Take 5: What we learned from Kansas

Truex's redemption: Last year's springtime trip to Kansas Speedway ended in a heartbreaker for Martin Truex Jr., a wheel issue on a late-race pit stop unraveling a dominant run. This year, Truex's path to victory stayed on the rails in the Go Bowling 400 with his second Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win of the year. 'You don't forget those days that ones got away or you screwed up and gave one away or anything like that,' said Truex, who posted his ninth career victory. 'You never forget those things. They always stick with you. … Definitely feels good to be here, and I feel like it's been a long time coming, and we definitely earned it, that's for sure.'

Blaney buoyed at Kansas: Ryan Blaney was a first-time pole starter, a leader eight times for 83 laps, and a Stage 2 winner Saturday night. Try as he might, the 23-year-old driver for Wood Brothers Racing couldn't hold off Truex, losing ground over a series of late-race restarts to fade to a fourth-place finish. Blaney's disappointment was evident, but the top-five effort was still a marked improvement after three straight finishes of 33rd or worse. 'It was nice to show our muscle this weekend and prove that, like I said, this is where the 21 team deserves to be,' Blaney said. 'So it's just nice to get back on track.'

Modest gains for JGR: While Joe Gibbs Racing's winless start to the 2017 season continued, the Toyota organization showed some glimmers of improvement at Kansas, with all four of its cars residing among the top eight at the race's halfway point. Kyle Busch led the charge, leading 59 laps before settling for fifth place. Rookie Daniel Suarez matched a career-best in seventh, with teammates Matt Kenseth (12th) and Denny Hamlin (23rd, after a collision near the front on the next-to-last restart) behind them.

Hendrick hampered: Three of Hendrick Motorsports' four drivers were relegated to the back of the starting grid after issues in Friday's pre-qualifying inspection. In Saturday night's main event, the best showing after 400 miles was Kasey Kahne's 15th-place effort. None of the four led a green-flag lap. Dale Earnhardt Jr. wound up 20th with teammates Chase Elliott and Jimmie Johnson enduring an adventurous night. Elliott incurred damage to his No. 24 Chevrolet in a pit-road incident with Michael McDowell in the opening stage; Johnson made continual rallies, but couldn't overcome an early pit-road penalty, a Stage 2 collision and flat, plus a late-race spin.

Loose wheels: A lot was shaking Saturday night at Kansas Speedway -- in particular, the cars. Plenty of teams reported varying degrees of vibrations during Saturday night's Go Bowling 400, forcing a handful of unscheduled stops that jumbled the running order. 'Looking back through our notes this is a track where we all kind of complain a lot about vibrations and thinking we have loose wheels when we don't,' said Dale Earnhardt Jr., who lost a lap pitting for a phantom vibration. 'I know a lot of guys tonight complained a lot about it.'