| | Watch out, Tony Stewart. There's another great driver preparing
for a stellar rookie season -- Matt Kenseth.
So says Mark Martin, Kenseth's guru and co-owner of the car
he'll drive in 2000.
Martin expects the NASCAR Busch series ace to be more than just
someone racing Dale Earnhardt Jr. for Winston Cup rookie of the
year honors next season.
|  | | Mark Martin says he wouldn't be surprised to see Matt Kenseth win a Winston Cup race as a rookie in 2000. |
If Earnhardt can be called Little E in deference to his father,
Little M would seem to fit Kenseth perfectly because of his relationship with Martin. And Martin expects much from his protege.
"I think he can be close to as successful as Tony Stewart,"
Martin said, referring to the driver many have called the best
rookie in NASCAR history. "We shouldn't be absolutely shocked if
he wins a race."
That's a bold statement. Stewart's victory three weeks ago in Richmond, Va., was only the fourth by a rookie in 29 Winston Cup seasons. But Martin is not prone to wild predictions, so the 27-year-old Kenseth should be a driver to watch from the start of the 2000 season.
Stewart certainly will notice.
"I agree with Mark," he said. "Matt Kenseth is a great talent, and so is Dale Earnhardt Jr., and I think either one of them is capable of winning next year."
Jack Roush, who owns Martin's car and is in partnership with him
on the one Kenseth will drive, is even more emphatic.
"I think Matt's a better driver than Dale Earnhardt Jr. I think he could be as good as Tony Stewart," Roush said Saturday. "I'll be real disappointed if Matt is not in the top five in points in 2000. I wouldn't be surprised if he wins a race this year."
The next day, Kenseth finished fourth, one of only six drivers on the lead lap at Dover Downs International Speedway. The others to complete all 400 laps on The Monster Mile are in the top six in the Winston Cup standings: winner Martin, Stewart, points leader Dale Jarrett, Bobby Labonte and Jeff Burton.
Kenseth says all the pressure will motivate him.
"I'd rather have them saying we could win a race than saying we
couldn't," he said.
Kenseth says coming close to matching Stewart's performance
would be impressive. And believes Roush Racing will supply the
tools to make him competitive.
What kind of early success he enjoys will be determined by how
fast the team comes together, Kenseth says. But it didn't take
owner and driver long to reach that level.
Martin took an immediate liking to Kenseth when they began
racing each other in Busch cars in 1997. Martin drives in several
Busch races each year, and is the circuit's career leader in
victories.
"I immediately went to work on getting him signed to a contract
the day after I met him," Martin said. "I had known about him and
known about his successes prior to meeting him, and when I met him
that was it.
"I connected with him and decided he was somebody I wanted to
help shortcut to the top."
Martin said Kenseth's performance earlier this month in the
Southern 500 is a perfect example of how good he is. In that race
at Darlington Raceway -- considered one of the most difficult tracks
on the NASCAR circuit -- Kenseth drove from 31st to seventh while
pitting on the backstretch.
At Darlington, each backstretch pit stop under caution can
result in a loss of 10-20 positions. Kenseth wound up 31st because
of an accident in the rain-shortened race.
In March, also at Darlington, Kenseth replaced an injured
Labonte early in the TranSouth 400, and finished 10th in a car that
started 34th.
"He's certainly turned out to be everything that I had hoped he
would be and more," Martin said. "I saw that he had potential to
be great, and I tried to make that happen. And in some small way if
he does something spectacular, I would feel the same success as if
I had done it."
Martin's support means a great deal to Kenseth, who can make up
to five starts in 1999 and retain his rookie status for next year.
The pressure of the lofty expectations of Martin and Roush are not
unwelcome because Kenseth realizes how high the bar must be set if
he is to achieve stardom.
Although he has no immediate numbers in mind for next season,
Kenseth has the same goal as the rest of the big-time stock car
racers.
"Everybody wants to win the Winston Cup championship, but very
few get to accomplish that task," he said. "To do that, you've
got to get competitive, and then become a front-runner who is able
to win races." | |
 |
