Kenseth not optimistic for Homestead

The 2003 champion is second in the standings to Johnson, but he isn't expecting to be able to make up the 63-point deficit.

"We're running so bad right now that I don't think we can beat anybody," said Kenseth. "Jimmie will have to have problems and we'll need a lot of luck to get in there.

"We've just got some awful handling cars for some reason, we can't get out of our own way."

Kenseth lost the lead of the championship to Johnson when he finished 13th at Phoenix on Sunday, while Johnson took his fourth consecutive top two finish.

The Hendrick Motorsports driver has recovered from a difficult start to the Chase for the Championship, while at the same time Kenseth has struggled despite leading the standings.

"We can't beat them on performance," said Kenseth. "We can't even run 25th on performance right now.

"Obviously anything can happen, but I'm not too optimistic about it. I don't know what we're doing wrong, but we are doing something wrong."