Matt Kenseth

WhiningSmoke

WhiningSmoke

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I don't know if anyone's noticed, but Matt Kenseth is probably the smoothest driver in Nascar. I don't remember ever seeing a driver as patient and smooth as Matt. His driving style has won me over as a fan of his. You didn't see this when he was at Roush, so I'm thinking the Gibbs cars just suit his style way more than Roush. Makes you wonder what could've been had he started his career with JGR instead of Roush.
 
pretty much was at Roush
 
Have you ever seen the man's arms? It's not like he's going to muscle the car around the track.

Jokes aside, all successful drivers have their own method which enable them to win races and Kenseth's is a smoother, save your equipment style.
 
A good smooth driver no doubt.

But I prefer a driver who will decide to go balls to the wall with the car rather than play it safe.
 
I've always liked Matt Kenseth. (I know. I like everyone. Hear me out.) Why I don't count technically count him in with my favorites these days, I don't know, but if he isn't in my top five, which he probably is and I'm just in denial, he's definitely in the top 10. I figured he would do okay at JGR, but I didn't expect him to be the top guy on the team and win, what was it, 7 races last year? Dude almost won the title, too. Unreal. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised given his experience and talent level. He definitely showed just how good that JGR equipment can be and how good of a driver he is.

I don't understand the hate he gets from some on here. Personality-wise, he reminds me of myself. He just comes across as a friendly, calm, laid back, humble guy with an underrated sense of humor, as FL just said. He races hard, but clean, and smart. He doesn't overdrive his car or get in over his head and into stupid situations like his teammates do sometimes, especially Kyle. He doesn't go out of his way to start trouble with other drivers, and on the rare occasion when someone does come at him or is upset with him, he usually just takes it in stride.

People knock on him for being "vanilla," but so what? Everyone isn't always in the mood for spicy/zesty flavors like Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick (though I do like Harvick). Some people like vanilla, and there's nothing wrong with that.
 
He almost wins the title every year, therein lies the rub with a lot of us. Kenseth fans point to his great record, the others point out he hasn't won but one championship. BTW he is doing what he usually does, quietly placing in the top five most races and pointing his way to a good finish. He doesn't fit in with Nascars racing model, in any other racing series, he would have won many titles.
 
StandOnIt said:
He almost wins the title every year, therein lies the rub with a lot of us. Kenseth fans point to his great record, the others point out he hasn't won but one championship. BTW he is doing what he usually does, quietly placing in the top five most races and pointing his way to a good finish. He doesn't fit in with Nascars racing model, in any other racing series, he would have won many titles.
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you mean, he fits in with NASCAR's old format. the one that he grew up learning to master.
 
Matt Kenseth is a competitive threat to win a Cup Championship, regardless of which era you choose to place him in.
 
every change Nascar has made since he won the title, has taken drivers with a style like his farther away from having a chance to win a title. Drivers with his style in other racing series don't have those problems. they can win on points without winning a whole bunch.
 
BobbyFord said:
I wish Matt had more influence on Kyle Busch.
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Who knows what the team dynamics are within their cirlcle right now. It's been a tough year for JGR but I hope too that some of Matt's patience and temperament rub off on Kyle who only needs the mental state corrected to be one of the very best!
 
Clutch said:
Who knows what the team dynamics are within their cirlcle right now. It's been a tough year for JGR but I hope too that some of Matt's patience and temperament rub off on Kyle who only needs the mental state corrected to be one of the very best!
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Agreed.
 
StandOnIt said:
every change Nascar has made since he won the title, has taken drivers with a style like his farther away from having a chance to win a title. Drivers with his style in other racing series don't have those problems. they can win on points without winning a whole bunch.
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That's very true SOI but I want to see how exciting this years Chase is before I complain to much. I do think there should be more emphasis on winning.
 
yeah I wasn't complaining, but some win and some lose with Nascar's model. Newman and Biffle are a couple of other drivers off hand that don't win much but finish pretty high a lot.
 
I have been a Matt fan since his second season after watching him live at the Coke 600 at Charlotte. This year Matt needs a little more HP and Torque in his engine and we would be having a different conversation. To me the big difference from this year to last year is JGR hit the mark on the Gen 6 faster than the rest and the other teams have caught up.

Matt knows when he has a car that can win and when he has a car that can finish in the top 5. He does not try and make a silk purse out of a sows ear and saves his equipment and finishes the race. I think for the most part he has the same ability that Dale Sr. had in staying away, most of the time, from wrecks that he sees before they happen and from observing the other drivers and understanding their abilities.

He may seem vanilla when on camera, but, when he is in the seat he is very very competitive and intense. This said he is also very smart and does not overdrive the car and finishes.
 
From what I've seen Kenseth was always one of those guys that just kind of pops up near the front at the end of the race... before last season he was a quiet finisher... but after winning all those races right after the move to JGR now everyone is watching him and its next to impossible for us not to notice wherever he is in the field.
 
Obviously I'm biased since I've been watching him since he was running late models at Oregon and Slinger but I think this has been one of Matt's best years as a driver. The wins haven't been there but he and Jason work so well together that they've been competitive almost every week despite being down on horsepower. The last two weeks that excitement in his voice from last year has returned. He could retire tomorrow and hang his hat on a great career but I think there's some special things yet to come.
 
I think he is one of the five best drivers over the last 10 years. In a Hendrick car I think he would have won multiple titles.
A disciplined low maintenance professional, that isn't a crybaby.

He just shows up and does his job in a very understated and underrated way. He has accomplished a lot in spite of the no Chevrolet handicap.
 
One thing I like about him is he always wears a big fancy looking watch during the race. Don't quite understand why, but next time you see him get out of his car or do an interview afterwards, check out his watch. Funny little quirk of his I guess.
 
Pretty slick.

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3wideinturn1 said:
One thing I like about him is he always wears a big fancy looking watch during the race. Don't quite understand why, but next time you see him get out of his car or do an interview afterwards, check out his watch. Funny little quirk of his I guess.
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No different than all the COKE guys and girl, Matt just taking care of a sponsor, that is all.
 
Turn5ive said:
Obviously I'm biased since I've been watching him since he was running late models at Oregon and Slinger but I think this has been one of Matt's best years as a driver. The wins haven't been there but he and Jason work so well together that they've been competitive almost every week despite being down on horsepower. The last two weeks that excitement in his voice from last year has returned. He could retire tomorrow and hang his hat on a great career but I think there's some special things yet to come.
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Yep, considering he's driving for the third-best team and probably seventh- or eight-best car in the field right now it's all the more remarkable how well he's doing this year. Fewer Top 5s than only Jr.
 
Turn5ive said:
Obviously I'm biased since I've been watching him since he was running late models at Oregon and Slinger but I think this has been one of Matt's best years as a driver. The wins haven't been there but he and Jason work so well together that they've been competitive almost every week despite being down on horsepower. The last two weeks that excitement in his voice from last year has returned. He could retire tomorrow and hang his hat on a great career but I think there's some special things yet to come.
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Yeah, I saw him as a little kid at Kaukauna in like 95 or 96? Even back then people were whispering he was going to be a NASCAR star. As I recall, Mark Martin discovered him and sent him to race in the Hooters Pro Cup in the South and the rest was history.
 
Matt has always been smooth rather than flashy. Something Jack said a few years back really sticks with me. Matt was winning some races and had emerged from Carls shadow. Jack said something to the effect that Matt can still drive, as if he had given up on him, and the organization needs to focus on giving him everything he needs to win. Couple of years later, Roush lowballs Matt on a new contract, and he walks away.
 
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