The second Chase race of the season had its fair share of drama and surprises, and as is usual in these types of races, it was Matt Kenseth who wound up on top, winning a Matt Kenseth-type of race at New Hampshire.
“Really, we just go out there and run our own race, and with this JGR crew behind me, I know we have a real shot at a win”, Kenseth said upon exiting his car in victory lane. “Typically its good enough to get us a top-10, maybe even a top-5, but when drivers start dropping like flies for whatever reason, we always seem to rise to the top.”
The Matt Kenseth Type Race, formerly known as a Terry Labonte Type Race, typically features another driver or two dominating the first 80-90% of the race, only to have that driver or drivers drop out due to odd reasons—in this case, a black flag on a restart (for Brad Keselowski) and running out of fuel (for Kevin Harvick).
“We didn’t think that the 4 could make it all the way on fuel”, Kenseth added, “so we just played our own game, playing it conservative with strategy. That’s what we always do, but in cases like this, it really pays off.”
Harvick was unavailable for comment post-race, due to looking for another driver to push with his fist again. Keselowski, meanwhile, called it an “entertainment” aspect that caused his penalty.
“Wait—he said it was for entertainment reasons?”, Kenseth asked upon hearing Keselowski’s comments. “Yeah, that makes sense, because nothing’s more entertaining than a stoic Wisconsinite.”