Matt DiBenedetto doesn't mince words when he talks about his opportunity to drive the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.
"It’s the best opportunity I’ve ever had in my racing life," DiBenedetto said on Monday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. "It took everybody, every team, every step of the way that let me grind it out and keep advancing my career. This opportunity driving for the Wood Brothers is obviously amazing -- an unbelievable family and their alliance with Team Penske." The 28-year-old California native experienced quite the "roller coaster of emotions" over roughly a four-week stretch last summer when he learned he would not be returning to the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing team for the 2020 season. The weekend after that news was announced, he captivated the NASCAR world with a runner-up finish at the Bristol Night Race that saw him lose the race lead to Denny Hamlin with 12 laps to go. And then several weeks later, DiBenedetto was chosen to drive the No. 21 -- with the retiring Paul Menard’s suggestion helping pave the path. RELATED: Changes to know for 2020 | Team preview | Wood Brothers through the years The storied Wood Brothers organization has been sitting on 99 wins since Ryan Blaney’s win at Pocono in 2017. Blaney spent three seasons driving for the team prior to his move over to Team Penske for the 2018 season. His advice to DiBenedetto was pretty straightforward. "They’re just great guys," Blaney said of his previous team. "I said to have fun. I had so much fun driving for the Wood Brothers. Eddie and Len are great people. Leonard’s obviously amazing. It was a pleasure to get to know Glen for the few years that I was there. It’s just a great group that they got working over there. "… The Wood Brothers are very laid back people. Obviously, they love racing. They wouldn’t be in it this long if they didn’t love racing. That’s all they know. That’s all they do. There’s no pressure. There’s no pressure to go prove yourself. He’s going to do a great job. He showed this last year in the 95 car how great he can be."DiBenedetto fired off strong out of the gate at Daytona Speedweeks last year. He finished fourth in the first Duel race before leading the most laps in the 2019 Daytona 500 – 49 – before a late wreck ended his day.
RELATED: Speedweeks schedule | Debate: Who will make the playoffs that missed in 2019?His solid close to the 2019 season only emphasizes his growth, as he earned all three of his top fives, all seven of his top 10s and 12 of his 13 top 15s in the final 21 races of the season. Those results along with the backing of a Team Penske alliance at Wood Brothers Racing have made him a trendy pick to make the playoffs.
"That’s the goal; to go win races. Plural. Make the playoffs," DiBenedetto said. "You got to check off one box at a time but I know we have the people, the team, pit crew, all these guys to be able to do it. "I’m confident in not only myself but this whole group to go out and, as I always say, turn a lot of heads. That’s what I’ve had to do every step of the way and with this group, that’s going to be no problem."