Is Matt Kenseth about to wrest the points lead from Jimmie Johnson?
It looks that way. Though Johnson has led since the Aaron’s 499 on May 1, Kenseth has whittled the lead to eight points thanks to his consistency. Johnson hasn’t been bad lately. Until his 32nd in the Pepsi 400, he placed in the top 10 the previous six races. But Kenseth has finished in the top five in five of the last seven races. “It’s amazing how many of those (top-fives) we’ve had this year,” Kenseth said after last week’s fifth-place finish, his 11th top-five in 17 races. “I think that momentum is as important as anything.” Hendrick Motorsports, which Johnson drives for, has never won a Cup race at Chicagoland. Kenseth led 176 of the 267 laps here last year, finishing second. Q: Back on track with his Pepsi 400 win, is Tony Stewart primed to take off as he did in the second half last year? A: Quite possibly. Last year Stewart was coming off consecutive wins when the circuit hit Joliet. He settled for fifth, but that was during a stretch of seven races in which he won five times to
