Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images |
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| 2005 Season |
| Final Points Standing | 7th
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| After First 26 Races | 9th
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| Earnings | $7,034,134
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| Starts | 36
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| Poles | 2
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| Wins | 1
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| Top 5 | 12
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| 6-10 | 5
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| Laps Led | 1,001
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| Lead Lap Finishes | 24
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| Bonus Points | 100
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| Races Led | 17 |
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| 2005 Performance |
| Below is the ranking of the team on each type of track along with the driver's best finish. |
| Track Type | Ranking |
| Flat Tracks | 20th
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| Best Finish | 3rd, New Hampshire
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| Intermediate Tracks | 7th
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| Best Finish | 2nd, Chicago
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| Plate Tracks | 10th
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| Best Finish | 3rd, Talladega
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| Road Courses | 11th
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| Best Finish | 11th, Infineon
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| Short Tracks | 2nd
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| Best Finish | 1st, Bristol |
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2006 Spin
Matt Kenseth and the DeWalt team overcame an atrocious start to the 2005 Nextel Cup season to secure a spot in the Chase and an eventual seventh-place finish in the final point standings. The ever-cool Kenseth found himself as low as 24th in the standings as late in the season as June before engineering a comeback of mythical proportions.
Kenseth and crew chief Robbie Reiser, who share a long and storied history together dating back to their short track days in Wisconsin, have as good a chemistry as any driver-crew chief on the circuit. Kenseth's chassis knowledge and ability to relate changing track conditions to Reiser keep this team in the upper echelon of the Cup Series. The 2006 season should bring more of the same. Expect multiple wins from this bunch and another strong showing when the points are tallied after Homestead.
On the downside, Kenseth is not much of a qualifier. In 2004, the DeWalt Ford started 21 races 20th or worse. Kenseth was able to improve that number to 15 in '05, as the crew won two Bud Pole Awards along the way. The issue with starting so far back is that when trouble finds Kenseth, it's usually because he's stuck in traffic. If the team can once again improve its qualifying efforts and Reiser can eliminate the strategic mistakes that have plagued this team at times, Kenseth will clinch a Chase spot and battle Greg Biffle and Tony Stewart to the end.
2006 Recap
Recovery is the key word for Matt Kenseth's 2005 season. Beginning with a blown motor at Daytona, the DeWalt team's average finish was 22.7 over the first 14 races of the season. Down to 24th in points and struggling to find some consistency, the team finished fourth at Michigan to begin a comeback that would lead it to the Chase.
From the Michigan event through the end of the regular season, the DeWalt team's average finish was ninth, including a dominating win at Bristol and eight additional top 10s. Kenseth earned 1,752 points over that span and made up 15 spots in the standings to squeak into the Chase.
For the second season in a row, Dover dashed Kenseth's championship hopes. A cut tire ended his day on lap 368, relegating the team to a 35th-place run. Another tire issue at Lowe's and a problem with his brakes at Phoenix forced Kenseth to settle for seventh place.
• The Good: His performance at Bristol — a pole and race win — was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for Matt Kenseth. He led 415 of the 500 laps and was never seriously challenged.
• The Bad: It only took 34 laps to blow an engine in the Daytona 500. Kenseth finished 42nd, putting himself in a serous hole to begin the 2005 campaign.
• The Ugly: Kenseth's punting of Jamie McMurray at New Hampshire was a blatant retaliation and very out of character. Will these two really be able to get along in the new-look Roush camp?
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