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KANSAS CITY, KS – MAY 06: Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 Dollar General Toyota, stands on the grid during qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway on May 6, 2016 in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

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KANSAS CITY, KS – MAY 06: Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 Dollar General Toyota, stands on the grid during qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway on May 6, 2016 in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Along with the likes of Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer, another veteran of the sport bid goodbye to the NASCAR Cup Series. Matt Kenseth recently confirmed that his days of racing full-time in NASCAR are over, which ends a season-long stint with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Kenseth’s NASCAR career ran for 20 years. However, there was something that made the 2020 season, his final one, the most unusual season of his entire career. Kenseth recently reviewed his final season, and how he performed.
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He expressed that he never imagined running an entire season without practice or qualifying seasons. He certainly missed working with his team and getting the car ready for race day on the basis of inputs from practice and qualifying.
“We didn’t have practice all year, which is the craziest thing ever,” the 2003 Cup Series champion said.
“I never dreamed I would run every single race without getting a chance to get in the car. Work with my team and make changes, and work together and try to get the car better,” Kenseth said further.

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Nov 1, 2020; Martinsville, VA, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick (4) and NASCAR Cup Series driver Matt Kenseth (42) during the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports
Matt Kenseth reviews his performance in 2020
Kenseth joined Chip Ganassi Racing as a replacement for Kyle Larson in the #42 car. He ran 32 races for the team but finished in the top-10 on only two occasions. “I was very disappointed with the results, that I wasn’t able to do better and help the team more,” Kenseth said of his season.
He admitted that he and the team were just not able to find any momentum and make good runs consistently.
“We didn’t get any decent momentum or consistency to build off of, we had competitive runs here and there. We had a little bit of momentum going at times, and other times it felt like we were going backwards,” Kenseth added.
The highlight of Kenseth’s year
One of his good finishes of the year was a second-place finish. Kenseth finished just behind Kevin Harvick at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July. He called it the highlight of his year.

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RICHMOND, VA – SEPTEMBER 12: Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 Dollar General Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway on September 12, 2015 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Jonathan Moore/NASCAR via Getty Images)
Despite not having a good season personally, Kenseth was part of a memorable season. He witnessed his friend and long-time rival Jimmie Johnson run for the last time. Chase Elliott, with whom Kenseth has spent a lot of time since Chase’s childhood days, won the title this year.
Kenseth now looks forward to spending time with his family. The 48-year-old might be seen racing part-time.
READ MORE – “Really Plugged into Racing”- Matt Kenseth Heaps Praise on ‘Always Attentive’ Chase Elliott
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