Kenseth, 36, has been with the team since 1998 and won 16 Cup races, including at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2003 and 2004. He gave owner Jack Roush his first Cup season championship in 2003.

Kenseth's teammates, Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle, signed new contracts with Roush Fenway midway through this year. ...

Paul Menard officially joined Yates Racing on Thursday after finishing the season 26th in Cup points as a rookie with Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Menard will drive the No. 98 Ford Fusion, with Larry Carter serving as his crew chief. Carter was crew chief this season for Roush Fenway Racing's Jamie McMurray.

• RACER INJURED -- Part-time U.S. Auto Club driver Cameron Dodson remained in critical condition at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, where he is being treated for injuries sustained Wednesday in a passenger car crash near his home in Greenfield, Ind.

Authorities said Dodson was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from his car when it went off the road into a ditch.

Dodson, 20, drives a Silver Crown open-wheel car for a team owned by NASCAR star Carl Edwards. Dodson was the Silver Crown 2007 rookie of the year.