Matt Kenseth to leave Roush Fenway Racing at the end of the 2012 season

It had been talked about for a while now. Will Matt Kenseth stay at Roush or will he leave? Today, that question was answer. Matt Kenseth is indeed leaving Roush Fenway Racing at the end of the 2012 season. Kenseth, who just turned 40 in March, has been with the organization since 200, his rookie year. He has made 451 of his 452 starts with Roush and has won 22 races, including two Daytona 500s. What does this mean for that so-to-be vacant 17 seat? What does this mean for Matt in general? Where is he going?

All sources point to Joe Gibbs Racing for Matt’s next home. Already home to Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, and Joey Logano, I think Matt could make a good home there. Will he be in the 20 car or a 4^th car, no one knows that this point.

Now back to the 17 car. Jack is going to have to fill it. And he’s filling it with defending NASCAR Nationwide Series Champion, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Stenhouse, who has won three races so far in the 2012 season and is sitting 3rd in the points, has nowhere else to go but up. I think putting Ricky into that 17 car is going to make Ricky’s career. Ricky is an amazing driver and Jack’s decision to put him in that 17 car is the best decision.

What Matt Kenseth said about the news on his twitter page:

‘I'm very thankful to Jack Roush for the opportunities he's given me over the past 14 years. Together we have enjoyed a lot of success And as a team we are committed as ever to the remainder of the 2012 season and chasing a 3rd sprint cup title for Jack and RFR. Although I have nothing to announce regarding 2013, I feel the timing of this announcement gives RFR ample time to get things lined up. Darien and Tony proved to us last year there is no such thing as a "lame duck" team or season. We will continue to go to work and race hard.’

What do you guys think?

@nascarlinds99_5: It's surprising since he is the point leader and all. I always felt he'd be like Jeff and stay with Roush. But $ woes exist.

@K_Uselman_97: Sad hes leaving Roush..but hes gonna do good wherever he goes! :)

@SNL24: Hope he goes to JGR and replaces Joey Logano, but will most likely replace Dinger since Penske is going to Ford.

@Bri_Smith91: very shocked. Hope he gets a ride that he will be able to still be competitive. Ricky will have an awesome opportunity though.

@sluddy14: kenseth only got a few more good years left, stenhouse needed full time ride or could leave RFR. Kenseth to 43 and Dodge I say

@folzybear16: the end of an era but a new beginning happens for both sides, and Stenhouse gets to prove himself

@tunabully1: I am suprised that he is leaving RFR. Only guy 2 win Roush any championships & leading the points. Nobody is safe

@KristenGoRawr: It won't matter where he goes, Matt will win in whatever he jumps in.

Matt’s always been one of my favorite drivers, not just because we’re both from Wisconsin, it’s because Matt knows how to drive and he knows how to win. It has been a great 14 years for Matt Kenseth and Roush. I wish Matt Kenseth nothing but the best in the coming years and I will follow him where ever fate lands him. Right now, all Matt needs to worry about is winning the 2012 Championship. He is the current leader.

PIR, snapping winless streaks and tempers

Phoenix International Raceway. PIR. Second race of the season. Strange, I know, seeming we were just there last November. With the changes to the schedule, NASCAR finds themselves in Arizona once again. Fresh off his Daytona 500 win, Trevor Bayne didn’t have the weekend he wanted. He crashed his primary Cup car and for the first time in his career, he had to go to a back-up car, which he crashed in the race. The Nationwide race didn’t go over as well either. While running seventh, Bayne’s tire blew, wrecking the car and ending his day. Now, let’s…

Sweep.

What does this word mean to NASCAR? How about: when a driver wins all three races at the same track in the same weekend. Or: when a driver wins both races at the same track in one of the touring divisions. Think really hard. Who did this (the first one)? I’ll give ya a hint. 18. It’s not his age or the number of times they were asked if they wanted the Senior Citizens discount at the grocery store. It’s his car/truck number. That’s right Kyle Thomas Busch. Mr. Rowdy Busch. He did it at Bristol last year and it looked like he was going to do it again, until the…

24.

Again not his age or the number of times girls ask them to marry him. It’s the number that has been on his car longer than the 2011 500 champ has been born. (that’s 20 years for those of you who can’t count or are too lazy to.) Jeff Gordon! The original Boy Wonder, who is now sponsor by AARP. He snapped a 66-race winless streak for the 39-year-old driver. He survived the wreck fest, that may have made new…

Feuds.

Love this word. Feud. We’ve seen a lot of this since NASCAR said, ‘Have at it Boys.’. I think those were the drivers favorite words, except for ‘Gentlemen, start your engines’, being said by a busty blond who probably doesn’t know how to turn a regular car on let alone a NASCAR car. Anyways, back to the feuds. I’m going to throw four names at you. Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, and Brian Vickers (Leprechaun!). Can you put the right names together?………..I’ll make it easier for ya and do it. First: Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch. Is there or isn’t there? Kyle gets lose and gets passed by Rocket Man Ryan Newman and I think he may have gotten a little pissed at hit Carl, sending him down into the grass, bringing him back up and collecting some of the other drivers. I don’t know what exactly happened there, but I don’t think there is a few going on between those two. BUT! I think Busch should stay away from Edwards at LVMS. Second: Matt Kenseth and Leprechaun, I mean, Brian Vickers. This one is GOOD! The two of them get together. Just a little. The piece of sheet metal sticking out on Kenseth’s car looks to have cut down Vickers tire. Vickers spins, making 12 other cars kind crash into each other. While being interviewed, Vickers blamed Kenseth for racing him too hard. Kenseth came over the radio and said he didn’t touch him. Everyone makes…

Mistakes.

Like this one. The front tire changer on JIMMIE JOHNSON’S car dropped a lug nut, making him lose about 6 spots on pit road. Nice going. The weird thing about it was, Chad didn’t seem angry, just a little upset. Weird. I was expecting Chad to go Carrie on them and kill them with his mind and then somehow set something on fire, further killing him. What wasn’t a mistake was that Kasey Kahne, yes Kasey is being mentioned it here (yeah, big surprise, NOT!) stay OUT of trouble at PIR to come home with a 6^th place finish, his first since the fall of 2006, where Kevin Harvick swept both Cup races. I guess, all these tracks with older racing surfaces are worried about…

Repaving.

Yes! Another track is being repaved, BUT, PIR is being reconfigured. The dog leg, what ever that really means, is being made different. I don’t know how, but it is. So, PIR will never be the…

Same.

Will the chase contenders be different this year or different? With new faces in the top 12, will it be a different year. Or, since we are only 2 races into the new season, just sort itself out and we will see the cream rise to the top? This is where it gets tricky. New points system makes it a little harder to catch up to the leaders. With the guys who are normally at the top at the bottom, will they have a chance to rise to the top, or is it already too late?

Next blog will take your opinions and hopefully get some answers!