After falling from seven victories in 2013 to none last year, Kenseth scored four this season. That resurgence was largely due to Toyota solving its horsepower deficiencies, which spurred JGR to seven wins in 12 races and saw Kenseth emerge as a legitimate challenger to capture a second premier division title.
A proven champion driving for the sport's best team, Kenseth handles the heightened expectations by deftly circumventing any hiccups to easily secure a final four spot.
While Toyota made considerable strides during the course of the regular season, Chevrolet and Ford bounce back by revealing their improvements in the Chase. With Toyota now lagging, JGR's once decided advantage is muted and Kenseth is a Round 2 elimination casualty.
Featuring five intermediate tracks, the Chase schedule plays to Kenseth's smooth driving style and, thus, provides ample opportunity to win. And even if a victory doesn't materialize, his high-level consistency should be enough to get him into the championship finale.