Highlights

Kenseth ready to make another title run

(AP)
Updated: 2006-08-29 13:49

He also believes that his team is much stronger than it was in 2003.

"I think this is probably our best chance to ever win one," he said. "I think our chance is much better as far as pure performance than what it was in 2003, so it's a great opportunity for us and we're going to do everything we can to capitalize on it."

Like it or not, Kenseth is back at the top again.

The only difference is that under the Chase format, it will be much more difficult for him to win the title than it was in 2003. No one came close to catching him then, and he wrapped up the crown a week before the season finale. It would be next to impossible for any driver to do that in the current system, which is designed to go down to the wire.

So instead of rewarding a season full of consistency, which is how Kenseth won under the old way, he'll have to be at his best against nine other drivers over the final 10 races of the season to win it under the new format.

Traditional NASCAR fans hate it, but it's hard to argue that the new format isn't more exciting. Kenseth himself made that point by pointing to the Busch Series, where Kevin Harvick leads the second place driver by 519 points and has a 1,335-point advantage over 10th.

"When I don't run the Busch race and I sit on the couch and watch and see that the leader is 500 points ahead of second and 1,300 ahead of 10th you're like, 'Oh, that's really cool. Let's just watch the race to see who is going to win. Who cares about a championship?'" he said.

"Whereas here it keeps it exciting and gets everybody talking about it. It keeps you guys talking about it for the last 10 weeks before the Chase, and then all the way through the Chase to see who is going to get their stuff running at the end of the year."

Although he's hot right now, Kenseth could revert to his old ways and finish between fifth and 10th every week during the Chase and not win the title. Someone like Kevin Harvick, who is 321 points out of first and wouldn't even be mentioned as a championship contender under the old system, could string together a run of wins and snatch the title away.

Or Kasey Kahne, who sits 11th right now, could bump someone out of the playoffs and then use the five intermediate tracks on the schedule to run away with the title. Remember, Kahne was unbeatable on the 1.5-milers at the start of the season, earning three of his four wins on those tracks.

So blame Kenseth if you must for the new format because he doesn't care — he's loving it right now.