For the first time since the week before the All-Star race, the speed and chaos of Cup racing returns to the Great Plains. Kansas Speedway is located just west of Kansas City (both KCK and KCMO) and while it hosts the action on Sunday, Arrowhead Stadium (east of KCMO) will host SNF between the Chiefs and Bengals. Quite a lot of high-powered action happening in the suburbs of Kansas City this weekend.
Like in years past, Kansas is a cutoff race in the playoffs as it is the last race in the Round of 12 before heading to Martinsville next week for the start of the Round of 8. Because it is a cutoff race, some drivers are in must-win situations this week and others simply need solid showings to advance. This week happens to be the first 1.5-mile track run on since Vegas as the opening race in the playoffs five weeks ago. With that being the case expect to see the top-salary guys represented in the top of the grid throughout the race.
Kansas Speedway is one of the newest tracks in the NASCAR ranks having hosted the first race there in September of 2001 and for the first 10 years it was a once-a-year stop in the Cup series. All told there have been 25 races run at the track and 15 of those races have been won by a driver starting in the top-10. The track was repaved and redesigned in 2012 with the redesign changing the banking from an even 15 degrees throughout the turns to a progressive banking of 17-20 degrees the closer you get to the outer wall. The repave also changed the grip and grooves of the track for the first several races following it.
In the last five races there have been two two-time winners with Kevin Harvick bookending back-to-back wins from Martin Truex Jr. In those five races there have been an average of nine cautions per race with just over 42 laps run under caution per race as well. Each of the last four races has seen one driver lead just over 100 laps and one other leading between 75-90 with the other laps being split between a few others. So mainly there are likely to be just two dominators in the race. One other thing to keep in mind is that this track has lost considerable grip over the last two years, by some estimates its 25% in loss of grip, and that means a lot more of the race will be spent at or near the top of the track to get the most speed out of the car. In fact there was a Goodyear Tire test at Kansas two weeks ago and Martin Truex Jr., who normally runs around the bottom here, spent the whole test at the top of the track and looked like the best car at the test.
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 |
| Kevin Harvick | 5 | 9.60 | 4.4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 200 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 5 | 3.20 | 7 | 5.8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 380 |
| Kyle Busch | 5 | 4.60 | 5.2 | 6.2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 240 |
| Ryan Blaney | 5 | 13.40 | 7 | 12.6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 140 |
| Kurt Busch | 5 | 9.60 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Denny Hamlin | 5 | 5.40 | 11 | 17 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Joey Logano | 5 | 9.60 | 11.8 | 20.4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
| Brad Keselowski | 5 | 9.00 | 14.6 | 15.4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 22 |
| Chase Elliott | 5 | 13.40 | 16.6 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Kyle Larson | 5 | 17.20 | 14 | 22.8 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 101 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 5 | 20.00 | 14 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| Austin Dillon | 5 | 15.20 | 16 | 11.8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
| AJ Allmendinger | 5 | 20.80 | 20.4 | 18.8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Aric Almirola | 5 | 19.20 | 21.4 | 22.8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Clint Bowyer | 5 | 27.20 | 18.6 | 17.6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
| Paul Menard | 5 | 15.80 | 21 | 22.6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Ryan Newman | 5 | 13.80 | 17.8 | 24.4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Trevor Bayne | 4 | 19.80 | 21.5 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Alex Bowman | 2 | 12.00 | 15.5 | 12.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Chris Buescher | 5 | 21.00 | 21.8 | 20.6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Erik Jones | 3 | 16.70 | 14.7 | 21.3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Jamie McMurray | 5 | 17.60 | 22 | 27.2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Daniel Suarez | 3 | 11.30 | 18.7 | 23.7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 5 | 14.20 | 19.2 | 16.6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 10 |
| David Ragan | 5 | 28.60 | 26.8 | 22.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Michael McDowell | 5 | 30.00 | 25 | 20.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Ty Dillon | 3 | 25.70 | 25 | 22.7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Regan Smith | 2 | 29.00 | 26 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 5 | 28.20 | 29.2 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| JJ Yeley | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kyle Weatherman | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bubba Wallace | 1 | 21.00 | 31 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Landon Cassill | 5 | 33.40 | 30 | 25.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Corey LaJoie | 3 | 33.00 | 31 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ross Chastain | 1 | 28.00 | 35 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reed Sorenson | 5 | 36.60 | 33.8 | 28.8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeffrey Earnhardt | 2 | 32.50 | 33.5 | 29.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Timmy Hill | 2 | 38.50 | 36 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| BJ McLeod | 2 | 34.00 | 36.5 | 32.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| William Byron | 1 | 13.00 | 17 | 33 | 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 |
| Kevin Harvick | 205 | 95% | 1335 | 125.8 | 139.8 | 114.9 | 6.60 | 10.00 | 14 | 10.9 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 222 | 90% | 1335 | 120.4 | 144.9 | 97.8 | -2.60 | 19.00 | 24.5 | 22.6 |
| Kyle Busch | 114 | 97% | 1335 | 117.2 | 129.8 | 103.6 | -1.60 | 12.00 | 12.6 | 13.6 |
| Ryan Blaney | 80 | 88% | 1315 | 102.8 | 128.4 | 76.5 | 0.80 | 7.00 | 25.6 | 26.3 |
| Kurt Busch | 15 | 76% | 1335 | 91.7 | 113.9 | 72.8 | 0.60 | 0.20 | 22.2 | 18.9 |
| Denny Hamlin | 18 | 76% | 1308 | 86.3 | 96.6 | 68.1 | -11.60 | 0.30 | 10.3 | 18.2 |
| Joey Logano | 15 | 70% | 1240 | 87.9 | 115.8 | 59.3 | -10.80 | 0.55 | 27.9 | 28.6 |
| Brad Keselowski | 45 | 71% | 1258 | 86.8 | 97.1 | 66.9 | -6.40 | 1.10 | 10.3 | 19.9 |
| Chase Elliott | 35 | 54% | 1323 | 83.8 | 100.5 | 73.1 | -3.60 | 0.20 | 16.7 | 10.7 |
| Kyle Larson | 71 | 69% | 1124 | 89.9 | 125.9 | 62 | -5.60 | 5.05 | 36 | 27.9 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 42 | 66% | 1333 | 84.4 | 112.6 | 60.1 | 5.00 | 0.00 | 28.2 | 24.3 |
| Austin Dillon | 2 | 50% | 1334 | 78.7 | 96.7 | 58.5 | 3.40 | 0.30 | 18 | 20.2 |
| AJ Allmendinger | 8 | 25% | 1289 | 63.1 | 92.6 | 42.3 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 29.5 | 20.8 |
| Aric Almirola | 1 | 33% | 1034 | 65.1 | 96.7 | 28 | -3.60 | 0.00 | 31.6 | 37.1 |
| Clint Bowyer | 4 | 41% | 1332 | 66.2 | 85.2 | 47.4 | 9.60 | 0.15 | 19 | 18.8 |
| Paul Menard | 5 | 35% | 1132 | 64.9 | 85.6 | 47.3 | -6.80 | 0.00 | 20.7 | 17.6 |
| Ryan Newman | 0 | 54% | 1144 | 71.4 | 92.2 | 49 | -10.60 | 0.00 | 20.8 | 22.4 |
| Trevor Bayne | 5 | 18% | 1065 | 67.3 | 74.5 | 63.3 | 1.80 | 0.06 | 7.2 | 4 |
| Alex Bowman | 12 | 58% | 533 | 82.1 | 94 | 70.2 | -0.50 | 0.00 | 11.9 | 11.9 |
| Chris Buescher | 3 | 13% | 1318 | 62.3 | 73.8 | 49.7 | 0.40 | 0.00 | 11.5 | 12.6 |
| Erik Jones | 10 | 67% | 731 | 77.7 | 90.4 | 65 | -4.60 | 0.17 | 12.7 | 12.7 |
| Jamie McMurray | 9 | 35% | 1215 | 69.6 | 93.2 | 46.7 | -9.60 | 0.05 | 23.6 | 22.9 |
| Daniel Suarez | 3 | 38% | 722 | 71.1 | 85 | 61.2 | -12.40 | 0.00 | 13.9 | 9.9 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 11 | 32% | 1324 | 70.3 | 86 | 49.2 | -2.40 | 0.50 | 15.7 | 21.1 |
| David Ragan | 0 | 7% | 1323 | 51.1 | 65.7 | 33.5 | 6.20 | 0.05 | 14.6 | 17.6 |
| Michael McDowell | 5 | 7% | 1330 | 52.3 | 59.9 | 38.7 | 9.80 | 0.00 | 7.6 | 13.6 |
| Ty Dillon | 0 | 4% | 781 | 57.5 | 68.3 | 39.5 | 3.00 | 0.00 | 10.8 | 18 |
| Regan Smith | 0 | 3% | 530 | 48.9 | 50.3 | 47.5 | 3.00 | 0.13 | 1.4 | 1.4 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 2 | 3% | 1304 | 44.1 | 47.7 | 39.4 | 2.20 | 0.05 | 3.6 | 4.7 |
| JJ Yeley | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | |
| Kyle Weatherman | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bubba Wallace | 2 | 0% | 262 | 47.7 | 47.7 | 47.7 | -2.00 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Landon Cassill | 1 | 1% | 1322 | 42.6 | 51 | 38.7 | 8.00 | 0.00 | 8.4 | 3.9 |
| Corey LaJoie | 0 | 0% | 788 | 40.5 | 42.5 | 37.9 | 7.00 | 0.00 | 2 | 2.6 |
| Ross Chastain | 0 | 0% | 259 | 32.8 | 32.8 | 32.8 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| Reed Sorenson | 0 | 0% | 1307 | 34.6 | 41.8 | 27.4 | 7.80 | 0.00 | 7.2 | 7.2 |
| Jeffrey Earnhardt | 0 | 0% | 504 | 32.9 | 33.8 | 32 | 3.00 | 0.00 | ||
| Timmy Hill | 0 | 0% | 512 | 30.1 | 31.2 | 29 | 8.50 | 0.00 | 1.1 | 1.1 |
| BJ McLeod | 0 | 0% | 505 | 27.3 | 28.5 | 26 | 1.50 | 0.00 | 1.2 | 1.3 |
| William Byron | 2 | 40% | 252 | 65.2 | 65.2 | 65.2 | -20.00 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
Top-15 Drivers at 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 | 6.1 | 5 | 4.8 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 592 |
| Joey Logano | 10 | 7.4 | 8.3 | 11.7 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 300 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 10 | 8.1 | 10 | 9.7 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 475 |
| Kyle Busch | 9 | 8.3 | 9.3 | 9.8 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 243 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 10 | 18.9 | 13.9 | 13.4 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 45 |
| Kurt Busch | 10 | 11.4 | 14.1 | 13.2 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 24 |
| Denny Hamlin | 10 | 11 | 12.5 | 17.6 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
| Ryan Blaney | 7 | 13.7 | 9.9 | 13.9 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 140 |
| Kyle Larson | 9 | 15.4 | 13.9 | 19.1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 104 |
| Brad Keselowski | 10 | 6.2 | 13.2 | 15.9 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 160 |
| Chase Elliott | 5 | 13.4 | 16.6 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Aric Almirola | 10 | 16.8 | 19.6 | 19.8 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| Ryan Newman | 10 | 13.5 | 16.3 | 19.5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Paul Menard | 10 | 15.1 | 17.4 | 18.3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 7 |
| Austin Dillon | 9 | 18.2 | 17.7 | 16.6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 6 |
| Fast | Top 15 | Laps | Avg. | High | Low | Pos. | Laps Led | Rating | |
| Driver | Laps | Rate | Comp. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff. | Pts/Race | Range |
| Kevin Harvick | 390 | 90% | 2671 | 125.7 | 139.8 | 107.6 | 1.30 | 14.80 | 32.2 |
| Joey Logano | 182 | 83% | 2577 | 107.4 | 144.7 | 59.3 | -4.30 | 7.50 | 85.4 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 271 | 77% | 2671 | 106.6 | 144.9 | 59 | -1.60 | 11.88 | 85.9 |
| Kyle Busch | 124 | 81% | 2337 | 103.1 | 129.8 | 54.6 | -1.50 | 6.75 | 75.2 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 133 | 68% | 2583 | 90.3 | 118.2 | 42 | 5.50 | 1.13 | 76.2 |
| Kurt Busch | 32 | 68% | 2476 | 88.3 | 113.9 | 36.9 | -1.80 | 0.60 | 77 |
| Denny Hamlin | 20 | 70% | 2582 | 85.2 | 107.3 | 68.1 | -6.60 | 0.15 | 39.2 |
| Ryan Blaney | 86 | 77% | 1847 | 95.9 | 128.4 | 60.8 | -0.20 | 5.00 | 67.6 |
| Kyle Larson | 156 | 67% | 2190 | 91.4 | 125.9 | 60 | -3.70 | 2.89 | 65.9 |
| Brad Keselowski | 107 | 73% | 2550 | 91.1 | 118.4 | 66.9 | -9.70 | 4.00 | 51.5 |
| Chase Elliott | 35 | 54% | 1323 | 83.8 | 100.5 | 73.1 | -3.60 | 0.20 | 27.4 |
| Aric Almirola | 1 | 37% | 2362 | 71.2 | 96.7 | 28 | -3.00 | 0.00 | 68.7 |
| Ryan Newman | 4 | 57% | 2402 | 78.4 | 101.8 | 49 | -6.00 | 0.15 | 52.8 |
| Paul Menard | 23 | 47% | 2467 | 75.5 | 114.3 | 47.3 | -3.20 | 0.18 | 67 |
| Austin Dillon | 20 | 43% | 2287 | 76.5 | 96.7 | 57 | 1.60 | 0.17 | 39.7 |
Top-15 Drivers at Last 20 Similar Races (Kansas, Chicago, Las Vegas, Michigan)
| Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Laps | |||
| Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Led |
| Kevin Harvick | 20 | 7.8 | 8 | 10.5 | 5 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 948 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 20 | 9 | 8.1 | 7.2 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 18 | 20 | 934 |
| Kyle Larson | 20 | 12.8 | 11 | 12.3 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 294 |
| Brad Keselowski | 20 | 8.8 | 8.7 | 8.5 | 3 | 8 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 426 |
| Kyle Busch | 19 | 6.8 | 7.7 | 7.8 | 2 | 8 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 697 |
| Denny Hamlin | 20 | 10.8 | 11.2 | 11.9 | 1 | 6 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 58 |
| Clint Bowyer | 20 | 18.8 | 16.9 | 19.1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 32 |
| Joey Logano | 20 | 7.6 | 8.8 | 10.7 | 0 | 8 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 233 |
| Ryan Blaney | 18 | 11.1 | 9.2 | 10.8 | 0 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 16 | 183 |
| Chase Elliott | 17 | 10.8 | 11.6 | 14.7 | 0 | 6 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 152 |
| Kurt Busch | 19 | 10.3 | 11.4 | 12.8 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 13 | 16 | 139 |
| Ryan Newman | 20 | 14.8 | 15.9 | 16.2 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 15 | 30 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 20 | 16.1 | 13.2 | 15.2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 12 | 16 | 308 |
| Austin Dillon | 20 | 14.7 | 16.7 | 16.4 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 16 | 27 |
| Jamie McMurray | 20 | 15.3 | 16.1 | 17.7 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 11 | 13 | 39 |
| Fast | Top 15 | Laps | Avg. | High | Low | Pos | Laps Led | Rating | |
| Driver | Laps | Rate | Comp. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff. | Pts./Race | Range |
| Kevin Harvick | 641 | 83% | 4565 | 117.5 | 150 | 62.2 | -2.70 | 11.85 | 87.8 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 694 | 85% | 4947 | 112.7 | 147.6 | 69.5 | 1.80 | 11.68 | 78.1 |
| Kyle Larson | 301 | 79% | 4731 | 99.4 | 140.5 | 53.3 | 0.50 | 3.68 | 87.2 |
| Brad Keselowski | 334 | 88% | 4871 | 104.1 | 127.5 | 66.9 | 0.30 | 5.33 | 60.6 |
| Kyle Busch | 381 | 86% | 4679 | 109.6 | 130.6 | 65.2 | -1.00 | 9.17 | 65.4 |
| Denny Hamlin | 92 | 80% | 4892 | 92.6 | 112.8 | 68.1 | -1.10 | 0.73 | 44.7 |
| Clint Bowyer | 50 | 49% | 4872 | 74.2 | 124.2 | 47.4 | -0.30 | 0.40 | 76.8 |
| Joey Logano | 141 | 87% | 4851 | 99.5 | 130.6 | 59.3 | -3.10 | 2.91 | 71.3 |
| Ryan Blaney | 170 | 82% | 4392 | 97.8 | 128.4 | 63 | 0.30 | 2.54 | 65.4 |
| Chase Elliott | 163 | 76% | 3946 | 95 | 129.1 | 73.1 | -3.90 | 2.24 | 56 |
| Kurt Busch | 112 | 75% | 4589 | 91.3 | 125.6 | 67.7 | -2.50 | 1.83 | 57.9 |
| Ryan Newman | 34 | 53% | 4752 | 77.4 | 103.4 | 49 | -1.40 | 0.38 | 54.4 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 234 | 64% | 4910 | 88.3 | 130.3 | 60.1 | 0.90 | 3.85 | 70.2 |
| Austin Dillon | 33 | 48% | 4794 | 77.3 | 107.7 | 43.3 | -1.70 | 0.34 | 64.4 |
| Jamie McMurray | 36 | 59% | 4675 | 78.8 | 113.5 | 46.7 | -2.40 | 0.49 | 66.8 |
Momentum
| Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Pos | Avg. | |||
| Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Diff. | Rating |
| Aric Almirola | 5 | 11.4 | 10.2 | 8.8 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 2.6 | 96.9 |
| Chase Elliott | 5 | 8.6 | 9.8 | 15.6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | -7 | 97.6 |
| Ryan Blaney | 5 | 9.2 | 11.2 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | -3.8 | 89.3 |
| Kyle Busch | 5 | 7.8 | 10.6 | 14.8 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | -7 | 94.1 |
| Brad Keselowski | 5 | 13.4 | 8.6 | 16.4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | -3 | 102.1 |
| Joey Logano | 5 | 11 | 8.6 | 7.2 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 3.8 | 101.8 |
| Clint Bowyer | 5 | 10.6 | 10 | 14.6 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | -4 | 94.5 |
| Kurt Busch | 5 | 4.4 | 7 | 12.6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | -8.2 | 103.9 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 5 | 8 | 10 | 11.6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | -3.6 | 102.2 |
| Denny Hamlin | 5 | 11.4 | 13.8 | 13.2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | -1.8 | 83.9 |
| Kevin Harvick | 5 | 6 | 7.6 | 16.8 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | -10.8 | 112.6 |
| Kyle Larson | 5 | 13.8 | 11 | 11.4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 2.4 | 98.2 |
| Erik Jones | 5 | 10.4 | 17.4 | 18.6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | -8.2 | 78.9 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 5 | 17 | 19.4 | 18.4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | -1.4 | 77.5 |
| Alex Bowman | 5 | 8.8 | 12.4 | 19.2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -10.4 | 83.6 |
| Jamie McMurray | 5 | 17 | 18.2 | 22.2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -5.2 | 71 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 5 | 12.6 | 18.6 | 16.2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | -3.6 | 79.1 |
| Austin Dillon | 5 | 20.6 | 17 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4.6 | 78.3 |
| Daniel Suarez | 5 | 21.2 | 16.8 | 14.4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6.8 | 72.4 |
| Paul Menard | 5 | 22 | 17.8 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 79.2 |
Price Changes Since May Kansas Race
DraftKings
| Kansas DK Salaries | |||
| Driver | May Race | Oct. Race | Difference |
| AJ Allmendinger | 6500 | 6200 | -300 |
| Alex Bowman | 7700 | 7600 | -100 |
| Aric Almirola | 8600 | 8100 | -500 |
| Austin Dillon | 7400 | 6800 | -600 |
| Brad Keselowski | 9700 | 10500 | 800 |
| Bubba Wallace | 6100 | 5500 | -600 |
| Chase Elliott | 10300 | 9900 | -400 |
| Chris Buescher | 5800 | 6100 | 300 |
| Clint Bowyer | 9000 | 9600 | 600 |
| Corey Lajoie | 5100 | 4700 | -400 |
| Daniel Suarez | 6800 | 7900 | 1100 |
| David Ragan | 6000 | 5700 | -300 |
| Denny Hamlin | 9500 | 9100 | -400 |
| Erik Jones | 8100 | 9300 | 1200 |
| Jamie McMurray | 7600 | 7800 | 200 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 9300 | 8300 | -1000 |
| Joey Logano | 9900 | 8500 | -1400 |
| Kevin Harvick | 11700 | 12300 | 600 |
| Kurt Busch | 8400 | 8900 | 500 |
| Kyle Busch | 11200 | 11800 | 600 |
| Kyle Larson | 10600 | 11500 | 900 |
| Landon Cassill | 4700 | 5200 | 500 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 10800 | 10800 | 0 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 5200 | 5400 | 200 |
| Michael McDowell | 5400 | 5600 | 200 |
| Paul Menard | 7000 | 7200 | 200 |
| Reed Sorenson | 4800 | 4900 | 100 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 7300 | 6700 | -600 |
| Ross Chastain | 4900 | 5300 | 400 |
| Ryan Blaney | 8800 | 8700 | -100 |
| Ryan Newman | 7900 | 7400 | -500 |
| Timmy Hill | 4600 | 4500 | -100 |
| Ty Dillon | 5700 | 5900 | 200 |
| William Byron | 6600 | 7000 | 400 |
FanDuel
| Kansas FD Salaries | |||
| Driver | May Race | Oct. Race | Difference |
| AJ Allmendinger | 7100 | 6800 | -300 |
| Alex Bowman | 8800 | 8400 | -400 |
| Aric Almirola | 9400 | 10100 | 700 |
| Austin Dillon | 8100 | 8800 | 700 |
| Brad Keselowski | 10900 | 12700 | 1800 |
| Bubba Wallace | 7400 | 7200 | -200 |
| Chase Elliott | 10100 | 11300 | 1200 |
| Chris Buescher | 6800 | 6500 | -300 |
| Clint Bowyer | 10200 | 10700 | 500 |
| Corey LaJoie | 5000 | 4000 | -1000 |
| Daniel Suarez | 9500 | 8500 | -1000 |
| David Ragan | 6000 | 5500 | -500 |
| Denny Hamlin | 11300 | 10400 | -900 |
| Erik Jones | 9700 | 9800 | 100 |
| Jamie McMurray | 9300 | 8000 | -1300 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 10400 | 9500 | -900 |
| Joey Logano | 11000 | 11800 | 800 |
| Kevin Harvick | 13500 | 14200 | 700 |
| Kurt Busch | 10600 | 11000 | 400 |
| Kyle Busch | 12200 | 13800 | 1600 |
| Kyle Larson | 10700 | 12000 | 1300 |
| Landon Cassill | 5500 | 4000 | -1500 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | 12500 | 13400 | 900 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 5800 | 6000 | 200 |
| Michael McDowell | 6500 | 5000 | -1500 |
| Paul Menard | 7900 | 7600 | -300 |
| Reed Sorenson | 5000 | 4000 | -1000 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 9000 | 7800 | -1200 |
| Ross Chastain | 5000 | 4000 | -1000 |
| Ryan Blaney | 11500 | 11500 | 0 |
| Ryan Newman | 8400 | 8200 | -200 |
| Ty Dillon | 6100 | 4500 | -1600 |
| William Byron | 8600 | 7400 | -1200 |
Points Changes at Kansas October Race
DraftKings
| 17 Race | Season | DK Pts +/- | |
| Driver | Total | Avg DK Pts. | Season AVG |
| Martin Truex Jr | 97.75 | 47.39 | 50.4 |
| Ryan Blaney | 79.75 | 34.89 | 44.9 |
| Chris Buescher | 52 | 25.42 | 26.6 |
| Kurt Busch | 58 | 39.68 | 18.3 |
| Kyle Busch | 78 | 59.98 | 18.0 |
| Ty Dillon | 41 | 23.01 | 18.0 |
| Reed Sorenson | 31 | 14.58 | 16.4 |
| Paul Menard | 43.5 | 27.23 | 16.3 |
| Chase Elliott | 52 | 36.76 | 15.2 |
| David Ragan | 37 | 21.76 | 15.2 |
| Jeffrey Earnhardt | 30 | 17.33 | 12.7 |
| Aric Almirola | 51 | 39.36 | 11.6 |
| Trevor Bayne | 32 | 21.71 | 10.3 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 30 | 20.64 | 9.4 |
| Landon Cassill | 29 | 20.06 | 8.9 |
| Corey LaJoie | 24 | 15.88 | 8.1 |
| BJ McLeod | 20 | 13.17 | 6.8 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 35.5 | 30.87 | 4.6 |
| Brad Keselowski | 40 | 36.04 | 4.0 |
| Michael McDowell | 24 | 21.09 | 2.9 |
| Denny Hamlin | 39.75 | 37.73 | 2.0 |
| Kevin Harvick | 64.25 | 65.27 | -1.0 |
| Austin Dillon | 27 | 28.76 | -1.8 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 12.5 | 25.51 | -13.0 |
| AJ Allmendinger | 6 | 25.31 | -19.3 |
| Joey Logano | 19 | 38.89 | -19.9 |
| Clint Bowyer | 16.5 | 43.22 | -26.7 |
| Ryan Newman | -4 | 26.34 | -30.3 |
| Jamie McMurray | -13.25 | 22.62 | -35.9 |
| Erik Jones | -16.5 | 31.17 | -47.7 |
| Daniel Suarez | -23 | 31.23 | -54.2 |
| Kyle Larson | -16.5 | 41.56 | -58.1 |
| AVG. +/- | 19.6 |
FanDuel
| 17 Race | 18 Season | FD Pts +/- | |
| Driver | Total | Avg FD Pts. | Season AVG |
| Ryan Blaney | 83.5 | 50.60 | 32.90 |
| Chris Buescher | 68.7 | 45.18 | 23.52 |
| Martin Truex Jr | 78.8 | 56.02 | 22.78 |
| Kurt Busch | 73.2 | 54.91 | 18.29 |
| Reed Sorenson | 48.3 | 32.68 | 15.62 |
| Chase Elliott | 68.7 | 53.34 | 15.36 |
| Paul Menard | 61.2 | 45.92 | 15.28 |
| Ty Dillon | 58.2 | 43.32 | 14.88 |
| Aric Almirola | 66.7 | 54.52 | 12.18 |
| David Ragan | 55.7 | 43.92 | 11.78 |
| Corey LaJoie | 43.6 | 31.87 | 11.73 |
| Jeffrey Earnhardt | 47.1 | 36.46 | 10.64 |
| Michael McDowell | 48.7 | 38.92 | 9.78 |
| Landon Cassill | 48.5 | 38.92 | 9.58 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 49.7 | 40.84 | 8.86 |
| Trevor Bayne | 51.7 | 43.05 | 8.65 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 57.2 | 48.91 | 8.29 |
| Denny Hamlin | 62.7 | 54.75 | 7.95 |
| BJ McLeod | 39.4 | 31.66 | 7.74 |
| Kyle Busch | 67.4 | 61.77 | 5.63 |
| Brad Keselowski | 55 | 51.21 | 3.79 |
| Austin Dillon | 52.2 | 49.11 | 3.09 |
| Kevin Harvick | 60.4 | 62.07 | -1.67 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 35.1 | 45.89 | -10.79 |
| Joey Logano | 44.7 | 57.31 | -12.61 |
| Clint Bowyer | 43.7 | 56.42 | -12.72 |
| AJ Allmendinger | 29.2 | 43.57 | -14.37 |
| Ryan Newman | 20.8 | 47.79 | -26.99 |
| Jamie McMurray | 13.9 | 45.44 | -31.54 |
| Daniel Suarez | 9.2 | 48.99 | -39.79 |
| Erik Jones | 11.2 | 51.39 | -40.19 |
| Kyle Larson | -3.7 | 56.02 | -59.72 |
| AVG. +/- | 16.52 |
Top-10 and Bottom-10 Value Drivers
DraftKings
| Rank | Driver | Value | Rank | Driver | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Regan Smith | 5.73 | 40 | Timmy Hill | 2.64 |
| 2 | Kevin Harvick | 5.31 | 39 | BJ McLeod | 2.86 |
| 3 | Kyle Busch | 5.08 | 38 | Kyle Weatherman | 2.86 |
| 4 | Aric Almirola | 4.86 | 37 | Jamie McMurray | 2.90 |
| 5 | Joey Logano | 4.58 | 36 | Reed Sorenson | 2.98 |
| 6 | Clint Bowyer | 4.50 | 35 | William Byron | 3.19 |
| 7 | Kurt Busch | 4.46 | 34 | Trevor Bayne | 3.34 |
| 8 | Martin Truex Jr | 4.39 | 33 | Erik Jones | 3.35 |
| 9 | Austin Dillon | 4.23 | 32 | Corey Lajoie | 3.38 |
| 10 | Chris Buescher | 4.17 | 31 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | 3.40 |
FanDuel
| Rank | Driver | Value | Rank | Driver | Value |
| 1 | Ross Chastain | 10.02 | 40 | Brad Keselowski | 4.03 |
| 2 | Landon Cassill | 9.73 | 39 | Martin Truex Jr. | 4.18 |
| 3 | Ty Dillon | 9.63 | 38 | Kevin Harvick | 4.37 |
| 4 | J.J. Yeley | 9.56 | 37 | Ryan Blaney | 4.40 |
| 5 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | 9.11 | 36 | Kyle Busch | 4.48 |
| 6 | Kyle Weatherman | 8.81 | 35 | Kyle Larson | 4.67 |
| 7 | Regan Smith | 8.68 | 34 | Chase Elliott | 4.72 |
| 8 | Reed Sorenson | 8.17 | 33 | Joey Logano | 4.86 |
| 9 | David Ragan | 7.99 | 32 | Kurt Busch | 4.99 |
| 10 | Corey LaJoie | 7.97 | 31 | Jimmie Johnson | 5.15 |
Drivers To Watch This Week
Martin Truex Jr. - Truex was listed above as a guy that has won multiple races in the last five trips here along with Kevin Harvick. Harvick isn’t in this section because he is safe to make it to the next round, just as long has he takes the green flag on Sunday that is. Truex however, is in the last and final spot to make the next round, 18 points ahead of Keselowski. He doesn’t need a win to advance, but he does need a solid finish. He has three top-10s and 380 laps led in the last five so a solid finish should be doable for him come Sunday.
Clint Bowyer - Bowyer is heading to his home track this week as he hails from Emporia Kansas. Last week went about as it could go for Bowyer and the other SHR cars aside from two of them running out of gas late. The great finish last week gives him some breathing room this week as he’s 21 points to good over the cutoff but even with this being his home track he still only has one top-10 in the last five races and two top-15s. That may not be enough depending on what a couple others under the cut line do.
Ryan Blaney - Blaney got into this round by winning at the Roval a couple weeks back, but now he sits on the wrong side of the cut, 22 points behind MTJ for the eighth and final spot. It’s not quite a win or go home race, though he certainly needs some help with advancing aside from a great finish. In the last five races. Blaney has three top-fives and four top-15s in that span with 140 laps led. His average finish of 12.6 is a bit higher than you might expect for a guy with three top-fives. Doing a bit of checking and you see he has finishes of P5, P14, P4, P3, and P37 in the most recent race.
Kyle Larson - Here we get to a guy who has been showing flashes of speed all season but hasn’t been able to put it all together as of yet. At Kansas he has a top-five, two top-10s, 101 laps led (all in one race), and 71 fastest laps in the last five races here. This track really fits his style now with the outside lane being the fastest way around however that can cause havoc if you miss your spots and hit the wall. Larson is in a win or go home situation this week following a post-race penalty at Talladega and having points removed from his tally. He is now 37 points behind the cutoff meaning that if MTJ and Larson didn’t get stage points at all, Larson would have to beat him by 36 spots on the track and hope that Blaney and Keselowski crash too. That’s not great odds.
Brad Keselowski - Keselowski has been in this position before with needing a win to advance in a cutoff race, and he’s pulled that rabbit out of the hat before. However that was at tracks that have been better for him than Kansas. In the last five races he’s posted one top-five, two top-10s, four top-15s, and 22 laps led. Overall its a solid résumé but not a great one. He did win here in 2011 but doesn’t necessarily need a win to advance as he’s 18 points behind MTJ in ninth place. Keselowski will need to keep the car up front all day though and hope that if he can’t get the win, that MTJ finishes behind him or that he outpoints him in stage points.