Snapshot: Kansas

On the front row | FULL LINEUP
1. Kevin Harvick, Stewart-Haas Racing No. 4 Chevrolet (197.621 mph*)
2. Brian Vickers, Michael Waltrip Racing No. 55 Toyota (196.307 mph)
*In the second round of group qualifying, Harvick set a track record of 197.773 mph. The previous track record was 194.252 mph, set by Harvick earlier this year.

Pole cat
Friday’s pole was the eighth of the season for Harvick. Prior to this year, the Bakersfield, California, native had six career poles in 466 attempts.

Playing catch-up
Six-time series champion Jimmie Johnson spun his No. 48 Chevrolet during the first round of qualifying (watch the video here) and as a result will start 32nd. It’s the deepest he has started in the field this year, equaling his starting spot for the season-opening Daytona 500.

Fastest in practice
First practice: Jeff Gordon, Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 Chevrolet (196.257 mph)
Second practice: Marcos Ambrose, Richard Petty Motorsports No. 9 Ford (191.652 mph)
Final practice: Kyle Larson, Chip Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet (190.295 mph)

Defending Hollywood Casino 400 champion
Kevin Harvick

Tough day at the office
Two drivers, Kurt Busch and Alex Bowman, brought out the caution flag for separate incidents during Saturday’s final practice. Busch lost the handle on his No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet and spun through the infield grass. Damage to the front end of the car was significant enough for the team to bring out its backup for Sunday’s race. Bowman (BK Racing) made contact with the wall later in the session.

Driver rating
(Best driver rating average at Kansas Speedway based on past nine years)
Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 Chevrolet (117.4)
Matt Kenseth, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Toyota (107.4)
Greg Biffle, Roush Fenway Racing No. 16 Ford (104.7)

They said it
“It’s fast enough that I don’t want to have to do that again the rest of the day.” — Three-time Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart, who qualified ninth.

“Our cars just don’t have any speed. Balance is fine, just three-tenths, four-tenths off consistently. All of our cars are.” — Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin

“We still have a lot to race for. We can get as high as fifth in points and that should be our goal, to get as high in points as we can.” — No. 3 qualifier Aric Almirola, Richard Petty Motorsports. Almirola was eliminated from the Chase in the Challenger Round.

Former Kansas winners in the field
Jeff Gordon (3); Greg Biffle, Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth (2); Brad Keselowski, Ryan Newman, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick.

Fantasy sleeper (courtesy of RotoWire)
Kasey Kahne. The driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet just comes to life on certain tracks, and this outing at Kansas should be no different. Kahne is battling some bad luck of late, but looking to change his fortunes this week. Considering he made the next round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup by the slimmest of margins, he should kick it in high gear. He owns three career poles and 100 laps led at Kansas, and four of his last six trips to Kansas have netted a pair of runner-up finishes and top-fives.

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