In a virtual display of perfection in and out of the pit last Sunday at the Auto Club Speedway, Matt Kenseth’s Ford became the fourth team in NASCAR history to win the Daytona 500 and the next event.
Photo of Matt Kenseth
What is even more impressive is the No. 17 team has a chance to become the first to win the first three races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season and just might.
The other two drivers with two victories to open three times in the series champion Cale Yarborough (1977, Dayton / Richmond), and seven times champion, Richard Petty (1973, Dayton / Richmond).
After spending all of 2008 without a victory, the No. 17 team has become through the addition of all the main crew Drew Blickensderfer.
Kenseth joined some elite company by starting 2-0. Ironically, the last driver to pull off that feat was four times champion of the series, Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet) in 1997, winning Daytona and Rockingham. Gordon, incidentally, Kenseth fought last weekend in ACS closing laps, finishing second.
“I feel very good about the group we have gathered,” said Kenseth. “All that was fun. All lost. Everybody is running at the same time. I think that Drew has the lead and the spark that (the computer), type of needs.”