Who’s up for some Saturday night racing? The run of wild tracks and short ones alike, we are getting back to a fairly standard 1.5-mile circuit this week at Kansas Speedway, just west of Kansas City (both Missouri and Kansas versions). The track is one of the newer ones to the NASCAR schedule, being added in 2001 with Chicagoland Speedway opening the same year and Kentucky opening after, and getting a second race per year in 2011. A redesign of the track in 2012 changed the banking to progressive banking of 17-20 degrees, from the uniform 15 degrees it was previously. The banking has added more grooves to the track but it can still prove tricky to pass on at times.
In the last four Spring races here, there have been 19-20 lead changes per race (keep in mind a driver has to finish a lap as the leader for it to be considered a change, that is to say that if for example Martin Truex Jr. gets passed into Turn 1 but then regains the lead by the time the start/finish line comes back around, the lead change doesn’t count) and 8-9 incident cautions per race. During that span the winner has come from P3, P6, P19, and P13 from most recent to oldest race and going back to the first race of 2013 is the last time a pole sitter won the April/May race at Kansas. Overall the pole winner has won three out of the last 10 races here and a P5 starting spot or better has won five times overall (including the three pole sitters) for an average starting spot of 7.3 for the winner.
Aside from being a night race, it also marks the last points-race before the All-Star Race and Monster Energy Open. Both of which happen next weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway and if there are DFS contest for them, I will provide a simple playbook for the small field of drivers for the exhibition races. It is also the first race back in a MENCS car for Matt Kenseth since being left without a ride at season’s end a year ago. He will be taking the place of Trevor Bayne in the 6-car for Roush-Fenway Racing and thus Kenseth’s figures and not Bayne’s are in the track data this week.
Track Data
Last Four Races at Kansas Speedway
| Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Laps | |||
| Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Led |
| Martin Truex Jr | 4 | 2.30 | 6.5 | 6.8 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 367 |
| Kyle Busch | 4 | 5.00 | 5 | 5.3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 240 |
| Kevin Harvick | 4 | 11.80 | 5 | 3.5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 121 |
| Ryan Blaney | 4 | 16.30 | 7.8 | 6.5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 86 |
| Kurt Busch | 4 | 10.00 | 11.8 | 9.3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Matt Kenseth | 4 | 5.00 | 7.8 | 15.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 119 |
| Brad Keselowski | 4 | 10.00 | 14.3 | 15.8 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 22 |
| Chase Elliott | 4 | 12.50 | 17 | 18.3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 4 | 19.30 | 11.5 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Denny Hamlin | 4 | 5.30 | 11.3 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| Joey Logano | 4 | 9.80 | 13.8 | 24.8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| Austin Dillon | 4 | 12.80 | 14.5 | 10.5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
| AJ Allmendinger | 4 | 21.50 | 20 | 19.5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Kasey Kahne | 4 | 24.80 | 15 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| Ryan Newman | 4 | 13.50 | 18.5 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Clint Bowyer | 4 | 25.80 | 20.5 | 18.3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Chris Buescher | 4 | 23.80 | 22.3 | 17.3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Aric Almirola | 4 | 23.00 | 24.8 | 26.3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Jamie McMurray | 4 | 16.00 | 23.3 | 26.3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Kyle Larson | 4 | 16.00 | 16.3 | 27.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Daniel Suarez | 2 | 10.00 | 16.5 | 21.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Alex Bowman | 1 | 5.00 | 16 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 4 | 13.80 | 19.8 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Michael McDowell | 4 | 28.50 | 25 | 20.3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Paul Menard | 4 | 17.00 | 23.3 | 26.8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Ty Dillon | 2 | 25.50 | 22 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| David Ragan | 4 | 30.80 | 28.5 | 24.8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Erik Jones | 2 | 19.00 | 17 | 28.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 4 | 26.00 | 29.3 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Landon Cassill | 4 | 34.00 | 29.5 | 25.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reed Sorenson | 4 | 38.30 | 33.8 | 29.3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Corey LaJoie | 2 | 36.00 | 31 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gray Gaulding | 2 | 29.00 | 33.5 | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Timmy Hill | 1 | 39.00 | 35 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Derrike Cope | 1 | 28.00 | 37 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cody Ware | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Darrell Wallace Jr | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ross Chastain | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| William Byron | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fast | Top 15 | Laps | Avg. | High | Low | Pos | Laps Led | High to | Low to | |
| Driver | Laps | Rate | Comp. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff | Pts./Race | Avg Rating | Avg Rating |
| Martin Truex Jr | 213 | 88% | 1068 | 125.4 | 144.9 | 97.8 | -4.50 | 22.94 | 19.5 | 27.6 |
| Kyle Busch | 96 | 97% | 1068 | 120.6 | 129.8 | 104.4 | -0.30 | 15.00 | 9.2 | 16.2 |
| Kevin Harvick | 134 | 94% | 1068 | 122.3 | 137.4 | 114.9 | 8.30 | 7.56 | 15.1 | 7.4 |
| Ryan Blaney | 40 | 87% | 1068 | 102.6 | 128.4 | 76.5 | 9.80 | 5.38 | 25.8 | 26.1 |
| Kurt Busch | 15 | 71% | 1068 | 91.2 | 113.9 | 72.8 | 0.70 | 0.25 | 22.7 | 18.4 |
| Matt Kenseth | 68 | 84% | 998 | 102.7 | 119.8 | 76.8 | -10.50 | 7.44 | 17.1 | 25.9 |
| Brad Keselowski | 35 | 78% | 991 | 84.3 | 96.5 | 66.9 | -5.80 | 1.38 | 12.2 | 17.4 |
| Chase Elliott | 35 | 53% | 1056 | 85.3 | 100.5 | 73.1 | -5.80 | 0.25 | 15.2 | 12.2 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 36 | 83% | 1068 | 90.5 | 112.6 | 75.5 | 5.30 | 0.00 | 22.1 | 15 |
| Denny Hamlin | 10 | 71% | 1041 | 85.2 | 96.6 | 68.1 | -14.70 | 0.38 | 11.4 | 17.1 |
| Joey Logano | 12 | 63% | 973 | 82.1 | 115.8 | 59.3 | -15.00 | 0.31 | 33.7 | 22.8 |
| Austin Dillon | 1 | 62% | 1068 | 83.7 | 96.7 | 79 | 2.30 | 0.13 | 13 | 4.7 |
| AJ Allmendinger | 8 | 31% | 1023 | 64.4 | 92.6 | 42.3 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 28.2 | 22.1 |
| Kasey Kahne | 5 | 54% | 1068 | 79.7 | 87.3 | 70.2 | 10.80 | 0.00 | 7.6 | 9.5 |
| Ryan Newman | 0 | 53% | 891 | 70.3 | 92.2 | 49 | -9.50 | 0.00 | 21.9 | 21.3 |
| Clint Bowyer | 4 | 28% | 1065 | 61.5 | 73.4 | 47.4 | 7.50 | 0.19 | 11.9 | 14.1 |
| Chris Buescher | 3 | 12% | 1066 | 63.3 | 73.8 | 49.7 | 6.50 | 0.00 | 10.5 | 13.6 |
| Aric Almirola | 1 | 16% | 767 | 57.2 | 75.7 | 28 | -3.30 | 0.00 | 18.5 | 29.2 |
| Jamie McMurray | 9 | 38% | 962 | 69.9 | 93.2 | 46.7 | -10.30 | 0.06 | 23.3 | 23.2 |
| Kyle Larson | 23 | 61% | 857 | 80.9 | 107.8 | 62 | -11.50 | 0.00 | 26.9 | 18.9 |
| Daniel Suarez | 0 | 51% | 464 | 76 | 85 | 67 | -11.50 | 0.00 | 9 | 9 |
| Alex Bowman | 12 | 57% | 267 | 94 | 94 | 94 | -2.00 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 11 | 36% | 1057 | 69.8 | 86 | 49.2 | -4.20 | 0.00 | 16.2 | 20.6 |
| Michael McDowell | 2 | 8% | 1065 | 52.7 | 59.9 | 38.7 | 8.20 | 0.00 | 7.2 | 14 |
| Paul Menard | 2 | 19% | 865 | 59.8 | 71.2 | 47.3 | -9.80 | 0.00 | 11.4 | 12.5 |
| Ty Dillon | 0 | 5% | 534 | 66.6 | 68.3 | 64.8 | 10.50 | 0.00 | 1.7 | 1.8 |
| David Ragan | 0 | 7% | 1056 | 47.4 | 60.8 | 33.5 | 6.00 | 0.06 | 13.4 | 13.9 |
| Erik Jones | 7 | 52% | 464 | 71.3 | 77.6 | 65 | -9.50 | 0.25 | 6.3 | 6.3 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 1 | 4% | 1041 | 44.1 | 47.7 | 39.4 | -1.00 | 0.06 | 3.6 | 4.7 |
| Landon Cassill | 1 | 2% | 1062 | 43.6 | 51 | 39 | 8.50 | 0.00 | 7.4 | 4.6 |
| Reed Sorenson | 0 | 0% | 1048 | 34.7 | 41.8 | 27.4 | 9.00 | 0.00 | 7.1 | 7.3 |
| Corey LaJoie | 0 | 0% | 526 | 40.2 | 42.5 | 37.9 | 9.00 | 0.00 | 2.3 | 2.3 |
| Gray Gaulding | 0 | 0% | 490 | 32.3 | 33.4 | 31.2 | -2.00 | 0.00 | 1.1 | 1.1 |
| Timmy Hill | 0 | 0% | 259 | 31.2 | 31.2 | 31.2 | 11.00 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Derrike Cope | 0 | 0% | 214 | 26.8 | 26.8 | 26.8 | -11.00 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Cody Ware | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | |
| Darrell Wallace Jr | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ross Chastain | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | |
| William Byron | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
*Laps Comp. is out of 1,068 total run at Kansas over the last four races.
Top-15 Drivers over the Last 10 Races at Kansas Speedway
| Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Laps | |||
| Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Led |
| Kevin Harvick | 10 | 7.7 | 5.6 | 5.9 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 513 |
| Joey Logano | 10 | 8.7 | 11.2 | 15.3 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 294 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 10 | 8.1 | 9.9 | 9.9 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 508 |
| Kyle Busch | 9 | 8.6 | 12.4 | 12.9 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 243 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 10 | 18.7 | 12.4 | 11.8 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 54 |
| Matt Kenseth | 10 | 11.2 | 9.5 | 11.7 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 458 |
| Kurt Busch | 10 | 11.9 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 24 |
| Kasey Kahne | 10 | 19.4 | 12.3 | 11.9 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 24 |
| Ryan Blaney | 6 | 15.7 | 10.8 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 86 |
| Denny Hamlin | 9 | 11.6 | 12.8 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Brad Keselowski | 10 | 9 | 13.8 | 15.1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 160 |
| Kyle Larson | 8 | 14.6 | 15 | 21 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
| Clint Bowyer | 10 | 22.4 | 20.1 | 19.4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 3 |
| Chase Elliott | 4 | 12.5 | 17 | 18.3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Aric Almirola | 10 | 17 | 19.9 | 19.7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| Fast | Top 15 | Laps | Avg. | High | Low | Pos. | Laps Led | Rating | |
| Driver | Laps | Rate | Comp. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff. | Pts/Race | Range |
| Kevin Harvick | 331 | 89% | 2671 | 122.3 | 138.4 | 106.4 | 1.80 | 12.83 | 32 |
| Joey Logano | 179 | 74% | 2412 | 101.6 | 144.7 | 53 | -6.60 | 7.35 | 91.7 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 289 | 76% | 2671 | 108.5 | 144.9 | 59 | -1.80 | 12.70 | 85.9 |
| Kyle Busch | 106 | 70% | 2172 | 97.1 | 129.8 | 50.1 | -4.30 | 6.75 | 79.7 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 163 | 76% | 2585 | 95.9 | 118.2 | 42 | 6.90 | 1.35 | 76.2 |
| Matt Kenseth | 204 | 76% | 2602 | 105.5 | 146 | 76.8 | -0.50 | 11.45 | 69.2 |
| Kurt Busch | 35 | 65% | 2476 | 87.1 | 113.9 | 36.9 | -2.00 | 0.60 | 77 |
| Kasey Kahne | 65 | 69% | 2670 | 91.1 | 115.5 | 70.2 | 7.50 | 0.60 | 45.3 |
| Ryan Blaney | 46 | 75% | 1600 | 94.6 | 128.4 | 60.8 | 5.70 | 3.58 | 67.6 |
| Denny Hamlin | 12 | 67% | 2315 | 84.5 | 107.3 | 68.1 | -7.40 | 0.17 | 39.2 |
| Brad Keselowski | 103 | 73% | 2550 | 89.7 | 118.4 | 66.9 | -6.10 | 4.00 | 51.5 |
| Kyle Larson | 108 | 63% | 1923 | 87 | 118.4 | 60 | -6.40 | 0.09 | 58.4 |
| Clint Bowyer | 11 | 30% | 2566 | 68.8 | 110 | 47.4 | 3.00 | 0.08 | 62.6 |
| Chase Elliott | 35 | 53% | 1056 | 85.3 | 100.5 | 73.1 | -5.80 | 0.25 | 27.4 |
| Aric Almirola | 3 | 34% | 2362 | 71.2 | 97.2 | 28 | -2.70 | 0.00 | 69.2 |
*Laps Comp. is out of 2,672 total laps run at Kansas in the last 10 races.
Top-15 Drivers over the Last 20 Races on Similar Tracks (Since 2015)
| Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Laps | |||
| Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Led |
| Martin Truex Jr | 20 | 6.9 | 8.2 | 8.1 | 6 | 9 | 11 | 17 | 20 | 1008 |
| Brad Keselowski | 20 | 8 | 8.9 | 9.5 | 4 | 9 | 15 | 16 | 18 | 681 |
| Kevin Harvick | 20 | 9.4 | 8.3 | 10.1 | 3 | 9 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 787 |
| Kyle Larson | 20 | 11.8 | 11.9 | 14.6 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 162 |
| Kyle Busch | 19 | 7.6 | 8.1 | 9.7 | 2 | 8 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 921 |
| Joey Logano | 20 | 6.9 | 9.5 | 12.1 | 1 | 8 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 385 |
| Denny Hamlin | 20 | 9.5 | 12.1 | 13.5 | 1 | 7 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 57 |
| Chase Elliott | 15 | 10.2 | 11.1 | 13.4 | 0 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 187 |
| Ryan Blaney | 16 | 12.4 | 11.4 | 11.5 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 14 | 95 |
| Ryan Newman | 20 | 15.3 | 15.5 | 14.6 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 16 | 18 |
| Matt Kenseth | 19 | 8.2 | 9.9 | 12.9 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 16 | 141 |
| Kurt Busch | 19 | 11.5 | 13.5 | 13.4 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 14 | 16 | 83 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 20 | 13.4 | 13.5 | 15.4 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 13 | 16 | 299 |
| Jamie McMurray | 20 | 13.3 | 16 | 15.9 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 33 |
| Austin Dillon | 20 | 14.4 | 16.6 | 16.4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 16 | 6 |
| Fast | Top 15 | Laps | Avg. | High | Low | Pos | Laps Led | Rating | |
| Driver | Laps | Rate | Comp. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff. | Pts./Race | Range |
| Martin Truex Jr | 746 | 81% | 5083 | 113 | 149 | 63.6 | -1.20 | 12.60 | 85.4 |
| Brad Keselowski | 456 | 88% | 4822 | 104.9 | 150 | 51.8 | -1.50 | 8.51 | 98.2 |
| Kevin Harvick | 498 | 83% | 4826 | 112.1 | 150 | 62.2 | -0.70 | 9.84 | 87.8 |
| Kyle Larson | 201 | 77% | 4672 | 96 | 140.5 | 53.3 | -2.80 | 2.03 | 87.2 |
| Kyle Busch | 474 | 85% | 4667 | 111.3 | 148.4 | 62.8 | -2.10 | 12.12 | 85.6 |
| Joey Logano | 218 | 81% | 4772 | 99.9 | 149.2 | 47.2 | -5.20 | 4.81 | 102 |
| Denny Hamlin | 108 | 76% | 4803 | 92 | 117.1 | 46.6 | -4.00 | 0.71 | 70.5 |
| Chase Elliott | 188 | 78% | 3553 | 100.8 | 129.1 | 73.1 | -3.20 | 3.12 | 56 |
| Ryan Blaney | 99 | 75% | 3890 | 93.2 | 128.4 | 63 | 0.90 | 1.48 | 65.4 |
| Ryan Newman | 41 | 54% | 4900 | 80.1 | 116.7 | 49 | 0.70 | 0.23 | 67.7 |
| Matt Kenseth | 168 | 85% | 4703 | 96.3 | 119.8 | 70.2 | -4.70 | 1.86 | 49.6 |
| Kurt Busch | 98 | 67% | 4717 | 85.7 | 125.6 | 67.7 | -1.90 | 1.09 | 57.9 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 249 | 70% | 4806 | 90.8 | 130.3 | 53.2 | -2.00 | 3.74 | 77.1 |
| Jamie McMurray | 40 | 61% | 4869 | 81.5 | 113.5 | 46.7 | -2.60 | 0.41 | 66.8 |
| Austin Dillon | 39 | 49% | 5007 | 77.9 | 104.4 | 43.3 | -2.00 | 0.08 | 61.1 |
*Laps Comp. is out of 5,084 combined laps run at races at Kansas, Kentucky, Chicago, Michigan, and Las Vegas since the begining of 2015.
Momentum
This will update each week with the most recent race making the fifth race. Therefore it will be a rolling total of just how hot a driver has been over that stretch.
| Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Pos | Avg. | |||
| Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Diff. | Rating |
| Kyle Busch | 5 | 12.8 | 7.8 | 10.2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2.6 | 115.5 |
| Kevin Harvick | 5 | 10.8 | 8 | 3.8 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 115.5 |
| Joey Logano | 5 | 9.4 | 6.8 | 6.6 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 2.8 | 109.1 |
| Kurt Busch | 5 | 4 | 10.2 | 9.4 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | -5.4 | 100.9 |
| Chase Elliott | 5 | 9.8 | 14.2 | 11.4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | -1.6 | 82.7 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 5 | 10.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | -3.6 | 81.8 |
| Clint Bowyer | 5 | 10.6 | 12 | 11.8 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 4 | -1.2 | 90.9 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 5 | 15.6 | 14.2 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2.6 | 90.8 |
| Daniel Suarez | 5 | 14.6 | 17.4 | 12.6 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 75.9 |
| Kyle Larson | 5 | 8.8 | 17.2 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | -10.2 | 87.5 |
| Denny Hamlin | 5 | 9.6 | 13 | 14.4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | -4.8 | 91.8 |
| Ryan Blaney | 5 | 11.8 | 9.6 | 17.6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | -5.8 | 89.4 |
| Alex Bowman | 5 | 12.2 | 19.2 | 16.4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | -4.2 | 77.1 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 5 | 7.8 | 19.2 | 22.2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | -14.4 | 77.9 |
| Erik Jones | 5 | 11.6 | 18.4 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -8.4 | 70.8 |
Points Changes at Kansas Speedway
The 2017 race points are the points scored in this specific race a year ago. The season DK points average is what the driver is averaging for the races thus far in 2018. It's a good way to see how much over or right on the average that driver did at this track a year prior. Clearly, each race is different, but it's a way to gauge who fits what lineup format better. The drivers closer to their average might be better for cash whereas those to the more extreme ends of the table could fit GPPs better with a boom-or-bust type showing. The Avg. +/- number means that the whole field in general has either done better or worse than their season averages by that number.
| 17 Race | Season | DK Pts +/- | |
| Driver | Total | Avg DK Pts. | Season AVG |
| Martin Truex Jr | 105.00 | 40.08 | 64.9 |
| Ryan Blaney | 76.75 | 46.38 | 30.4 |
| Kyle Busch | 67.25 | 63.27 | 4.0 |
| Brad Keselowski | 67.00 | 40.27 | 26.7 |
| Clint Bowyer | 56.75 | 50.83 | 5.9 |
| Kevin Harvick | 56.00 | 70.81 | -14.8 |
| Michael McDowell | 56.00 | 21.34 | 34.7 |
| Daniel Suarez | 45.00 | 28.04 | 17.0 |
| Kasey Kahne | 45.00 | 24.38 | 20.6 |
| David Ragan | 44.00 | 24.67 | 19.3 |
| Kyle Larson | 43.50 | 36.94 | 6.6 |
| Jamie McMurray | 41.00 | 25.4 | 15.6 |
| Ty Dillon | 38.00 | 24.5 | 13.5 |
| Landon Cassill | 38.00 | 21.2 | 16.8 |
| Matt Kenseth | 34.00 | 0 | 34.0 |
| Erik Jones | 32.50 | 26.25 | 6.3 |
| Reed Sorenson | 31.00 | 10.42 | 20.6 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 29.00 | 25.6 | 3.4 |
| Chris Buescher | 28.00 | 27.43 | 0.6 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 28.00 | 31.15 | -3.2 |
| Corey LaJoie | 28.00 | 12.8 | 15.2 |
| Timmy Hill | 27.00 | 12.33 | 14.7 |
| Austin Dillon | 23.50 | 29.77 | -6.3 |
| Kurt Busch | 12.75 | 37.52 | -24.8 |
| Denny Hamlin | 7.00 | 43.15 | -36.2 |
| AJ Allmendinger | 5.00 | 27.27 | -22.3 |
| Matt DIBenedetto | 3.00 | 24.54 | -21.5 |
| Gray Gaulding | 1.00 | 17.06 | -16.1 |
| Chase Elliott | -2.00 | 33.56 | -35.6 |
| Derrike Cope | -6.00 | 6 | -12.0 |
| Paul Menard | -8.00 | 20.9 | -28.9 |
| Ryan Newman | -17.00 | 29.19 | -46.2 |
| Aric Almirola | -19.00 | 41.15 | -60.2 |
| Joey Logano | -28.00 | 46.48 | -74.5 |
| AVG. +/- | 22.7 |
Top-10 and Bottom-10 Value Drivers
DraftKings
| Rank | Driver | Value | Rank | Driver | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kevin Harvick | 6.05 | 38 | Derrike Cope | 1.40 |
| 2 | Kyle Busch | 5.65 | 37 | Cody Ware | 2.05 |
| 3 | Clint Bowyer | 5.65 | 36 | Reed Sorenson | 2.17 |
| 4 | Ryan Blaney | 5.27 | 35 | Corey Lajoie | 2.51 |
| 5 | Aric Almirola | 4.78 | 34 | Timmy Hill | 2.68 |
| 6 | Chris Buescher | 4.73 | 33 | Paul Menard | 2.99 |
| 7 | Matt DiBenedetto | 4.72 | 32 | Erik Jones | 3.24 |
| 8 | Joey Logano | 4.69 | 31 | Chase Elliott | 3.26 |
| 9 | Denny Hamlin | 4.54 | 30 | Jamie McMurray | 3.34 |
| 10 | Landon Cassill | 4.51 | 29 | Jimmie Johnson | 3.35 |
FanDuel
| Rank | Driver | Value | Rank | Driver | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Landon Cassill | 9.26 | 37 | Matt Kenseth | 0.00 |
| 2 | Matt DiBenedetto | 8.84 | 36 | Derrike Cope | 3.60 |
| 3 | Ross Chastain | 8.78 | 35 | Corey LaJoie | 3.85 |
| 4 | David Ragan | 8.27 | 34 | Martin Truex Jr. | 4.50 |
| 5 | Gray Gaulding | 8.21 | 33 | Jimmie Johnson | 4.95 |
| 6 | Ty Dillon | 7.96 | 32 | Brad Keselowski | 5.05 |
| 7 | AJ Allmendinger | 7.45 | 31 | Ryan Blaney | 5.11 |
| 8 | Chris Buescher | 7.07 | 30 | Kyle Larson | 5.13 |
| 9 | Darrell Wallace Jr. | 7.07 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | 5.17 |
| 10 | Austin Dillon | 6.69 | 28 | Erik Jones | 5.21 |
Drivers To Watch This Week:
Martin Truex Jr.: Truex absolutely crushed this track last year with two wins including one from the pole in the Fall race. Overall in the last four races the two wins account for his top-fives as well as his top-10s with four top-15s total. The 367 laps led is the most in the field (127 more than second) and his 213 fastest laps are nearly as much as the next two on the list combined. Truex has completed all 1,068 laps run in that span and posted the best average rating of 125.4. The last two and a half seasons have seen the 78-car dominate the 1.5-mile tracks and this weekend could be no different once more.
Kyle Busch: Busch is coming off a down weekend at Dover after suffering a broken drive shaft halfway through the race. His stats at Kansas however should lift his spirits as he has a win, three top-fives, four top-10s, and 240 laps led (second) in the last four trips here. An average finish of 5.3 is second best in the field to go along with a 120.6 driver rating that ranks third and a 97% top-15 rate that is tops in the field. Even with the issue last week, Bush is still arguably the hottest driver on the track coming into Kansas and his history here suggests that run should keep going.
Kevin Harvick: Harvick is actually more expensive than both Truex and Busch on DK by $500 over Busch and $900 over Truex, while on FD he is $1,000 more than Truex and $1,300 more than Busch. Why that pricey? Well he did win his fourth race of the year last week and has a win, three top-fives, four top-10s, and 121 laps led in the last four races at Kansas. His 134 fastest laps is second to Truex’s tally in the recent history but over the last 10 races here Harvick actually betters Truex in top-fives, -10s, -15s, -20s, laps led, fastest laps, top-15 rate, and average rating with ties in wins and laps completed. Now you see why he’s the most-expensive play this week? Oh, yeah and he’s the highest-scoring DFS play this year so far.
Clint Bowyer: Ah, the most entertaining driver in the field and the guy racing at his home track this week. Bowyer is from Emporia, Kansas, which is only about two hours (or just under) from where Kansas Speedway sits. For it being his home track though he has had some iffy showings. One top-10, one top-15, and three top-20s is about all he has to show for his efforts in the last four races and the last 10 aren’t that great either with a top-five, two top-10s, and six top-20s. That being said he does have a healthy +7.5 position differential in the last four at Kansas and has been on a nice roll this season with four top-10 finishes in the last five races this year. He will have to buck history here to show well.
Aric Almirola: Almirola is another guy, like Bowyer, that doesn’t have a sparkling history here but has been putting together a solid season. The driver of the 10-car has a top-10, top-15, and two top-20s in the last four races with that top-10 occurring the last time they raced at the track. The other reason Almirola makes this section this week is because of what happened in the Spring race a year ago when he had to be cut from his car and taken to a local hospital with a broken back. Aside from the 2017 Spring race, he has four top-10s in 11 career races here, and an average finish of 19.1.
Matt Kenseth: Kenseth is returning to his roots, or at least the team he started with in Roush Fenway. The 46-year-old driver hasn’t been in a car since Homestead-Miami last year and is working with a new manufacturer and new team for the first time in five years; he’s got his work cutout for him. That being said Kenseth has posted a top-five, two top-10s, and three top-15s in the last four races at Kansas while leading 119 laps (fourth) and 68 fastest laps (fourth). Now he has tended to go backwards during races with an average start of P5 and a finish of 15.5 but he does have two career wins here and has been steady over the last five years here. With him just getting back into a car he will remain a strictly GPP play, but a decent mid-tier one at that.