The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series blows into Kansas Speedway for the 11th race of the season, the Spongebob Squarepants 400. Brian Brown took a look at past performances, season trends, and spoke with NASCAR contacts to predict how the field should finish on Saturday.
When: Saturday, May 9; 7:46 p.m./et.
Weather: Scattered thunderstorms with a high around 77; wind out of the SE at 20 mph. There is an 80% chance of precipitation on race day.
The Track: KansasSpeedway
Kansasis a 1.5 mile quad-oval. It has 15 degree banking in the corners and 10 degree banking in the tri-oval and five degree banking on the straight-aways.
Key to Race: KANSAS NOT JUST ANOTHER PRETTY 1.5 MILER
Kansas is the fourth 1.5 mile oval we have seen so far this season. Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson go back to being the immediate favorites to win on Saturday. The two drivers have won the previous 1.5 mile races this year and will bring fast rides again. Harvick’s Stewart-Hass teammates will also be fast this weekend. As will Martin Truex Jr., who has was excellent at 1.5 mile Las Vegas this year.
Qualifying Procedures:
44 cars will attempt to qualify for 43 spots.
Fantasy Cheat Sheet:
Top 5
No. 48 Jimmie Johnson: Johnson has been the top driver at Kansas since it opened. He has 14 top 10 finishes in 17 career starts at the track. He will be tough to beat.
No. 4 Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished second at Kansas last spring and has been dynamite so far this season on 1.5 mile ovals. He should finish inside the top two.
No. 22 Joey Logano: Logano won at Kansas last fall and finished fourth last spring. He will be a threat to win on Saturday
No. 2 Brad Keselowski: Keselowski won at Kansas in the spring of 2011 and is usually great on 1.5 mile ovals. He is a terrific option.
No. 24 Jeff Gordon: Gordon added his third career win at Kansas last spring. He is a smart use in all leagues.
6 to 10
No. 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Junior usually doesn’t do much at Kansas, but after clinching a spot in the Chase he has nothing left to do but race for victories.
No. 19 Carl Edwards: Edwards loves Kansas and his results prove it. He has top 10 finishes in 10 of the last 14 races at his home-track. He is a great pick.
No. 41 Kurt Busch: Busch drove great at Kansas in 2013, but struggled last year. He has looked good in 1.5 mile starts so far this season and is worth using in all leagues.
No. 5 Kasey Kahne: Kahne has finished in the top eight in five of the last seven races at Kansas. He is an interesting pick this weekend.
No. 20 Matt Kenseth: Kenseth dominated the spring 2013 race at Kansas and he has had one of the top cars at Kansas in nine of the last 11 races at the track. He will be someone to use in most leagues again this weekend.
11 to 20
No. 78 Martin Truex Jr.: Truex Jr. has been awesome so far this year. Get him active if you haven’t already done so.
No. 15 Clint Bowyer: Bowyer usually brings fast cars to his home-track. He is a nice pick this weekend.
No. 16 Greg Biffle: Biffle won the 2007 and 2010 races at Kansas. In addition, he has finished 15th or better in 12 of the last 15 races at the track. We like his chances.
No. 11 Denny Hamlin: Hamlin usually brings a decent car to Kansas. He should finish inside the top 15.
No. 31 Ryan Newman: Newman’s past trips to Kansas define hit-or-miss. He has six top 11 finishes and 12 finishes of 15th or worse at the track. We think he will be back inside the top 15 this visit.
No. 42 Kyle Larson: Larson finished second at Kansas last fall, but the terrific luck he had in 2014 has gone the other direction. He will just miss the top 10.
No. 14 Tony Stewart: Stewart has had one of the top cars at Kansas the past nine years. That normally would be good enough to crack our top 10, but with the struggles he has had this season we bump him out of our top 15.
No. 3 Austin Dillon: Dillon finished an impressive eighth place at Kansas last fall. This is a good weekend to use the Grandson.
No. 43 Aric Almirola: Almirola has driven very well at Kansas during his career. Use the No. 43 this weekend.
No. 27 Paul Menard: Menard has nine consecutive top 20 finishes at Kansas. He is worth using in most leagues.
21 to 30
No. 10 Danica Patrick : Danica had one the best races of her Cup career at Kansas last May. We recommend her.
No. 1 Jamie McMurray: McMurray had one of his best races of the 2013 campaign at Kansas, but he wasn’t great at the track last year. We predict he will be average again this visit.
No. 18 Erik Jones: Jones, seen by many as one of the future stars of NASCAR, gets his first Cup start on Saturday. He will have his struggles as all rookies do, but his talent can’t be denied.
No. 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: Ricky finished 11th and 19th at Kansas last year. He should bring a similar setup this trip and another decent finish is expected.
No. 47 A.J. Allmendinger: Dinger’s has averaged a 24th place finish at Kansas during his career. He should finish around his average this weekend.
No. 6 Trevor Bayne: Bayne finished 21st in his only previous start at Kansas. He will be a tad worse this trip.
No. 13 Casey Mears: Mears has averaged just a 31st place finish at Kansas the past nine races. He isn’t much of an option.
No. 55 David Ragan: Ragan moves to the No. 55 car this weekend after a disappointing run in the No. 18 ride. He has cracked the top 20 in six of his 12 career starts at Kansas. He is worth using this weekend as a fifth driver in deep leagues.
No. 9 Sam Hornish Jr.: Hornish Jr. has been disappointed so far this year. There are much better options.
No. 51 Justin Allgaier: Allgaier hasn’t had any success at Kansas during his career. He could change that streak this weekend.
Field Fillers
No. 33 Ty Dillon
No. 38 David Gilliland
No. 7 Alex Bowman
No. 35 Cole Whitt
No. 83 Matt DiBendetto
No 34 Brett Moffitt
No. 95 Michael McDowell
No. 40 Landon Cassill
No. 62 Brendan Gaughan
No. 98 Josh Wise
No. 46 Michael Annett
No. 23 J.J. Yeley
No. 26 Jeb Burton
No. 32 Mike Bliss
My Yahoo! Fantasy NASCAR Team for this Week:
B. Carl Edwards
B. Kasey Kahne
