Posted on by Nathan Solomon

Editor’s note: Race projections were updated after Saturday’s practice and qualifying sessions.

With the postseason nearing its halfway point, the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs head to the Heartland at Kansas Speedway for the second time this season today (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Although much more is on the line the second time around in the Sunflower State, the predicted outcome remains the same.

Racing Insights projects that Kyle Larson will claim his fourth career win at the 1.5-mile oval, backing up a dominant victory in the spring. The 2021 series champion led 221 laps in May, the most by a driver in a 400-mile race at a mile-and-a-half track in series history. His 760 laps out front at Kansas since joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2021 are four times more than any other driver in that span. In 34 starts at 1.5-mile tracks with the organization, he’s won 10 times — an impressive 29%.

And at this juncture of the season, few need a victory more than the 33-year-old from Elk Grove, California, even though he sits plus-41 to the cutline. His May Kansas romp was his most recent at the Cup level, a triumph that bookended a white-hot spring and began an 18-race stretch (leading up to now) that’s included six finishes of 28th or worse with just three top fives. A recovery at one of NASCAR’s most exciting tracks would alleviate a lot of stress for the Charlotte Roval, even though he’s the defending winner.

RELATED: Photos: See Kansas lineup | Cup Playoffs standings

In totality, Racing Insights projects the entire HMS four-car stable to finish inside the top seven, with Alex Bowman in seventh as the best non-playoff competitor of the field. Chase Elliott and William Byron have constantly performed well at Kansas as both drivers have recorded the second-most top-10 finishes among all tracks (12 for Elliott; eight for Byron). The organization has placed cars inside the top two in six of the last eight Kansas races and all four drivers rank inside the top 10 in speed and long runs at intermediate tracks in 2025.

While Ryan Blaney doesn’t have much to worry about on Sunday with a Round of 12 victory already in his pocket, other Team Penske members alluded to concerns regarding Kansas. The organization hasn’t won in the Jayhawk State since 2020, with just four top fives in that time frame. Joey Logano enters the middle race of the round at plus-24 with teammate Austin Cindric the opposite, sitting 19 markers below the cutline. Both drivers are inside the top 10 in just two NASCAR Insights categories at comparable tracks, and for Cindric, an average finish of 23.6 at the track is his worst among all venues with seven or more starts.

The concerns came true in practice, with Blaney hitting the wall and being forced to a backup and Logano suffering a flat tire.

But as evidenced in the past, the organization rises to the occasion when the stakes are the highest. In the Next Gen era, Penske drivers click off wins at a 26.5% rate compared to just 12.5% in the regular season. While Logano has the momentum, recording top fives in three consecutive races for the first time in six years, Kansas could make or break both drivers’ championship aspirations.

The same goes for 23XI Racing drivers Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace. Both drivers enter race No. 5 of the playoffs well below the cutline (minus-23 and minus-27, respectively), but are by no means in must-win positions … yet. History bodes well for them as the organization is responsible for three of the last seven race wins at Kansas (and 33% of the team’s wins since its inception in 2021). The spring Kansas race didn’t go well as Reddick finished 17th and Wallace crashed and finished 33rd, but the 23XI track record is hard to bet against. And don’t forget about the last time we went to a high-speed oval: Wallace won his first Brickyard 400.

If you want a sleeper organization to keep an eye on, don’t overlook Spire Motorsports. Saturday success hasn’t quite translated to race pace on Sunday, but the team is responsible for a pair of 1.5-mile track poles this season. Plus, Carson Hocevar has the fourth-best average finish over the four playoff races (10.5).

Kansas breeds chaos in the most exciting way possible: Multi-groove racing up all the way to the fence; historically close finishes; and maybe most importantly, major implications that could make or break a driver’s championship run with a road course waiting in the wings next weekend.

FANTASY: Set your lineup | Make a 36 for 36 pick

OTHER DRIVERS TO WATCH

CHRISTOPHER BELL: A win Sunday would tie Bell with teammate Denny Hamlin at five wins in 2025. The No. 20 driver has led in all seven Next Gen Kansas races, totaling 197, the most all-time without a win at the track. He finished second in the spring and no worse than eighth in his last four trips to the heartland. With a victory at Bristol two weeks ago, he’s riding obvious momentum, recording an average finish of 10.75 in four playoff events.

DENNY HAMLIN: With win No. 60 of his career in Hamlin’s mind, Kansas would be a pretty fitting place to do it. His four victories at the high-speed oval are the most all-time with seven top 10s in his last eight starts. Hamlin places no worse than ninth in all five NASCAR Insights categories at comparable tracks, making it more than realistic that the historic win could come Sunday.

CHASE BRISCOE: The only driver to record a top 10 in all four playoff races, Briscoe’s searching for his first win at a mile-and-a-half race track. He finished fourth in the spring Kansas race, his best result in nine trips to the Midwest track. He’ll have the added benefit of starting from the pole, too.

ROSS CHASTAIN: The Trackhouse Racing driver earned his first top 10 of the playoffs last weekend at New Hampshire and heads to Kansas as the defending fall race winner. His average finish at 1.5-mile tracks is 11.4, tied for fifth-best, and is one of seven drivers with multiple Next Gen wins at this type of track. At comparable tracks, he’s first in defense and second on restarts, according to NASCAR Insights.

RYAN PREECE: In his first season with RFK Racing, Preece has been one of the best at mile-and-a-half tracks. His four top 10s this season tie Larson for the most in Cup, with his 11.4 average finish tying Chastain for fifth-best. Preece has finished 13th or worse in the last seven races, but a turnaround could certainly be in store for the non-playoff driver on Sunday.

RACING INSIGHTS’ PROJECTIONS FOR HOLLYWOOD CASINO 400 PRESENTED BY ESPN BET

Racing Insights’ advanced statistical formula incorporates current track, track type, recent performance, team data and pit-crew data to predict a projected winner and provide full race results. Updated on race day with practice and qualifying factored in.

FinishCar No.Driver
15Kyle Larson
220Christopher Bell
311Denny Hamlin
424William Byron
59Chase Elliott
648Alex Bowman
712Ryan Blaney
817Chris Buescher
919Chase Briscoe
1045Tyler Reddick
111Ross Chastain
1223Bubba Wallace
1322Joey Logano
1460Ryan Preece
1577Carson Hocevar
1654Ty Gibbs
176Brad Keselowski
184Noah Gragson
1943Erik Jones
2016AJ Allmendinger
2121Josh Berry
2271Michael McDowell
232Austin Cindric
2442John Hunter Nemechek
258Kyle Busch
263Austin Dillon
2747Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
2838Zane Smith
2999Daniel Suárez
307Justin Haley
3134Todd Gilliland
3288Shane van Gisbergen
3341Cole Custer
3410Ty Dillon
3535Riley Herbst
3651Cody Ware
3744J.J. Yeley
Posted on by Brandon White

MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Landon Pembelton wanted to win another grandfather clock Saturday evening in more ways than one.

The 20-year-old Amelia, Virginia native is set to move out of his parents’ house at the end of the year. One of the conditions his father Brian Pembelton gave him about finding a new place is that the grandfather clock his son earned in his first ValleyStar Credit Union 300 appearance in 2021 would stay inside the family home.

Fueled by extra motivation to bring a grandfather clock to his new home, the younger Pembelton took the fight to two-time ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winner Lee Pulliam in an overtime shootout. The two accomplished competitors traded blows during the closing laps, culminating in a finish decided by only a few inches.

Pembelton emerged victorious in the photo finish, denying Pulliam a record-tying third Martinsville Speedway triumph while simultaneously claiming his second.

“You can’t ask for a better finish,” Pembelton said. “That’s how you’re supposed to race. This race has brought a lot of excitement, and it was fairly clean [tonight]. We rubbed a little bit and moved each other, but that last corner I knew he was going to give me a shot, so I sailed it on down there pretty good.

“He got to me and we rubbed, but we didn’t tear nothing up, so that’s all you can ask for.”

As with plenty of ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winners that came before him, Pembelton’s victory on the Late Model Stock discipline’s biggest stage back in 2021 proved to be a life-changing moment.

Pembelton joined Toyota Racing Development the following year, partnering up with Venturini Motorsports for a part-time ARCA Menards Series schedule while continuing his Late Model Stock exploits. In his first race with Venturini, Pembelton scored an impressive third-place run at Elko Speedway.

The other two starts for Pembelton in a Venturini car that year saw him place inside the top 10. He also continued to excel in Late Model Stocks with a Dominion Raceway track championship, all of which appeared to prime Pembelton for a methodical-but-successful progression through Toyota’s developmental ladder.

For Pembelton, there were two reasons as to why advancing into NASCAR’s top divisions never materialized.

“Money became a factor, but I don’t like to blame that,” Pembelton said. “I felt like I could have done better behind the wheel, but it all kind of played out. [Toyota] offered me a good deal, but it was not something we were really chasing after. Late Model Stocks hit home for me, and it’s something I’ve always grown up around.”

Content with his status as a Late Model Stock regular, Pembelton has been gradually refining his skills in the discipline. He is partnered with a top-tier program in R&S Race Cars, a combination that netted two victories and a third-place points finish in South Boston Speedway’s Late Model Stock standings.

The cohesion with R&S Race Cars served Pembelton well as he prepared for his fifth ValleyStar Credit Union 300 attempt this weekend. Pembelton emerged as one of the favorites alongside Pulliam, who had pulled away with a small-but-comfortable advantage as the white flag drew closer.

A caution for Brandon Pierce transformed Pembelton’s initial satisfaction with a runner-up finish into an opportunity to become a multi-time ValleyStar Credit Union 300 winner. Pembelton knew Pulliam would do everything possible to defend his lead, so he had to go on the offensive.

After muscling Pulliam out of the top spot, the Late Model Stock legend returned the favor to Pembelton coming to the checkered flag. Instinct and adrenaline kicked in for Pembelton as he did everything possible to hold onto his lead.

“It was kind of a blur,” Pembelton said. “When I went into turn three, I didn’t really remember anything until I got out of turn four. We were drag racing to the line, and I knew I had him at the line. I was very confident in that.”

For as much elation Pembelton, his family and team showed in the immediate aftermath of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300, the mood was bittersweet for Pulliam, who was in front when a rain shower hit Martinsville with 25 laps remaining. The delay only lasted an hour, forcing Pulliam to fight for another grandfather clock.

If he had fended off Pembelton, Pulliam would have matched his long-time rival Philip Morris in ValleyStar Credit Union 300s wins.

Pulliam was among the first to congratulate Pembelton in Victory Lane. Having previously mentored Pembelton through his own program, Pulliam has always held the young competitor in high regard and commended him for the performance he put together at Martinsville on Saturday.

“Landon is a great kid,” Pulliam said. “He drove my car here last year. [The Pembeltons] are a great family. They come from the logging business, and I grew up logging with my dad. Hard workers. I don’t blame the kid, and I can’t be mad at him. I would have done the same thing.”

By preventing Pulliam from claiming another grandfather clock, Pembelton is now in the same category as a two-time ValleyStar Credit Union 300 champion. Aside from Morris and his three checkered flags, the only other multi-time winners in the event are Tony McGuire, Tommy Lemons Jr. and Timothy Peters.

Pembelton’s second ValleyStar Credit Union 300 victory is now enshrined in the Martinsville record books, but one question remains. Where will the second grandfather clock end up?

Brian, who has plenty of experience around Virginia’s short tracks himself, is holding firm on keeping both clocks at the family home for now, but he has no issues with one day seeing them in his son’s own living room.

“I told him that we’re going to keep [the grandfather] clock until he builds him a house,” Brian said. “He’s going to rent a house. When he gets his own place and settled in 100 percent, they are his clocks to take. I might buy me some replicas to keep, but he earned them.”

For all the conversations he has exchanged with his son about the grandfather clock, Brian felt nothing but immense pride Saturday. It was only four years ago when Pembelton stunned the Late Model Stock and NASCAR communities by winning the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at just 16 years of age.

Now Pembelton is a two-time winner after outdueling Pulliam, someone Brian considers a legend of the sport and a close friend.

“I was emotional the first time, and I was probably more emotional the second time,” Brian said. “I wanted [Landon] to solidify himself for what he had done the first time, and I believe he did that. He made the fans stand up. Lee and him put on a great show.

“To beat one of the best that’s ever done it is humbling, really.”

A lot has changed for the younger Pembelton between his two ValleyStar Credit Union 300 victories, but the second one places him amongst many Late Model Stock legends that have turned laps around Martinsville.

Conversations with his family may continue about the immediate future of his two grandfather clocks, but Pembelton returns home knowing he is a two-time Martinsville winner with plenty more great years ahead.

“I can soak this one in,” Pembelton said. “The first one I came in as a rookie not knowing the full extent of it. I’m able to celebrate this one to the fullest extent.”

Posted on by Staff Report

ValleyStar Credit Union 300

Martinsville Speedway

  • Race results:
Pos. No. Name Sponsor Laps Diff.
1 0 Landon Pembelton Pembelton Forest Products/Williams Logging Chevrolet 204  –
2 1B Lee Pulliam Carolina Drilling/Best Repair Company/Folsom Fence Supply Chevrolet 204 0.024
3 14 Jared Fryar Eaton Mobile Movers Ford 204 0.235
4 1 Andrew Grady ABC Hosiery Chevrolet 204 0.549
5 71 Parker Eatmon Vetted Ventures Chevrolet 204 0.869
6 98 Ty Majeski Chad Bryant Racing Ford 204 0.891
7 28 Landon S. Huffman Pinnacle Racing Group Chevrolet 204 0.998
8 16 Cody Kelley AK Performance Chevrolet 204 1.38
9 88A Douglas Barnes Jones Junction Toyota 204 1.388
10 22 Carson Loftin Autos By Nelson/Valley Star Credit Union Toyota 204 1.612
11 88 Connor Hall Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet 204 1.893
12 51 Ryan Matthews James River Nurseries Toyota 204 1.904
13 8 Caden Kvapil Carolina Carports Chevrolet 204 2.133
14 12A Jake Crum Mount Airy Toyota/The 909 Ranch Chevrolet 204 2.884
15 29 Stuart Crews Sharon Lacks Inc.  Chevrolet 204 3.329
16 8B Conner Weddell First Choice Garage Doors Chevrolet 204 3.588
17 87 Mike Looney Hopkins Lumber Chevrolet 204 3.902
18 9 Riley Gentry Skipper Homes/Roots Tire & Auto/M&D Construction Toyota 204 4.07
19 98A Donovan Strauss QCollar/Ledford Billiard Supply/AK Performance Chevrolet 204 4.278
20 0 Chase Burrow Medek Corporation Toyota 204 4.861
21 2 Matt Waltz Waltz Engineered Sales Inc./DAVCON Inc. Chevrolet 204 5.897
22 4A Kade Brown WG Speeks/Caswell Glass Ford 204 6.244
23 2A Brandon Pierce Thunder Road Harley-Davidson Chevrolet 203 1 Lap
24 33 Dillon Harville Dillon Tree Service/GasTown/Mike Bledsole Mechanical Inc. Ford 202 2 Laps
25 7C Cory Pack Cotton’s Mobile Semi Repair Chevrolet 190 14 Laps
26 01A Camden Gullie UsedTrucksNC.com/TR Vernal Paving/Commercial Refinishers Ford 158 46 Laps
27 7B Tristan McKee Spire/Gainbridge/Hendricks Cars Chevrolet 157 47 Laps
28 97 Michael Bumgarner Clear Water/Clear Electric/Mean City Cycles Toyota 148 56 Laps
29 77 Trevor Ward Harrison’s/Digital Repairs Chevrolet 146 58 Laps
30 44 Conner Jones Jones Utilities Construction/Family Tire & Auto Chevrolet 140 64 Laps
31 40 Ryan Millington Leisure Tyme Rentals Chevrolet 113 91 Laps
32 6 Bobby McCarty Champion Automotive Ford 101 103 Laps
33 95A Sam Yarborough Aaron’s Sales & Lease Ford 100 104 Laps
34 13 Chase Murphy Dylan Ward Racing/JV Blackwell & Sons Trucking/J&T Woodworks Chevrolet 81 123 Laps
35 57 Landon Huffman Sheetz/IBCI Cadillac 40 164 Laps
36 25 Jacob Borst Barber Heating & Air Chevrolet 35 169 Laps
37 8A Tate Fogleman Fogleman Landfill Chevrolet 33 171 Laps
38 62 Ronnie Bassett Jr. Bessemer Tire Ford 21 183 Laps
39 17A Daniel Silvestri TC Construction/Edward’s Equipment Repair Ford 204 Laps
40 77B Blake Stallings R&S Race Cars Ford 204 Laps

 

Posted on by Zack Albert

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Justin Allgaier’s finish in 13th place Saturday at Kansas Speedway left him with three things: bittersweet emotions, some big-picture solace and four fresh Goodyear tires his team never got the chance to use.

Allgaier’s Saturday drive in the Kansas Lottery 300 — the middle race in the Xfinity Series Playoffs’ opening Round of 12 — could have been one for the ages, a max-points performance that would have provided a victorious high note to career start No. 499. Instead, Allgaier and his No. 7 JR Motorsports team found the points and comfort they needed to advance to the postseason’s next round, a key weekend objective that he and crew chief Jim Pohlman emphasized in the days heading into the 300-miler.

RELATED: Race results | Schedule, TV info: Kansas

The overly sufficient points margin provides Allgaier a worry-free stop next week in the Round of 12 finale at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval, but it also provided a small measure of heartache for what could’ve materialized.

“I mean, it’s both, right?” Allgaier said, noting his midweek meeting in Pohlman’s office. “… If we feel like we’re going to win the race, go win the race, right, but we also needed to be mindful of the points. We’ve gone to the (Charlotte) Roval I don’t know how many years the last handful, and you’re racing your guts out just to try to make it in the next round, and we had the luxury of not having to do that. So those are big deals for me, but it’s disappointing.”

Allgaier’s Saturday story was one of smooth sledding in the early portions and bumpier slopes in the second half. The 39-year-old driver led 71 of the first 90 laps to sweep the stage wins, gathering more of the championship points that would buoy his Round of 8 aims.

A sluggish pit stop during the Stage 2 break, however, knocked him back to sixth in the running order. Pohlman’s pep talk over the radio took a mismatched page from the most famous movie set in Kansas, as he gave his driver a confidence boost with a reminder to be patient as well: “Put those little red heels together there, Toto.”

Allgaier worked back up to fourth, driving on after a slight brush of the outside retaining wall on the 124th of 200 laps. But his big move arrived with a pivotal decision by Pohlman to stay out during a caution period that flew with 45 laps left, when Nick Sanchez and Justin Bonsignore came together exiting Turn 2. Only the No. 41 Haas Factory Team group for fellow playoff driver Sam Mayer, who eventually finished 16th, was on the same strategy.

MORE: At-track photos: Kansas

The crew chief was counting on another yellow flag, which would have given the No. 7 team an opportunity to use that last set of tires, reaping the benefit of a newfound grip advantage over the teams that had only scuffed-in sets as an option. That caution never came, and Brandon Jones eased to his second win of the year.

“The falloff is at one second in 10 laps, so all we needed was anytime after (Lap) 172, we needed a caution and we would have been sitting real pretty there,” Pohlman told NASCAR.com. “Them guys had some scuffs laying, and they probably would have pitted and we still would have had to go around them, but that’s a lot of falloff to have to deal with on sticker tires that we would have had laying, I think us and the 41 were still in the right position. Unfortunately, the caution just didn’t fall. For us, the points were the big thing, right? I knew after the first two stages that as long as we finished in the top 15, we were probably locked, so I felt confident about making that right decision there.

“But yeah, it sucks because we had a really hot rod and really good car and probably should have won the race, or should have been in contention to win the race. But hey, that’s what they paid me to do.”

Pohlman struck an apologetic tone on the No. 7 radio during the cool-down lap, but reiterated that he’d have elected to use the same strategy given the chance for a do-over. Allgaier responded that he wasn’t upset at the pit-box call, but rued the green-flag run to the finish that handcuffed them. Advancing in the playoffs helped offset that blow as Allgaier joined Jones and points leader and JRM teammate Connor Zilisch in the next round.

“When we lost the track position there at the end of Stage 2, it was tough because I felt like our strength was being out front, and we made an adjustment on the car, too, that just didn’t quite go with where we wanted to go,” Allgaier said. “But I’m not disappointed in the call. Jim Pohlman is probably one of the few crew chiefs on pit road that is really willing to be aggressive and to make good calls on pit road, and sometimes they work for you, and sometimes they don’t. We see it all the time on the Cup side here, on the Xfinity side and today just wasn’t our day.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

Track: Kansas Speedway
Location: Kansas City, Kansas
Track length: 1.5 miles
When: Sunday, 3 p.m. ET
Where to tune in: USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App
Race purse: $9,797,935
Race distance: 267 laps | 400.5 miles
Stages: 80 | 165 | 267
Defending winner: Ross Chastain, September 2024
Paint Scheme Preview: See fresh designs for Kansas
Starting lineup: Chase Briscoe snares Busch Light Pole

RELATED: How to watch on USA Network

Total team efforts on the table for Round of 12 showdown

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The dozen drivers who still carry championship hopes represent five organizations left standing in the Cup Series Playoffs picture. For each one, their overall objectives have strong similarities, but their situations slightly vary.

Those hopes get a bread-and-butter intermediate-track test at Kansas Speedway in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 Presented by ESPN Bet (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App). The venue — a fall fixture that’s hosted a playoff event ever since the 10-race format’s debut in 2004 — has been prone to postseason heartache, a source of multi-groove racing and historically close finishes, and a domination haven in recent years for Kyle Larson.

MORE: Weekend schedule: Kansas | Cup Series entry list

All five teams with remaining championship ambitions have the obvious goals — win, survive, advance — in mind for this weekend, for the rest of the Round of 12 and for the balance of the playoffs. The nuances bear looking into in this team-by-team motto tracker and outlook meter.

Team Penske: Pour it on. The only organization with a driver who’s already secured safe passage into the next round is Roger Penske’s. Ryan Blaney secured that automatic berth with a convincing win last weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The next two boxes for the Penske group to check involve defending Cup champ Joey Logano and teammate Austin Cindric, who are on opposite sides of the playoff bubble.

Ford hasn’t won here since the fall of 2020, an occasion that marked the most recent of Logano’s three Kansas victories, but Team Penske typically finds stride when playoff times arrive. That seasonal surge would help sustain Logano (plus-24 to the provisional cutline) and could lift Cindric, who is minus-19 and has the worst average finish at Kansas (23.9) among the remaining playoff drivers in the Next Gen era. Specific to this weekend, the organization will need to find the right balance with a new Goodyear tire setup. Both Blaney’s No. 12 and Logano’s No. 22 had significant issues in practice, and Cindric brushed the wall during his qualifying run.

Hendrick Motorsports: Play to your strengths. Larson has won twice and led 498 laps in the last seven Kansas races, notching top-five finishes in five of those seven. Last year’s playoff race here was an outlier, a 26th-place effort hampered by a flat tire and wall scrub just 20 laps in, but he’s projected to add to his win total in the latest Racing Insights projections.

William Byron and Chase Elliott — Larson’s playoff-eligible teammates — are each projected for top 10s or better in Sunday’s race, though neither of them have cracked the code to winning here with the Next Gen car. Byron came closest in this race last year with a runner-up finish, and Elliott ran third in the spring of 2024. All three are double digits above the provisional elimination line — Byron plus-47, Larson plus-41 and Elliott plus-14.

Joe Gibbs Racing: Stay in contact, but not like that. The fallout from last weekend’s teammate tangle between playoff-eligible Denny Hamlin and the postseason-non-grata Ty Gibbs has lingered ever since the Cup Series haulers packed up in New Hampshire and headed to the midwest this week. The rosy story arc of a JGR sweep through the Round of 16 has teetered with Team Penske’s awakening, and Kansas feels like a ripe place to regroup.

“If you’re talking about Kansas, I think we have everything we need,” said Chris Gabehart, JGR’s competition director. “This has been a really good track for us for a long time. So I’m actually really excited about the weekend and more focused on execution than speed. But execution is no small part of it, and you certainly don’t want to make your execution more difficult, which is something that we didn’t do a great job of last week as a company, and those are the types of things that we tried to talk through this week, and I think the drivers get it.”

Hamlin is a four-time Kansas winner who most recently prevailed here in the spring of 2023. Bell lacks a Kansas win but was the runner-up here last May and has four pole-position starts. Both have some buffer to work with above the elimination line, with Bell plus-29 and Hamlin plus-27. It’s their newest teammate Chase Briscoe, who has less cushion at plus-12 but won the pole Saturday and ran fourth here in the spring in his only Kansas start with JGR.

MORE: Playoff standings before Kansas

Trackhouse Racing: Fly solo and defend. The lone driver left holding the Trackhouse banner in the playoffs is Chastain, who is also the defending race winner. The 32-year-old driver recently cited his Kansas victory last September as proof of what his No. 1 Chevrolet team was capable of. Finding that level of sustaining speed, however, has been challenging for the whole Trackhouse outfit.

Chastain sits 12 points below the bubble, currently shown as the first driver out on the provisional playoff line. If a Kansas repeat doesn’t find its fruition Sunday, he’ll be left to fight off elimination at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval, where he’s expected to lean heavily on the expertise of teammate and road-racing virtuoso Shane van Gisbergen.

23XI Racing: Rekindle the magic. Kansas Speedway was once regarded as a 23XI stronghold, a place where the team won three out of four from 2022-23 with three different drivers. Bubba Wallace was on that list of winners alongside teammates Kurt Busch and Tyler Reddick, and he’s also taken note of the declining results in years since. Not helping matters, last weekend’s outing at New Hampshire, where no 23XI cars finished among the top 20.

Reddick’s average finish in the last three Kansas races is 20.7, with Wallace’s 22.3. Reversing that trend and regaining some Kansas confidence have some connective urgency. Both drivers are at the bottom of the playoff standings with Reddick 23 points back of the elimination barrier and Wallace minus-27. This week’s motivation from team co-owners Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin was fairly straightforward. “Just basically get back on the horse,” Wallace said Saturday at Kansas. “You know, one bad week isn’t going to deter us from our destiny, our path this season. So we’re still excited, still optimistic. A lot of people are looking forward to running this whole thing out to get to Phoenix and racing for a championship. So we’ve just got to work really hard and capitalize on opportunities.”

RELATED: Full Saturday recap from Kansas

The Cup Series field gets underway for a restart at Kansas Speedway
Sean Gardner | Getty Images

From atop the pit box …

What do crew chiefs have in focus to win Sunday’s race?

As simplistic as it would sound for Cliff Daniels to just unload the No. 5 Chevrolet that Kyle Larson drove to victory here four and a half months ago with a carbon-copy setup, the veteran Hendrick Motorsports crew chief says it’s not that easy. Larson led 221 of the 267 laps back in May, but the circuit’s return trip to Kansas presents some fresh wrinkles — new right-side Goodyear rubber included.

“Certainly nice to have the notes from the spring that we can look at — and other intermediates as well,” Daniels told NASCAR.com. “I mean, sometimes it’s valuable to learn what not to do as it is valuable to learn what to do. So we’ve gone to work. Nothing greatly different than what we’ve had before, but we’ve had to push a couple areas just to try to get a little bit better. So with a different right-side tire, that’s going to be a little different variable. The temps are going to be up, so grip will certainly be a thing, and that’s kind of been our outlook, just trying to make sure we’re getting better.”

RELATED: New right-side tire for Kansas | Full 2025 schedule

The new right-side tire construction is built to provide additional durability, and Goodyear officials indicated the same setup will be used in two weeks at the similar 1.5-mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The additional sturdiness is intended to give crew chiefs more flexibility on air-pressure adjustments, something Daniels says the team has studied “the best that we can.”

Speaking in the Saturday morning hours before practice, Daniels said he expected the the 25-minute session to “be educational and hopefully set us up to have a more complete picture of what we need going into (Sunday), and still, even with that, the track is going to evolve as the race goes along, and I’m sure we’ll be tinkering with air pressure and balance of our car throughout the race like normal. So just got to take it all in and hopefully make the right decisions at the right time.”

Chasing that sweet spot on air pressure isn’t without its challenges. Team Penske discovered that in Saturday’s practice and qualifying sessions, encountering problems on the Fords driven by playoff standings leader Ryan Blaney and defending Cup champion Joey Logano.

“The intent is it’s more durable, so the compounds and all that stuff should be very comparable. So I don’t expect to see a big lap-time difference with it, but it’s more about the durability, and yes, how can we push the air pressure,” said Billy Scott, crew chief for Tyler Reddick’s No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota. “It’s always the big question, and we see failures here often, but you really don’t know where you’re at on that until you experience it yourself, or at least have a teammate get far enough that you start to have durability be a concern.”

RELATED: See where drivers will pit for Sunday’s race

Kyle Larson loads into the No. 5 Chevrolet for Cup Series qualifying at Kansas Speedway
Sean Gardner | Getty Images

History tells us …

Don’t expect a breakthrough. Sunday’s 400-miler will mark Kansas Speedway’s 40th Cup Series race. In the previous 39, however, the track has not produced a first-time Cup winner — the largest void of any circuit currently on the Cup Series schedule.

He may not be the favorite to win, but watch out for …

ALEX BOWMAN. Falling from playoff eligibility may have shifted the 32-year-old driver slightly off the radar, but his record at Kansas Speedway is worth a strong look. Bowman has top-10 finishes in each of the last four races at the 1.5-mile track, and his average finish (7.0) during that span is second-best only to Christopher Bell’s 5.8. Bowman has 11 top 10s in his career here, his most at any track on the schedule. | See Bowman’s projected finishing position

Fantasy update

NASCAR Fantasy Live expert Dustin Albino provides insight for your Sunday lineup.

Boy, what a difference one week makes. After stomping the field at New Hampshire last weekend, Paul Wolfe’s fear of Kansas being a struggle for Team Penske has turned to reality with a horrendous performance on Saturday. With Ryan Blaney’s wreck in the opening minutes of the second group of practice, followed by Joey Logano’s flat tire later in the session, assessing the long-run pace of the field is more challenging than most weeks considering multiple cycles on the same set of tires. With their recent Kansas dominance, it’s no surprise that Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin appeared to be among the best cars in the field. No changes to my lineup this weekend, though I flirted with replacing Alex Bowman for either Bubba Wallace or William Byron.

Lineup: Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Chase Briscoe, Ross Chastain
Garage: Alex Bowman

MORE: Lineup advice in Fantasy Fastlane

Speed reads

Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.

• NASCAR at Kansas: Key info, qualifying reports and more from doubleheader weekend | Read more
• Racing Insights: Hendrick’s hopes ride high in projected Kansas results | Read more
• Bubble Watch: Inside the playoff subplots for the Round of 12 | Read more
• At-track photos: Trackside sights, scenes from the Sunflower State | View gallery
• Memorable moments: Rich history of racing through the years in KC | Read more
• Turning Point to Kansas: After Toyota’s first-round sweep, automaker balance tilts | Read more
• Neil Paine: Analysis leans toward a Kyle Larson upswing in Kansas | Read more
• Playoff Pulse: Who’s hot, who’s not ahead of Kansas | Read more
• Power Rankings: Sizing up where playoff drivers stand | This week’s ranks

Pit road at Kansas Speedway is a busy place as the Cup Series field stops for service
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Posted on by Reid Spencer

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — With a flawlessly executed race from start to finish, Brandon Jones preserved his bragging rights at Kansas Speedway, winning Saturday’s Kansas Lottery 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs event.

The only driver in the field to have won a previous Xfinity race at the 1.5-mile intermediate track, Jones pulled away during the final 38-lap green-flag run and beat runner-up rookie sensation Connor Zilisch to the finish line by 2.787 seconds.

With the victory, his second of the season, his third at Kansas and the seventh of his career, Jones claimed a berth in the Round of 8. Zilisch and defending series champion Justin Allgaier also advanced to the next round on points.

RELATED: Race results | At-track photos

“That was exactly like how we needed that to go down,” said Jones, who started from the pole, led 54 of 200 laps and finished second in each of the first two stages. “Two really solid stages — no mistakes. The entire day was so well executed. That’s probably by far in my career my most well-executed race.

“I’m so proud of these guys (his No.20 Joe Gibbs Racing team). We worked so hard all week to get here and put a race like this together.”

Allgaier and Sam Mayer stayed out on 15-lap older tires during the fourth and final caution of the afternoon, hoping for a subsequent caution that would allow them to use their final set of Goodyears. But the caution never came, and Allgaier and Mayer finished 13th and 16th, respectively.

Allgaier, who won the first two stages and led a race-high 79 laps, didn’t have a problem with crew chief Jim Pohlman’s strategic call.

“They work for you sometimes, they don’t some other times,” Allgaier said. “Disappointed … our (No. 7 JR Motorsports) Chevrolet was really good.”

Though the handling of his No. 88 Chevrolet wasn’t precisely to his liking, Zilisch scored his 16th straight top-five result, breaking a tie with Sam Ard (1983) for the series record.

“I didn’t feel like our car was winning-capable, except at a point there in Stage 3, I thought we had a chance at it,” said Zilisch, who led 42 laps. “We’ll look at it and see what we could have done better. We were just kind of throwing Hail Marys at it all day and trying to make one stick — but it didn’t stick.”

KANSAS: Cup race Sunday at 3 p.m. ET

Austin Hill finished third, followed by fellow playoff drivers Sammy Smith, Sheldon Creed, Taylor Gray, Jesse Love and Nick Sanchez.

Next Saturday’s final Round of 12 race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval has the makings of an intense battle for the final positions in the Round of 8. Love, the last driver above the current elimination line, leads Sanchez by five points, Hill by seven, Harrison Burton (20th Saturday after starting from the rear) by eight and Smith by 14.

Mayer, highest in the standings of the drivers not yet locked into the Round of 8, has a 38-point cushion entering the final event in the round, the Blue Cross NC 250 next Saturday (5 p.m. ET, The CW, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

NOTE: Inspection was completed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series garage with no issues, confirming Jones as the winner. The No. 48 Chevrolet of Nick Sanchez had one lug nut not safe and secure, likely resulting in a monetary fine for the crew chief.

Posted on by Staff Report

ValleyStar Credit Union 300

Martinsville Speedway

  • Starting lineup
Position Car No. Driver
1 22 Carson Loftin
2 1B Lee Pulliam
3 77 Trevor Ward
4 7B Tristian McKee
5 16 Cody Kelley
6 14 Jared Fryar
7 0 Landon Pembelton
8 09 Riley Gentry
9 95A Sam Yarborough
10 97 Michael Bumgarner
11 2A Brandon Pierce
12 98A Donovan Strauss
13 88 Connor Hall
14 57 Landon Huffman
15 8 Caden Kvapil
16 25 Jacob Borst
17 44 Conner Jones
18 4A Kade Brown
19 8B Conner Weddell
20 8A Tate Fogleman
21 1 Andrew Grady
22 87 Mike Looney
23 71 Parker Eatmon
24 51 Ryan Matthews
25 01A Camden Gullie
26 17A Daniel Silvestri
27 33 Dillon Harville
28 77B Blake Stallings
29 29 Stuart Crews
30 28 Landon S. Huffman
31 12A Jake Crum
32 6 Bobby McCarty
33 88A Doug Barnes Jr.
34 00 Chase Burrow
35 40 Ryan Millington
36 7C Cory Pack
37 62 Ronnie Bassett Jr.
38 2 Matt Waltz
39 93 Ty Majeski
40 13 Chase Murphy

 

Posted on by Reid Spencer

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Don’t blame 23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick if he’s nostalgic about his team’s past performance at Kansas Speedway.

In 2022, when NASCAR transitioned to the Gen 7 car in the NASCAR Cup Series, 23XI swept the two Kansas events, with Kurt Busch winning in the spring and Bubba Wallace in the fall.

After Joe Gibbs Racing driver (and 23XI co-owner) Denny Hamlin triumphed in the spring race of 2023, Reddick put 23XI in Victory Lane for the third time in four races and Toyota for the fourth straight time.

KANSAS: Sun., 3 p.m. ET (USA) | At-track photos

Since then, Chevrolet drivers — Kyle Larson in particular — have dominated at the track. At 23 points below the current elimination line and 11th of the 12 postseason contenders chasing a spot in the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Cup Playoffs, Reddick needs a turnaround on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App).

“We had a stretch here where it was a 23XI Toyota or a Toyota car in general, we had a pretty good record here to be able to win races,” Reddick said. “I look at the last two or three times we’ve been here; we’ve been missing a little bit of something.

“The car changes, the Goodyear tires change, so naturally you’ve got to keep up with it. I think it’s fair to be nervous. There’s a lot that weighs on this weekend that it’s super important for us to either win or run top five all day and score a lot of points.”

The return to a 1.5-mile speedway for the first time since the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte in May is cause for optimism, as far as Reddick is concerned.

“You look at other mile and-a-half tracks this year, and we’ve brought cars capable of winning races at those tracks,” Reddick said. “It’s been since Charlotte Motor Speedway (that) we’ve had a true mile and-a-half race, so there’s been a lot of time for things to change, for people to catch up and people to fall behind.

“I think that just adds to the nerves of the weekend to see how we perform when we get to the race track.”

Posted on by Alex Cadavid

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — For the last two seasons, Kyle Busch has had the consistency of shot caller Randall Burnett atop the pit box at Richard Childress Racing. However, starting in 2026, that duo will be no more as Burnett will transition over to Trackhouse Racing and become the new crew chief for rising star Connor Zilisch.

“I’m excited about my opportunity over there, and you know, obviously, something’s got to change on this 8 car,” Burnett told NASCAR.com. “We haven’t been performing the way we needed to. I think everybody needs a fresh start. I got a really good opportunity with where I’m going. Obviously, Connor’s a great young talent. I miss working with the younger guys. So, you know, just kind of all worked out.”

RELATED: Trackhouse taps Burnett as Zilisch’s crew chief for rookie Cup season

Busch and Burnett got off to a promising start, scoring three wins and tallying 17 top 10s in their first year as a tandem. Since then, it’s been a roller coaster of success as Busch is in the midst of the longest winless streak in his Cup career (87 races) and has flirted with ending that streak several times, but has been through countless frustrating weekends where performance isn’t there.

“We’ve had the opportunity to win a lot more, and we just had some things slip through our fingers, and it’s unfortunate, and feel like this team has earned and deserves more wins than we got. We just haven’t finished the deal off,” Burnett added. “Really grateful for my time with Kyle. I think I’m a better crew chief for being with him and learning his process and learning through the things that he goes through, obviously, first ballot Hall of Famer in this deal, and so, you know, to be able to work with him the past couple years has been great, and I’ll be grateful for that opportunity.”

Looking at Burnett’s next driver, Zilisch has taken the Xfinity Series by storm, scoring nine wins in his rookie season and becoming the youngest driver to reach ten victories at the secondary level two weeks ago at Gateway.

The last time Burnett worked closely on developing a young driver was Tyler Reddick in 2019, winning six races and an Xfinity Series championship before making the jump together to the Cup level a year later and winning three races in 2022. Burnett is excited to once again work with a rising prospect and looks to help Zilisch achieve his full potential at NASCAR’s highest level.

“I think he’s going to have a lot to learn in the Cup Series,” Burnett said. “Obviously, the races are longer. These cars definitely race a little different than what he’s used to on the Xfinity side right now, and the talent level over here is incredible, you know what I mean. I think he’ll have a pretty steep learning curve when he gets over here, but I want to help guide him with that and try to coach him up. Obviously, the kid’s got an immense amount of talent — there’s no question about that. So it’s just going to be taking that and harnessing it and trying to get the wins and the finishes he deserves over here, and we’re going to work hard on that this winter.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Joe Gibbs Racing personnel met this week to sort through last weekend’s intra-team dust-up between Denny Hamlin and Ty Gibbs. Those conversations were fruitful, Hamlin said, though he and the rest of the organization were tight-lipped about the full context.

“Yeah, I think they’re in a good place,” Hamlin said about where the team left things after racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. “You know, we had some meetings this week. I thought they were all productive meetings, but the guts of that are obviously going to need to be confidential.”

The talk of the NASCAR Cup Series garage continued into Saturday’s prep day at Kansas Speedway, site of Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 Presented by ESPN Bet (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App), the middle race in the playoffs’ Round of 12. The event provides an opportunity for the remaining dozen postseason hopefuls to build their momentum, but it’s also a moment for the JGR group that swept the playoffs’ opening round to reset and change the narrative.

RELATED: Schedule, TV info: Kansas | Cup Series standings

At New Hampshire, when playoff-eligible Hamlin initiated contact with Gibbs, who did not make the postseason field, debate raged about whether teammates on opposite ends of the playoff picture should contest spots amongst themselves with more consideration. Hamlin indicated in his podcast this week that he hoped team management would intercede to reach some resolution for on-track conduct. Now it’s a matter, JGR team management said, of carrying out what was discussed — this weekend and in the postseason weeks ahead.

“It was just what I said last week,” said Chris Gabehart, JGR’s competition director. “Every now and then when you compete towards the front at a high level, you’ve got to go over these things and understand that everybody’s racing for something, and everybody’s got to be heard, and then we’ve got to try to come to a resolution on ‘how do we how do we race moving forward?’ And that’s exactly what happened. I mean, I’m not going to get into any of the details, and frankly, actions speak louder than words, right? That’s true of anyone in here, not just JGR drivers. So, got to focus on Kansas and know that we did our part this week, and everybody said their piece, and we’ll move on from there.”

Gibbs’ abbreviated attempt to comment on the matter Saturday was cut off after Cup Series qualifying, when he was whisked away by a waiting golf cart. In this week’s closed-door meetings, Hamlin said, each of the four Joe Gibbs Racing drivers could weigh in. “All the drivers had an opportunity to speak and try to come up with a plan,” Hamlin said, “and I think we did our best to come up with one. That’s it. That’s all I have.”

JGR’s Christopher Bell had at least indirect involvement in the Hamlin-Gibbs skirmish, as he had to take evasive action in his No. 20 Toyota to avoid the wreck of Gibbs’ No. 54 against the outer retaining wall. Bell said he had a premonition that contact between the two was pending, so he eased up on the throttle on corner entry, then swept low as he flew blind through the smoke.

“I think it’s definitely fair to say that a line was crossed and that was bad,” said Bell, who was the top JGR finisher in sixth place last week at New Hampshire. “We don’t need to get any teammates wrecked. Hopefully we do better moving forward, and I think that’s the goal for us to race each other better moving forward.”

Crossing the line? A regretful Hamlin didn’t disagree.

“I mean, certainly, absolutely. I think that I definitely got hotter under the collar,” Hamlin said. “It went too far on my end, and certainly there’s things that I wish I could have done a little differently.”