133 Facts About Matt Kenseth

Matthew Roy Kenseth was born on March 10,1972 and is an American former professional stock car racing driver and the current competition advisor for Legacy Motor Club in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Matt Kenseth began his racing career on Wisconsin's short tracks, where he claimed track championships at Madison International Speedway, Slinger Super Speedway, and Wisconsin International Raceway.

Matt Kenseth secured a rain-shortened victory at the Daytona 500 in 2009 and captured a second Daytona 500 title in 2012.

Matt Kenseth, born in Cambridge, Wisconsin, began stock car racing in 1988 at 16 years old at Madison International Speedway.

Matt Kenseth won a feature race in just his third outing, holding off two top drivers, Pete Moore and Dave Phillips.

In 1989, Matt Kenseth competed for the points title at Wisconsin Dells, finishing second with eight feature wins.

Matt Kenseth raced at Golden Sands Speedway and Columbus 151 Speedway.

The 1992 season was challenging, with Matt Kenseth managing only three wins and numerous engine failures.

In 1993, Matt Kenseth built a new car with a Kipley engine and won eight features at Madison, finishing second in points.

In 1994, Matt Kenseth competed in 60 events, winning track championships at Wisconsin International Raceway on Thursdays and Madison International Speedway on Fridays, where he claimed 12 of 17 feature wins.

In 1995, Matt Kenseth repeated as WIR champion, finished second at Madison, and won the Red, White, and Blue state championship series at WIR.

In 1996, Matt Kenseth moved to the Southern United States to race in the Hooters Late Model Series for engine builder Carl Wegner.

Matt Kenseth finished third in the Hooters Series standings, nearly winning the championship as a rookie.

Matt Kenseth made his Busch Series debut that year at Lowe's Motor Speedway, starting 30th and finishing 22nd in a car rented from Bobby Dotter.

Matt Kenseth then joined Gerry Gunderman's American Speed Association team, which had previously housed Alan Kulwicki's shop before his move to NASCAR.

At Talladega, his second race on a drafting track, Matt Kenseth started 20th and climbed to finish seventh.

Matt Kenseth secured two Top-5 finishes during the partial season.

Matt Kenseth made his first attempt at a Winston Cup Series race at Talladega in May 1998.

Matt Kenseth made his next attempt at the Cup Series in 1998 at Dover, filling in for Bill Elliott in the No 94 Ford for Elliott-Marino Racing.

Matt Kenseth impressed by finishing sixth, marking the third-best debut for any driver.

The last driver to debut with a top-ten finish before Matt Kenseth was Rusty Wallace, who placed second at Atlanta in 1980.

Matt Kenseth ran full-time, winning his first Busch Series race on February 22,1998, by nudging leader Tony Stewart in the final turn.

Matt Kenseth finished second in points that season, driving the No 17 Chevy.

Matt Kenseth made history as the only rookie to win the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.

Matt Kenseth finished the season 14th in the standings, recording four Top-5 finishes, 11 Top-10s, and an average finish of 18.9.

In 2001, Matt Kenseth finished 13th in the standings, with four Top-5 finishes and nine Top-10s.

In 2002, Matt Kenseth led the series in wins with five victories and earned one pole position.

Matt Kenseth's victories came at Rockingham, Texas, Michigan, Richmond, and Phoenix.

In 2003, Matt Kenseth started the season with a 20th-place finish in the Daytona 500 but quickly found his groove.

Matt Kenseth held the top spot for an impressive 33 consecutive weeks, breaking the modern-era record of 30 weeks set by Dale Earnhardt in his 1980 championship season.

At Charlotte, Matt Kenseth secured his second pole of the year.

Matt Kenseth clinched the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup title on November 9 with a fourth-place finish at Rockingham in the penultimate race, finishing 90 points ahead of runner-up Jimmie Johnson.

Matt Kenseth dominated the standings, leading for the final 33 of 36 races, and recorded a series-best 25 top-10 finishes.

Matt Kenseth spent 35 of 36 weeks in the top 10, the only exception coming after a 20th-place finish in the Daytona 500.

In 2004, Matt Kenseth won the International Race of Champions championship.

Matt Kenseth secured two wins that season, both coming early in the year at Rockingham and Las Vegas.

Matt Kenseth's victory in the Subway 400 at Rockingham was a thrilling photo finish against eventual Raybestos Rookie of the Year Kasey Kahne.

Matt Kenseth was one of only four drivers to rank in the Top 10 throughout the entire season.

Matt Kenseth began the 2005 season with a string of poor finishes but rebounded with a strong mid-season performance.

Matt Kenseth finished the season 7th in the final standings, highlighted by a win at Bristol.

Matt Kenseth led a career-high 1,001 laps during the season.

Matt Kenseth began the 2006 season by showing promise early in the Daytona 500, leading laps before spinning out after contact with Tony Stewart.

Matt Kenseth bounced back with a victory in the second race at California Speedway and took the points lead after the eighth race at Phoenix.

Matt Kenseth finished the year as the runner-up in the Driver's Championship, earning $9,524,966 in winnings.

Matt Kenseth spent 27 of the 36 race weeks ranked first or second in points and led 1,132 laps, the second-most of any driver that season.

Matt Kenseth closed out the 2006 Busch Series season with back-to-back wins, driving the No 17 Ford Fusion to victory at Phoenix and Homestead.

The incident snapped Matt Kenseth's run of 13 consecutive top-15 finishes that season.

At Watkins Glen, while Matt Kenseth was running seventh during a red flag period, a shirtless fan approached his car and asked him to autograph a white baseball cap.

Matt Kenseth politely declined, and security escorted the fan out of the track.

Matt Kenseth finished fourth in the series standings, extending his streak of Top 10 finishes to six consecutive seasons, tied with Jimmie Johnson for the most during that span.

Matt Kenseth's efforts earned him $6,485,630 in winnings, along with an additional $100,000 from his sponsor, Safeway.

In 2008, Matt Kenseth endured a winless season and dropped to 11th in the points standings.

Matt Kenseth faced early challenges at the Daytona 500, starting near the back of the field.

Later in the season at the Goody's Cool Orange 500, Matt Kenseth started 28th but finished 31st.

Matt Kenseth was penalized a lap for pitting outside his box early in the race and later spun out by David Gilliland.

Matt Kenseth retaliated by wrecking Gilliland and was penalized two laps for the incident.

In 2009, Matt Kenseth claimed victory in the rain-shortened Daytona 500, passing Elliott Sadler just moments before a caution was triggered on lap 146 due to a crash involving Aric Almirola and Sam Hornish Jr.

The car burst into flames, but Matt Kenseth miraculously walked away unharmed.

Matt Kenseth claimed victory at the FedEx 400 at Dover International Speedway.

Later in the season, Matt Kenseth earned his third win at the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway after qualifying for the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Matt Kenseth passed teammate Carl Edwards with two laps remaining to secure victory in his only Nationwide Series start that season.

On June 26,2012, it was announced that Matt Kenseth would leave Roush Fenway Racing at the end of the season.

On September 4,2012, Joe Gibbs Racing officially announced that Matt Kenseth would join the team for the 2013 season.

Matt Kenseth would drive the No 20 Toyota, replacing Joey Logano.

On October 7,2012, Matt Kenseth claimed his second win of the year by taking victory in the Talladega fall race.

Matt Kenseth led 33 laps, the second-most of the race, and secured the win as a multi-car crash unfolded behind him.

On October 21,2012, Matt Kenseth secured his third win of the season and second during the 2012 Chase, triumphing at the freshly repaved Kansas Speedway.

Matt Kenseth held off Kasey Kahne to claim the victory.

At Kansas, Matt Kenseth won the pole, led the most laps, and held off Kahne to secure the victory.

Matt Kenseth regained 38 of the 50 points, reducing his penalty to 12 points and moving him up to fourth in the standings.

At the Southern 500 at Darlington, Matt Kenseth passed teammate Kyle Busch with ten laps to go, securing his third victory of the season and his first-ever Sprint Cup Series win at the track.

Later at Kentucky, Matt Kenseth capitalized on Jimmie Johnson's spin to take the lead and held off Jamie McMurray to claim his fourth win of the year.

Matt Kenseth started strong by holding off Kyle Busch to win the first two Chase races at Chicagoland and Loudon, marking his first victories at both tracks.

Matt Kenseth trailed Jimmie Johnson by 28 points and led Kevin Harvick by five.

Matt Kenseth started on the pole, with Harvick sixth and Johnson seventh.

Matt Kenseth dominated, leading a race-high 144 laps for the bonus point.

Matt Kenseth fought back to finish second behind teammate Denny Hamlin.

Matt Kenseth ended the season 19 points behind Johnson in the final standings.

In 2014, at Daytona, Matt Kenseth won the first of two Budweiser Duels, holding off Kevin Harvick and Kasey Kahne in a thrilling three-wide finish.

Matt Kenseth led all winless drivers in points and, despite having no wins, managed to make it through the first two elimination rounds.

Matt Kenseth attempted a three-wide pass on the outside of Keselowski, but Keselowski moved up the track, causing contact between Matt Kenseth's car and Keselowski's right-rear bumper.

Matt Kenseth dropped to 18th and fell a lap down due to the damage but regained the lap as the lucky dog after another caution.

Keselowski drove around Hamlin and pursued Matt Kenseth, who was entering pit road.

Matt Kenseth slightly turned, causing Keselowski to miss a major hit, but Keselowski did bump Matt Kenseth's door.

Meanwhile, as Keselowski walked between two haulers, Matt Kenseth charged in and physically attacked him.

At Martinsville, Matt Kenseth entered a turn at high speed, causing his car to wheel-hop and collide with Kevin Harvick, who was still in contention for the Chase.

Matt Kenseth slowed down deliberately as Kenseth approached, trying to damage Kenseth's radiator.

However, Matt Kenseth anticipated the move and slowed enough to avoid significant damage.

Frustrated, Harvick reportedly vowed that if this race cost him a shot at advancing in the Chase, he would ensure Matt Kenseth didn't make it either.

At Texas, Matt Kenseth secured his second pole of the season but finished 25th in the race.

That same weekend, Matt Kenseth salvaged his season with a victory in the Ford EcoBoost 300, his final Nationwide Series win.

Matt Kenseth began the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season with a win at the Sprint Unlimited, marking the first victory for the newly redesigned Toyota Camry.

Matt Kenseth's season saw a mix of highs and lows in the following weeks.

Matt Kenseth broke a 51-race winless streak by claiming the pole position and winning the Food City 500.

At Pocono, Matt Kenseth started seventh and claimed victory on the final lap after several drivers ran out of fuel, earning his first win at the track and second of the season.

Matt Kenseth secured his third pole position of the year in the Pure Michigan 400 and went on to win his third race of the season.

Matt Kenseth led 25 laps and finished seventh, maintaining his points lead.

At Talladega, Matt Kenseth started in the second row but crashed on the final green-white-checkered finish, finishing 26th and being eliminated in the Contender Round.

At Martinsville, Matt Kenseth spent much of the race running in the Top 10 before being involved in a crash.

Brad Keselowski hit Matt Kenseth after breaking a tie rod, causing significant damage to Matt Kenseth's car and forcing him to lose nine laps for repairs.

Matt Kenseth ultimately ended the season 15th in the standings.

Matt Kenseth began the season with a strong showing in the Daytona 500, leading 40 laps in the final stages.

Matt Kenseth took the white flag but was passed by teammates Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr.

Matt Kenseth finished 14th, while Hamlin won in a historic finish.

Matt Kenseth was black-flagged for not pitting within three laps.

At Las Vegas, Matt Kenseth was involved in a multi-car wreck with Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch, and Carl Edwards, ultimately finishing 37th.

At Talladega, Matt Kenseth started 4th and led 39 of the first 71 laps before being involved in a late-race wreck with Joey Logano, causing Matt Kenseth to barrel-roll onto his roof.

At the restart following a caution at Dover, Matt Kenseth lined up on the inside front row next to Jimmie Johnson.

Matt Kenseth managed to avoid the chaos, and a red flag was waved.

However, when third-place driver Chase Elliott challenged Larson, Matt Kenseth had no trouble securing the victory, ending a 17-race winless streak.

At the first New Hampshire race of the season, Matt Kenseth secured his second win of the year and his 38th career victory, holding off Tony Stewart.

Matt Kenseth lost his Dollar General sponsor before the season, prompting Dewalt to increase its sponsorship to 15 races.

Circle K joined mid-season, backing six races, beginning at Richmond, where Matt Kenseth earned his first pole and stage win.

Matt Kenseth finished second at Watkins Glen, his best road-course result, and earned the pole at the regular-season finale in Richmond.

Matt Kenseth made the playoffs for the 13th time despite a 38th-place finish, leading much of Stage 1 before a brake lock-up caused a caution.

Matt Kenseth avoided further issues and secured the final playoff spot, edging Bowyer, Erik Jones, and Logano.

On November 4,2017, Matt Kenseth revealed that he would take time off from the sport.

At Phoenix, Matt Kenseth passed Chase Elliott with 9 laps remaining to win his first race of the year, ending a 51-race winless streak.

Matt Kenseth finished in 8th place in the race and ultimately secured 7th in the official points standings.

Matt Kenseth finished 36th after being involved in a crash on lap 254.

Matt Kenseth won the second stage of the Brickyard 400 and finished 12th.

Matt Kenseth earned his first top-10 of the season at the Phoenix fall race with a seventh-place finish.

Matt Kenseth extended his race-record win total to eight by passing former Roush teammate Ty Majeski on the final lap.

Later that year, Matt Kenseth served as the grand marshal for the CTECH Manufacturing 180 at Road America.

Matt Kenseth appeared on Coffee with Kyle, a series on NBC Sports hosted by Kyle Petty.

Matt Kenseth later secured a season-best second-place finish on July 5,2020, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which turned out to be his only top-five and final top-ten result of the season.

Matt Kenseth concluded the season with a 25th-place finish at the Phoenix finale, the site of his final career victory, and finished 28th in the overall standings.

On October 10,2023, it was announced that Matt Kenseth would join Legacy Motor Club as the team's competition advisor.

Matt Kenseth led the points standings for 33 weeks despite his lone win and had already clinched the title with one race remaining, making the final event essentially meaningless.

Matt Kenseth is the son of Roy and Nicola Sue Kenseth.

Matt Kenseth has a son, Ross Matt Kenseth, from a previous relationship.

Matt Kenseth established a fan museum in Cambridge in 2004 following his championship season.

Matt Kenseth is a fan of the metal band Metallica and named his cat after drummer Lars Ulrich.