model stock car and some will have lots of dirt track experience and others will have little experience.
Matt Kenseth drives the No. 17 car in the Nextel Cup Series, racing the DeWalt Ford for Roush Fenway Racing. He's currently third in the Nextel Cup points standings and has won over $2.5 million this season.
Proceeds from the race go to supporting the Victory Junction Gang Camp and the Tony Stewart Foundation.
Send your questions for Matt Kenseth now and join him in The Show on Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET.
SportsNation Buzzmaster: Matt's here!
JG, Pinellas Park, FL: Matt, I work in the fitness industry. What type of routine do you do to stay in such good shape?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: I think everyone's different. Some are fitness nuts and some don't do anything. I'm probably about halfway inbetween.
mark (tennessee): Matt havin drove dirt late models myself in several series how do you the asplalt guys doing in them with the higher roll centers, less weight, one forward gear, too many differences to list? and good luck on the 6th
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: That's a great question. That's why it's so funny to watch. I always raced asphalt. I've only done dirt races a couple of times. You have to learn.
Karen La Crescent, MN: Hi Matt, Question; We know your first passion is racing and I would take a quess that flying would be your second. Do you have a third if you couldn't do either one?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: That's a pretty good question. I really like riding motorcycles. We've put some good miles on some motorcycles. But the last few years I've enjoyed flying. I think it's pretty cool.
Ned Schlemmer Waterloo, IL: Matt, Jack stated last week he dedicated an entire team of employees to testing the COT. Do you see this paying off as early as this weekend's race at Dover?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: No, because we haven't done it yet. I don't think the people are hired yet. I'm glad we're getting on it and going in that direction, but we're way behind.
Michael (New York, NY): Matt, the adjustments made to a car during the race (i.e. trackbar, tire pressure, etc). Do you make these decisions or do you simply tell Robbie how the car feels and he makes the decisions on how to change it? And is this type of relationship consistent between all drivers and chiefs?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: A little bit of both. It used to be that you could do a lot of things. You knew how certain changes would effect your car. But that's changed a bit the last few years as things have become more engineering based.
Matt, Charlotte, NC: Matt, I was at the 600 last weekend and was wondering how the track compared to '06. Is the new surface wearing in at all?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: Yeah, it really is. It's starting to gray up a little bit. It's starting to lose it's grip a little bit. I think it will be a better race with a softer tire.
Juli Mikolajczak (Milwaukee, WI): Will you be going to any Packer games this season? How do you think they will do?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: Well, you always hope every year they'll do good. I thought they ended the season on a good note this year. I plan on getting to at least two or three games.
Jason, Frostburg MD: Matt, Who do you see as a large contender for this weekend other than yourself of course. Thanks
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: Well, I'd probably say the usual suspects - the 48 and 24. 11 has been good in the COT races. I'd say maybe those guys are the main guys. But you never really know, someone might hit it just right.
Larry (Montgomery,AL): Matt,Why a four tire stop at the end of the race this past week-end?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: We just got off in our adjustments a little bit. We kind of made the car go the wrong way. It was extremely sensitive the to the hard tire.
Eddie Tampa,Florida: Matty, Chevy seems to be overpowering this year. Do you think NASCAR should do something to even up the cars as they did a few years ago for Chevy?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: Yeah, I think they should just help the Fords. (laughs) It's all working around the same stuff and the same rules. I don't think any manufacturer has it better than anyone else right now.
fred (miami): what adjustments have you and your team made mostly on the cot
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: Well, I don't know that there is any adjustment that we've made. We're just trying to test stuff. You work on the front of the car a little bit as much as you can. We're just trying to fine tune our setup a little bit.
Greg, Woodstock VA: Matt, do you believe it is a good idea of NASCAR to implement the COT full time in 2008?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: Well, I think you have to go one way or the other. You can't go both. It's too expensive. They're not going to go back to the old car. I'm still not a huge fan of the COT, but I think going to one car exclusively is the way to go.
Jack ( Rousch Country ): Besides your car on Sundays...what Kind of cars do you drive ?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: I have a Ford Mustang GT500 that I really enjoy. My daily driver is a Lincoln Navigator.
Ed (MA): How much has John Henry been involved with the team?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: I haven't really seen him a whole bunch. I think it's more on the ownership side. As far as day to day operations, it really hasn't changed that much that we do.
Carl (IL): What is your favorite auto racing movie?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: I do watch movies a lot. I'm not sure what my favorite racing movie would be.
Dean (MS): Hey Matt how about this one! Can women win in Nascar or is it tooo nasty out there for them?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: I think there has been women involved and trying to get involved. There are more women involved in the pits. The opportunity is there for the people to get involved, but you have to perform, no matter the gender or race.
Dustin (Arlington, VA): Matt, It is great you are a part of the Prelude to the Dream race supporting the Victory Junction Gang. How competative do you think the race will be and how much different is dirt racing compared to the asphault in the Nextel Cup?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: I think it will be really competitive. There are some that have the background and others like me that don't have much. You'll have all the good guys duking it out. I think it will be very interesting to watch.
Huston - Oxford, MS: As the COT hasn't run on any track over 1.3 miles, what are your expectations for it when it does hit a track like Michigan?
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: I think this weekend will be a very good test. I think we'll all have a good test for the car this weekend.
SportsNation Matt Kenseth: Thank you for all your support. I appreciate you all coming on to chat with me today.
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