Kenseth sporting a Boston themed car at NHMS

Matt Kenseth's No. 17 Ford will host a Boston Red Sox/NESN paint scheme during Sunday's LENOX Industrial Tools 301. NESN (The New England Sports Network) is a popular television station in New England. Last year the network sponsored Roush Fenway driver Trevor Bayne for the Nationwide Race.

Photo Credit: Genevieve Cadorette
"It’s cool to have NESN on there and the Red Sox and Fenway Sports Group with the soccer team and all that," Kenseth said during his Friday morning media availability at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS).

Jack Roush began a partnership with the Fenway Sports Group back in 2007. This was the first time that the owners of a professional sports franchise had crossed over into NASCAR. The newly named Roush Fenway Racing is equally owned by Roush and John Henry, the principle owner of the Fenway Sports Group.

NHMS is an hour and a half from Boston, the home of the Red Sox and Fenway Park. Kenseth said of his paint scheme, "it’s neat that they got to put their stuff on the car."

Red Sox and Boston fans love their home team, but they are also very tough on their team. When asked about his performance at New Hampshire and the added pressure, Kenseth admitted that "this place has probably been one of my biggest struggles - one of the top three or four tracks anyway." So with that said, the question is does he feel any extra pressure to perform better in front of tough Red Sox fans? "No extra pressure," said Kenseth.

The Sprint Cup Series driver is first in points, leading by 25 points over Dale Earnhardt Jr. Having won his second Daytona 500 in February and maintaining consistent finishes up until this point, there’s a chance that he could win his second Championship title. Among all that excitement, he recently dropped the bomb that he was leaving Roush Fenway after a 14-year relationship.

Photo Credit: Genevieve Cadorette





Kenseth stated that he does not believe it's a distraction - "unless you let it become one. I think it’s business as usual. It does not change anything for this season, or the goals are or how hard we work toward the goal of trying to win races and win a championship." When asked whether it was hard to make the decision, Kenseth said, "I think once we got through Kentucky and moved on from there, more than anything is it’s probably a relief for me. I think the stress for me was probably the month-and a half before that trying to work through all of that and what was going to happen."

Kenseth’s contract remains with Roush until the end of the 2012 season. As for where he will be in 2013, that has yet to be announced. Kenseth stated that he had hoped to shed some light on where he is going a couple of weeks ago, but he remains unsure of when the announcement can and will be made. "You guys (media) will know the same time I do, I guess," said Kenseth.
Welcome to New Hampshire!
Photo Credit: Genevieve Cadorette



Genevieve is originally from NH, now currently
residing in Cornelius, North Carolina. She will be
the races at NHMS live this weekend, you can follow her on Twitter @C_Genevieve.




Kenseth sporting a Boston themed car at NHMS Kenseth sporting a Boston themed car at NHMS Reviewed by Unknown on Friday, July 13, 2012 Rating: 5