JOLIET, Ill. – Ten races into the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, Matt Kenseth seemed headed for his worst year by far.

The transition to a new car and a new crew chief were tricky enough, but then the 2003 champion from Cambridge, Wis., couldn’t buy a break.

From 11th in the standings he plummeted.

Two crashes at Phoenix . . . 15th.

Right-front tire failure at Talladega . . . 19th.

Crash at Richmond . . . 22nd.

His faithful fans weren’t wondering at that point whether Kenseth would qualify for the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship shootout. They were begging for Robbie Reiser’s return and praying for hope in the form of a top-10 finish.

The eight races since, though, have played out altogether differently for Kenseth, and suddenly he’s the fastest mover in the series.

With a little bit of learning and a little bit of luck, Kenseth opens the second half of the season Saturday night a season-high ninth in the standings.

“I feel better about it today than I felt about it a month ago,” Kenseth said. “Felt better about it a month ago than I did two months ago.

“If we were in it and the Chase started today, I don’t know that we’re good enough to win it right now, but I think we’re awful close.”

Kenseth will start on the inside of the fifth row Saturday night in the LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, a place at which he has come close to winning each of the past three years.

Kenseth came to Chicagoland off a third place last Saturday at Daytona International Speedway and in the last eight races has finished worse than eighth only once.

To qualify for the Chase, Kenseth will need to carry on at a high level for eight more, after which the field of 12 title contenders will be set. Kenseth and two-time defending series champion Jimmie Johnson are the only drivers who have been a part of the 10-race shootout in each of its four years.

“There’s no doubt that our performance has elevated overall, pit road, car prep, me calling races . . . Matt’s understanding of this car,” crew chief Chip Bolin said after practice Friday.

Bolin had worked as engineer alongside Reiser since 2000 and took over when Reiser became general of the Roush Fenway Cup program last off-season.

“Our whole goal heading into Richmond is to be 151 points ahead of whoever’s in 13th,” Bolin said. “You don’t want to start the race at Richmond and have a chance of falling out.”

Kenseth sits 520 points behind Kyle Busch, but after the 26th race, the points will be equalized and the Chase drivers will receive 10 additional points for each victory.

Through the first half of the year, Busch has been in a class by himself, winning six times.

“We’ve got a way to go to get to those guys,” Bolin said. “When they unload that car, it’s capable of winning the race every weekend, and we’re still tweaking on what needs to be on the car when you unload it so we’re not three runs behind when practice starts.”

The solid second tier includes the next three in the standings: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton and Carl Edwards, front-runners almost every week and race winners.

Then there’s the next level, a group that includes Kenseth and everyone else from fifth through 16th in the standings.

“We’re closer,” said Kenseth, who last won in the 2007 finale.

“Right now we’re not a top-three or top-four car every week and that’s really where you have to be and that’s what we’re striving for is to try to win some races and get ourselves in that position.”

Can Kenseth and his team get to that level?

A little more progress and continued good fortune are key. It wouldn’t hurt if Busch cooled off some, either.

“It’s not just about performance, it’s about your strategy and fuel mileage and all that stuff it seems like this year, too,” Kenseth said.

“We’re not far away. We’ve just got to do everything at a real high level. And we’re getting close to that.”

Closer than anyone would have imagined eight races ago.