But as the saying goes, the difference is in the details, and those details show two cars that are pretty similar for the AAA Texas 500 on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.
Kenseth posted a fast speed of 189.434 mph, tied for the best in the final 50-minute session, while Johnson ranked 16th with a lap of 186.722 mph around the 1.5-mile track.
But on the list of drivers’ best 10-lap average speed, Kenseth topped the list at 185.323 with Johnson close behind in third at 184.661.
Kenseth and Johnson are tied atop the Cup standings with three races left in the season. Johnson will start third Sunday while Kenseth will start sixth.
In the final practice, Brad Keselowski tied with Kenseth for the top speed and ranked second in the 10-lap average.
The three drivers chasing Johnson for the title had mixed results in practice:
Kyle Busch (fifth in points) was fourth overall and sixth in 10-lap average. Jeff Gordon (third in points) was seventh overall and seventh in 10-lap average. Kevin Harvick (fourth in points) was 20th overall and 10th in 10-lap average.
Carl Edwards, who will start Sunday from the pole, was 10th overall in the final practice and 15th in 10-lap average.
There were no incidents in the two practices Saturday as drivers prepared for the 334-lap race Sunday (3 p.m. ET, ESPN).
KESELOWSKI WINS NATIONWIDE RACE
Keselowski raced to his sixth Nationwide victory in his last eight starts, leading 106 of 200 laps at Texas to give Roger Penske's No. 22 car the lead in the owners' standings.
For the drivers' title, Sam Hornish Jr. overcame being a lap down early in the race to finish third and cut his deficit behind Austin Dillon from eight points to six with two races left in the season. Dillon finished fifth.
"We did what we could do. We took care of ourselves," Hornish said. "We came back when it didn't look like we would gain points for quite a bit of the race. ... If we can take one or two off the following weekend that puts the pressure on him. He doesn't just have to finish within a couple spots of us then, he will have to beat us."
With the win in the No. 22 Ford, Keselowski put Penske back in the lead in the owners' standings, 26 points ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing's No. 54 Toyota. Keselowski finished nearly a second ahead of Denny Hamlin.
Keselowski has 26 career Nationwide wins.
DEFENDING CHAMP PICKS KENSETH
Keselowski, the defending Cup champion, was asked Saturday whether he would pick Johnson or Kenseth to win the championship.
He picked Kenseth. Why?
"I would say Matt because he has the strongest pit crew on pit road," Keselowski said. "We have seen that track position is attained on pit road and is critical and that will probably win him the Chase. That is my gut.”
TWEET OF THE DAY
"That's a very dumb statement. Have you ever listened to the OG Johnny Cash? He sings about the same things." — Mark Martin (@MarkMartin) to a fan critical of Martin's affinity for rap music because of the subject matter.
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING
What else? The championship battle. Where is Johnson? Where is Kenseth? Where is Johnson? Where is Kenseth? It is a race within a race as those two drivers are tied atop the standings with three races left in the season.
Contributors: Bob Pockrass, The Associated Press
