Crew chief Robbie Reiser says he isn't holding back anything in trying to help Matt Kenseth run down Jimmie Johnson. Credit: Autostock

Shop Talk: R. Reiser

Crew chief says No. 17 team trying to catch Johnson

Crew chief Robbie Reiser likes what he sees for the next four races leading up to the Chase for the Nextel Cup.

	Matt Kenseth has done well with chassis RK 323. Credit: Autostock
	Inside the Numbers Car No. RK 323 for Matt Kenseth Race Finish Led California 1 40 Las Vegas 2 146 Texas 2 14 Charlotte 5 1 Michigan 13 0 Chicago 22 112 Totals 7.5 313 You're In Good HandsMatt Kenseth talks about racing against his Roush teammates Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

His No. 17 team is comfortably sitting second in the point standings behind leader Jimmie Johnson. Reiser makes no bones about it -- he's trying to give driver Matt Kenseth the best equipment he can to gain momentum before the 10-race playoff. And with Michigan on the schedule this weekend, Reiser's taking a car that has been successful at similar tracks.

The 17 team remembers it best because of the victory it carried Kenseth to earlier this year at California, the season's second race.

Others may remember it as the machine that was leading at Chicagoland when Jeff Gordon knocked on the door a little too hard and went on to win. Kenseth later crashed the car as he took the checkered flag.

It's fixed now, however, and so are Reiser's eyes -- on winning at Michigan.

Q: As the weeks wind down before the Chase, is your team worried about points considering you are sitting second?

Reiser: Well, I'd like to say we're not worried about points, but you still have to look at them. Obviously we have ourselves in a comfortable spot to the point where we can go to Michigan, Bristol, California and Richmond and pretty much go out there and try to win races. I think that's probably the key, because you need momentum going into the last 10.

Q: With one eye on the points, do you still go into races with a goal of winning or with a goal of not doing damage to the big picture?

Reiser: You can sit back and say, 'Wow, we're not going to race' or 'We're going to work on things.' Heck, that would be just lying to you. We're going to go there with our best cars and do the best we can to try and win those races. We will try to carry that momentum into the Chase.

Q: How do you tackle the next four races since Jimmie Johnson is within reach? Do you try to catch him or do you save that for the Chase?

Reiser: I think we go to Michigan and the next four races and try to catch the 48 [Johnson] because that's still five points that we can have going into the Chase. So no question about it, we'll go into these next races doing the best we can to try and catch those guys. If we can get ahead of them, great. That's five more points going into the Chase. That's how I look at it.

Q: What gives you a good indication of how successful you will be in the next four races, especially with Michigan leading those off?

Reiser: We just have to keep working on our stuff. I think Indy was a good indication. You saw the 48 run well. You saw us run well. That's when everybody brings their best stuff out. You kind of use that as a scale because of what that race is.

Q: What car will you take to Michigan?

Reiser: We go to Michigan, and we're going to take a car there that we ran last time -- 323 -- which has been a strong car for us all year. We'll go there and try to win and follow it up the next weekend at Bristol with a car we've run well with there and won with before. And if we run well at Michigan with 323, then we'll take that to California. So you can kind of see we're taking our best piece to the next bunch of races.

Q: What translates from California, where you won early in the season, to Michigan, which is similar in that it is a 2-mile flat track?

Reiser: Every racetrack has its own characteristics. Is Michigan different from California? Yes. Does it require a different car? No. It requires a little bit different setup, and you have to pay attention to some different things than you do at California. But all in all, you probably work out of the same bag for those two races. We've had a decent program for those two tracks, so we ought to be all right this time around.

Q: What are those few things you have to pay attention to in preparing a setup for Michigan?

Reiser: Probably springs and bars and getting the car to handle changes a little bit from Michigan to California. The aero part of it is probably the same. Everything else is probably the same. But you only adjust a little bit here and there from California to Michigan.

Q: How important is the Michigan race for manufacturers?

Reiser: Being that Ford helps us a tremendous amount, we always pay attention to what we're doing with the company. Each and every team goes there with the idea of doing the best they can. If we can help Ford do that, great. But that's something we try to do every weekend, not just Michigan.