* Indy Test Prepares Drivers for Next Month's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard

* Kenseth, Kasey Kahne and Mark Martin welcome Juan Pablo Montoya in 2007

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 10, 2006) -- It's been an eventful 24 hours for
Matt Kenseth (No. 17 DeWALT Power Tools Ford), currently the second-place
driver in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series standings.

After a frustrating Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway -- Kenseth finished 22nd
following two late incidents despite leading a race-high 112 laps -- the 2003
series champion experienced a typical commuter's headache Monday morning.

En route to Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the first of three days of NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup testing, Kenseth felt something tag the rear of his rental car at
a stoplight. He thought it was Roush Racing teammate Greg Biffle (No. 16
National Guard Ford), who'd followed him from a local airport.

"He always runs into me, so I thought it was him joking," Kenseth
said. "It
wasn't. It was a student driver and instructor; just plain drove into the
back of me. That was exciting."

Ever even-keeled, the Wisconsin native recited the story with a smile. It's a
sign of his trademark unflappability, significant in the wake of a pair of
closing laps spin outs Sunday at Chicagoland, that resulted in Kenseth
falling from a probable top five finish to a 22nd place finish.

Kenseth says what's done is done and that this week's test session and next
week's event at New Hampshire International Speedway are his focus.

"I'd rather just keep to myself and go and do my job and not have any of
that," said Kenseth. "But if you're going to be competitive and
you're going
to try as hard as you can every week, try to run up front, do all that, it's
pretty hard not to ever get in a conflict with anybody. It's just part of the
business."

This week's business is preparation for the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard on
Aug. 6. It's race No. 5 in the Race to the Chase -- the 10-event span that
began with the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway on July 1 and ends
with the Sept. 9 Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

The Richmond event is race No. 26, the cutoff event that sets the field for
the Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup. Following the season's first 26 events,
the top-10 drivers and any within 400 points of the leader will battle for
the series title over the final 10 races.

"I feel like it's very important to keep the momentum and keep running
good,"
said Kenseth, one of three drivers who visited the IMS media center during
Monday's lunch break. "I think you take your best stuff every week and you
keep looking for new stuff; trying to make yourself better every week."

The Indianapolis test marks the fifth of six designated 2006 tests for NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup teams. This year, NASCAR has scheduled those tests as a
cost-containment measure at tracks that host series events, and those dates
are the only test opportunities at those tracks.

Fifty-one drivers were scheduled to test at Indianapolis, beginning Monday
and ending Wednesday. Teams may test on two of the three available days.

All sessions begin at 9 a.m., and end at 6 p.m. (EDT), weather permitting,
with a lunch break from noon until 1 p.m.

DRIVERS EAGER TO COMPETE WITH JUAN PABLO MONTOYA ... Sunday's announcement by
Chip Ganassi Racing that Formula 1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya will succeed the
departing Casey Mears in the No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge in 2007, was
welcomed by the three drivers who visited the Indianapolis media center
during Monday's lunch break.

"Obviously, everybody knows who he is, how talented he is," Matt Kenseth
said. "I think that will be really great for the sport. I mean, I've heard
everybody's reaction that I talked to; they are really excited about it and
think it's really cool. It was kind of a surprise to me, when I heard it."

Kasey Kahne (No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge) and Mark Martin (No. 6 AAA Ford)
echoed Kenseth's sentiments about Montoya, a seven-time Formula 1 race winner
and the 2000 Indianapolis 500 champion for Ganassi's open-wheel team.

"He's at the age that he can come and do this," said Martin, who
will retire
from fulltime NASCAR NEXTEL Cup competition at the end of the 2006 season.
"It's not getting late in his career, like some other open-wheel drivers that
probably would like to make the switch now. It's good timing. I think I'm
going to watch with great enthusiasm from the couch with a remote control."

"He's a winner in everything he's ever been in," Kahne said.
"You know,
racing with -- whether it's F1, IndyCars, IRL; he won the Indy 500 in only
one attempt. It's pretty neat for NASCAR. It's neat to be able to race with
him; someone I've always enjoyed watching and thought was one of the best
race car drivers."

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