LAist Interview: Matt Kenseth, Daytona 500 Winner

Matt Kenseth winning the 2009 Daytona 500 in the DeWalt #17 Ford.
LAist scored an exclusive interview with Matt Kenseth, winner of the 2009 Daytona 500. The Daytona 500, also known as "the Great American Race," is the most-watched auto race in America and carries by far the richest purse ($1,536,388) of any NASCAR race of the year. While gearing up for this weekend's NASCAR doubleheader at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Kenseth slowed down long enough to chat with LAist.

Congratulations on winning the most famous NASCAR race in America.

Thank you.

How was Auto Club Speedway Day in Century City?

It was fine. We met up with some fans at the NASCAR office for Auto Club Speedway Day. We did some Q and A, a little media, and just hung out a little bit.

What are fans like in LA?

All the race fans that show up everywhere are pretty awesome. They are pretty educated. If anything, in Los Angeles we meet a lot of new NASCAR fans trying to learn about the sport and meet some newer people coming off the track, which is pretty cool.

What is special for you about Auto Club Speedway?

I just always enjoy the track. It’s a big, fast wide-open track, and one I always look forward to.

How are things working out with the new crew?

Well so far, so good. We’re one-for-one so it couldn’t work out any better. It’s all downhill from here. They worked really hard all winter working on preparation on the car. The team’s really good, really energetic.

How was Valentine’s Day with [wife] Katie?

Every day I get to spend with Katie is great and Valentine’s Day was no exception.

What did you do?

We raced. It’s the same thing we do every holiday, every weekend except for Christmas it seems like. We ran the Nationwide Series race on Valentine’s Day and the next day was the Daytona 500 so we just had a quiet night at the motor home at the racetrack.

Why do drivers of your stature -- someone who’s won a Sprint Cup championship, who race every race during the regular season in the Sprint Cup series -- also race in the Nationwide Series?

There are lots of reasons. The main reason is we have fun. We get to learn a little bit about the track. I love to race on the first track anyway on Saturday. We have a team and a sponsor and a car put together so why not go race? We’d just be watching on the television or watching on it pit road anyway. I just love to race, so whenever I have the opportunity, I like to get in the car.

Speaking of sponsors, long ago you used to be sponsored by Lycos. Are you pretty savvy about the Internet?

I can wander my way around and find the things I need to find.

Are there any favorite websites you keep up with?

I check on the news, and financial news, and do some flight planning. [Kenseth is an amateur pilot]. I see what weather’s going on. I also check NASCAR.com, and mattkenseth.com to see what’s new. I haven’t gotten into Facebook or Myspace or any of that stuff to be honest.

How are you getting along with your Roush Fenway teammates this season?

Everyone’s been getting along fine. We’re working together towards the common goal of getting the Roush Fenway cars to Victory Lane.

Do you spend free time with any of the other drivers?

A little bit. We’re friends with several drivers and a lot of us live close to each other. We spend time with Greg Biffle and his wife, Jamie [McMurray] and Kurt [Busch]. We hang out as couples quite a bit and grab some dinner.

Have you patched things up with Carl Edwards?

Yeah. That was a long time ago. Last year was fine. We worked that out. There was a little disagreement but everything is great.

The big story this season is the recession. How has the recession affected you or the team?

So far I haven’t noticed anything different. I thought it was a really exciting Speedweeks and Daytona was a sold-out crowd. Obviously, the recession’s hitting everybody including NASCAR somewhat. But fans still want to be entertained and NASCAR is a good entertainment value.

Do you think it was to your advantage that NASCAR canceled some of the testing this year?

Yeah, I think it was a great move to cut testing to save teams a lot of money. I thought it was a little unnecessary with this car. There were no rule changes and we’ve been in [the Car of Tomorrow] a full year, year and a half. Cutting on testing was a good plan.

Do you see much cross-pollination with baseball with the Roush Fenway partnership?

I kind of follow the Red Sox with John Henry being our owner. I try to get to a couple of baseball games when we’re in the Northeast to see what’s going on up there.

What’s the funniest thing you ever heard over your scanner?

That’s a tough one. I’ve heard some pretty funny things here and there. We try to be serious about our racing but keep it light and humorous if we can and have fun.

You’re known for having a calm attitude. There was one time where a fan came running up to your car in the middle of a red flag stop at Watkins Glen and asked for your autograph.

You always see run into a lot of unique things, but nothing quite as unique as that. That guy got in a lot of trouble. He actually spent some time in jail. So by the time he got out we figured we could at least send him some autographed merchandise.

Is there anything else you’d like the readers of LAist to know about the Auto Club 500 this weekend?

Just come out to the race if you get a chance. It’s pretty exciting. It’s really neat to watch on TV but it’s totally different to see it in person. We are running over 200 miles an hour. It’s pretty hard to replace that feeling.

In true Hollywood style, this weekend's Auto Club Speedway race schedule and entertainment program is packed with celebrities including Gavin Rossdale (FOX Pre-Race Concert), the Band from TV (Teri Hatcher of "Desperate Housewives", Hugh Laurie of "House"), Little Big Town (Sprint Cup National Anthem), Billy Ray Cyrus (Nationwide Series National Anthem) and Angie Harmon from "Law and Order". No tuxedo required.