Erik Jones, a non-playoff driver, won the first race of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs last weekend at Darlington. Meanwhile, a handful of championship contenders found trouble.
NASCAR now heads to Kansas Speedway for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 (3 p.m. ET, USA, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM), the second race of the Cup Series’ postseason.
Teams will run a new tire combination in Sunday’s race — one that wasn’t used when NASCAR visited Kansas back in May — so we opted to wait until Saturday’s practice and qualifying sessions finished to ensure we had as much data as possible.
So, with those now in the books, here are our two favorite bets for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas.
PJ Walsh: Chase Elliott (+200) for a Top-Five Finish
In his past 10 NASCAR Cup Series races at Kansas, Elliott has one win and seven top-six finishes. His worst result over that span was a 29th-place finish at this track back in May.
On the periphery, that seems bad considering it was the only race held at this track in the Next Gen car. However, that finish is a bit deceiving.
After starting 14th, Elliott drove to a third-place finish in Stage 1, then backed that up with a fifth-place finish in Stage 2.
Unfortunately for the driver of the No. 9 Chevy, Elliott blew a left rear tire while running in sixth place with 71 laps to go, confirming that this car was much faster than his 29th-place result.
In addition, I checked in with Giffen, who mentioned that his NASCAR at Kansas betting model gives Elliott a 43.7% chance to score a top-five finish, easily beating the 33.3% probability that 2-1 odds at DraftKings imply.
Neither of the Roush Fenway Keselowski cars made the playoffs, and it’s highly likely they are experimenting during these playoff races.
It appears the experiment has paid off.
Buescher was the fastest Ford driver over five consecutive laps in practice. Over 10 and 15 laps, Buescher was less than 1/10 of a second slower than Blaney for top Ford honors in those metrics.
Earlier this year at Kansas, Buescher was fast in practice again, placing sixth overall in five-lap average. However, he didn’t make a qualifying lap and was relegated to a 35th-place starting position.
In the race, Buescher showed speed moving through the field. Unfortunately, he got into the wall just past the halfway mark, which caused his speed to plummet.
Those looking at his 26th-place green flag speed will be misled.
Instead, my FLAGS metric positions him as the 18th fastest, despite his lack of track position throughout the race. It’s likely he had an even faster car than that.
We’re looking at a repeat scenario and by removing the fast Toyota and Chevy drivers it helps narrow the drivers Buescher needs to beat.
DraftKings is giving us Buescher at 25-1 to finish as the top Ford driver.
My model pegs him at 6.8% to do so, well above his 3.8% implied odds.
One thing is for certain, though, Tyler Reddick was quick on Saturday. And Kansas, a place where the preferred groove is running against the wall, suits a driver like Reddick, who maximizes his performance in the top lane.
Dustin Albino’s race-day lineup:
Starter 1: Tyler Reddick
Starter 2: Christopher Bell
Starter 3: Kyle Larson
Starter 4: Martin Truex Jr.
Starter 5: Kyle Busch
Garage pick: Bubba Wallace
NEXT IN LINE: Alex Bowman, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin
RISING: As noted earlier this week, Logano hasn’t had much recent success at Kansas, aside from holding off Kevin Harvick in 2020 for the win. The No. 22 Ford was mediocre in practice on Saturday, too, posting the 13th best single-lap speed and 18th best 10-lap average. But Logano laid down a heater in qualifying and will start from the front row.
Bowman has had a summer to forget. Fortunately for the No. 48 team, fall is approaching. Bowman had a solid Darlington, now 10 points above the cutline. And he wasn’t too shabby in practice and qualifying at Kansas, posting his best qualifying effort since the Daytona 500. Bowman ranked third on long-run speed.
FALLING: With the rumor mill heating up on Kyle Busch’s future, some would argue it’s hurt his on-track performance. Expectations were high entering this weekend because of his recent performance at Kansas, including a third-place run in the spring. While some of the Toyotas had good Saturdays, Busch (and Denny Hamlin) lacked single-lap speed in qualifying and will start from the mid-20s. Still, I’m leaning on a good run from Busch on Sunday.
Over the course of his 13 Cup starts at Kansas, Chase Elliott has mixed results. But whatever was amiss on the No. 9 car at Darlington could be transferred over to Kansas. The No. 9 Chevrolet was the lone Hendrick Motorsports team to miss the final round of qualifying and was 17th in practice.
FEATURED MATCHUPS:
Erik Jones vs. Daniel Suárez
Though his numbers don’t favor him at Kansas, Suárez acknowledged his speed on intermediates tracks this season when asked about his struggles at the 1.5-mile track. Jones was 26th in practice and qualified 24th while the No. 99 Chevrolet qualified 15th, so the choice this weekend is Suárez.
Kyle Busch vs. Denny Hamlin
These two drivers might have had the most surprising Saturday in Kansas. They were on top of each other in practice and qualifying, but 20th or worse in both sessions. Those numbers might be deceiving, as Toyota dominated the spring race. Leaning with Busch, solely off his recent consistency at Kansas.
Kyle Larson vs. Chase Elliott
The top two drivers at Hendrick Motorsports were on the opposite ends of the spectrum on Saturday. Per usual at Kansas, the No. 5 car was near the top of the scoring pylon and will start seventh. It wouldn’t surprise anyone if Larson were in contention for the win. On the other hand, Elliott was a disappointing 17th in practice and 22nd in qualifying. Larson is the clear-cut favorite this weekend compared to Elliott.
Ryan Blaney vs. Joey Logano
Blaney showed more speed in practice, but Logano jumped to second in qualifying. Both drivers have been inconsistent at Kansas over the last few years, but Logano’s three wins trumps Blaney’s 16.9 average finish in 15 starts.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — One of the most dramatic restarts of the NASCAR Xfinity Series season came Saturday at Kansas Speedway, with rain on the horizon and top title contenders vying for the win.
Until the final restart, Ty Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota had been the car to beat all afternoon. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver won Stage 1 and led a race-high 66 laps before JR Motorsports took control of the race.
With just two laps remaining in Stage 2, the green flag dropped for the final time and Justin Allgaier chased JRM teammate Noah Gragson through Turn 1 and down the backstretch. As Allgaier stumbled before the white-flag lap, Gibbs raced to his outside and the No. 54 Toyota driver pulled ahead.
Coming through Turn 4 for the final time, Allgaier squeezed Gibbs before diving to the bottom lane toward the finish line. In retaliation, Gibbs dove hard into the door of the No. 7 Chevrolet and the two collided coming to the checkered flag.
Allgaier shared his perspective on the final-lap incident.
“The tough part about [the contact] is I know we’re coming to the end of the stage and all those things, but if we were to go back green, I think it extremely limited his day,” Allgaier said in a post-race interview. “And probably was going to limit our day, as well. So, probably not the right move to make.
“I felt like I left some room out there and obviously I wanted it to be tight, right? You’re trying to get everything you can get, but try to leave enough room that he was gonna have a lane without making contact. Frustrations get the best of you, but just hate it that we tore up a race car that really wasn’t torn up before that.”
The race was called after the Stage 2 finish due to inclement weather — a rain-shortened end to a rugged battle that was just heating up.
But when asked if he would continue the tension moving forward, Allgaier replied with a peaceful outlook.
“It’s hard to have a strained relationship in this garage without trying to mend fences,” Allgaier said. “You’re around these guys and gals for what feels like an eternity throughout the course of the year. So, you have to mend fences. I know what he said in his interview and whether that’s what he feels or not, that’s to be seen. But I’m sure we’ll talk about it before we go next week to Bristol.”
Next Saturday’s race at Bristol Motor Speedway (3:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) is the final race before the Xfinity Series Playoffs begin.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. – In what is turning out to be a banner season for Noah Gragson, the driver of the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet scored his fifth NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of the year in Saturday’s rain-shortened Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas Speedway.
Gragson charged from sixth in the running order past cars on older tires — and past the dominant Toyota of Ty Gibbs — to grab the lead after a restart on Lap 76.
A light rain interrupted the proceedings on Lap 82, but Gragson held the top spot in a two-lap shootout at the end of Stage 2. When rain began to fall harder and drenched the track, NASCAR red-flagged the race on Lap 94 and subsequently declared Gragson the winner.
The victory was Gragson’s second straight, his first at Kansas — the only active Xfinity Series track where he had previously failed to record a top 10 — and the 10th of his career.
“The 54 (Gibbs) was really fast all day,” Gragson said. “The pit crew did a good job all day keeping us in contention. That restart (on Lap 76) was the most important part of the race today. Yeah, it’s a rain victory, but we came off pit road third behind the 54 and 19 (Brandon Jones).
“They both took the top, and I chose the bottom, third row. I restarted inside the 19, and I could see the 54 pushing the 07 (Brett Moffitt, who along with Ryan Sieg and Austin Hill had stayed out on older tires). He (Moffitt) was spinning his tires pretty bad.
“I got to the lead on those guys, and that kind of was the game-changer on today’s race. I think we all knew that we were racing to halfway or a little after.”
Chris Graythen | Getty Images
After the restart with two laps left in the second stage, there was drama right behind Gragson. As Justin Allgaier battled Stage 1 winner Gibbs for the runner-up spot, Allgaier forced Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota high into the outside lane.
Gibbs brushed the wall and subsequently turned down and door-slammed Allgaier’s No. 7 Chevrolet as the cars approached the finish line. Allgaier held second, .670 seconds behind the race winner, with Gibbs finishing third, 1.266 seconds back.
After the race, Gibbs apologized for losing his cool on what proved to be the final lap.
“I came back down, frustrated, and hit the 7,” Gibbs said. “The worst part is, I hurt my day more than it’s going to hurt anybody else’s. It’s just stupid of me to do that. I just think I need to fix those things… It’s easy for all of us to get angry — me especially. I just didn’t make the right decision there.
“I apologize to them. I apologize to my group. I should be the one taking the door off the race car, because I hit him.”
Allgaier had mixed feelings about the stoppage. His car was improving with every pit stop, but the damage he suffered during the run-in with Gibbs would have limited his chances to win, had the race resumed.
“If we were to go back green, I think it extremely limited his day and probably was going to limit our day as well,” Allgaier said. “Frustrations get the best of you a lot of times, but I just hate it that we tore up a race car that wasn’t really torn up before that.”
Pole winner Brandon Jones ran fourth, followed by Ross Chastain. AJ Allmendinger, Josh Berry, Sammy Smith, Sam Mayer and Moffitt completed the top 10. Mayer and 16th-place finisher Riley Herbst clinched Playoffs spots on points with one race left before the cutoff.
The Xfinity Series’ regular-season finale is scheduled Friday (7:30 p.m. ET, USA, NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM) at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Note: NASCAR officials reported no issues with post-race technical inspection in the Xfinity Series garage, confirming Gragson as the race winner. Officials indicated that eight cars would be taken to the NASCAR Research & Development Center for further review. Those teams (in numerical order): No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, Nos. 7 and 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolets, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, No. 39 RSS Racing Ford, No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet, No. 51 Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — When Alex Bowman crossed the finish line last weekend at Darlington Raceway, it was only his second top-10 finish in a strenuous 13-race stretch. As the opening round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs continues Sunday at Kansas Speedway, Bowman is hoping his summer struggles are finally in the rear-view mirror.
Bowman came out of the gates with an early statement win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March, securing another playoff berth and his fourth consecutive season with a trip to Victory Lane. But when June began, the No. 48 team struggled to find speed and consistency almost every week.
“It hasn’t been great,” Bowman said in an interview Saturday afternoon. “The summer was pretty rough on us. We started the year pretty decent and pretty consistent and then kinda fell apart through the summer. But I think we’re kinda back to a good place now and I think we have a shot at making some noise the next nine weeks.”
Though they entered the playoffs as the 15th seed, the strong showing at Darlington moved Bowman into 10th in the current standings. And with just one finish outside the top 11 in Bowman’s last eight races at Kansas, the No. 48 wheelman is confident that they have what it takes to make a strong playoff run.
“High-level motivation, I think, is the strongest part of our program,” Bowman said. “We’re all working super hard but I think our mile-and-a-half stuff is really good coming here particularly. This is one of my best race tracks, so really looking forward to it.”
Success started early this weekend for Bowman, running ninth in Saturday’s practice session and improving to third during Busch Light Qualifying — his best qualifying effort since the Daytona 500.
After the session, the change in his tone was noticeably more optimistic and confident.
“I think everywhere we go, we have a shot,” said Bowman. “But yeah, our intermediate program is really good and I love Kansas. It’s definitely one of my favorite places.”
Bowman rolls off on the second row in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 (3 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) looking to improve on his ninth-place finish at Kansas earlier this season.
Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway
(⏰ 3 p.m. ET | 📺 USA Network, NBC Sports App | 📻 MRN, SiriusXM)
Everything you need to know for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas, the second playoff event of the 2022 campaign.
Where: Kansas City, Kansas Approximate start time: 3 p.m. ET | Weekend schedule TV/Radio: USA, NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio | Full TV schedule The purse: $8,338,881 Forecast: Sunny, with a high near 75 degrees, according to NOAA.gov | Weather tracker Race distance: 267 laps | 400.5 miles Stages: 80 | 165 | 267 Pit-road speed: 45 mph Caution car speed: 55 mph Kansas 101: Get the full lowdown
Starting lineup:Where drivers will start Sunday Pit stalls: See where your driver pits Sunday Cars to the rear: No. 10 (engine change) and No. 47 (unapproved adjustments) Playoff grid: Print yours now
Key things to watch 🔑
Big story line
Darlington Raceway shook up the playoff outlook. Many contenders and predicted locks for the Round of 12, including title favorite Chase Elliott, found themselves off to a shaky start in their pursuit of a championship. Sunday’s crucial race at Kansas will set the stage for the first elimination race, letting each team know what it needs to accomplish before next week’s daunting Bristol Night Race. Four drivers below the cutline need to take the necessary risks to have a big points day. And those above need to avoid mistakes at all costs. Who will rise to the occasion?
Who’s hot? Who’s not?
Christopher Bell is turning up the heat at the right time, rocketing up the playoff standings with a strong showing at Darlington. Bell has finished top eight in three of the last four races, with the only non-top 10 coming at Daytona International Speedway. The good news for Bell and the No. 20 team is that his run-of-form should continue at Kansas, where the Toyotas were on a tear in the spring and Bell finished fifth. If they can find success again this weekend, you may see a lot of folks adjusting their playoff predictions.
What happened to Ross Chastain? Chastain was arguably the fastest driver throughout multiple points this season, leading him to a pair of wins and close finishes at the top of the leaderboard. But lately, Chastain and the No. 1 crew have been reeling. The team has seven consecutive finishes of 18th or worse and is slipping down the standings a bit. A decent finish — 20th — at Darlington kept him in the hunt with misfortune for a handful of others. But he will need to right the ship this weekend at Kansas.
Driving under the radar
Amidst the title talk, Alex Bowman’s name generally gets lost in conversation. But Bowman has the potential to be a serious wild card and shake up the playoff outlook entirely. Though they ended the pre-playoff summer stretch reeling, a 10th-place result at Darlington could be the spark this team needed to make a run. Bowman has five top 10s in the last nine Kansas races and has scored stage points in eight of the 18 stages. It would not be surprising to see him have success on Sunday.
Saturday’s sessions
Tyler Reddick showed up Saturday with incredible speed, roaring past Ross Chastain, Christopher Bell and Bubba Wallace to take the top spot in the lone practice session. Reddick put together a 32-lap run with a best time of 30.184 seconds. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. suffered from a blown rear tire, making contact with the wall and needing to make lengthy repairs after practice.
In a qualifying session without many surprises, Reddick proved to be a familiar face at the top of the board. Reddick earned just his second Busch Light Pole Award of the season, and first on an oval layout, with a blistering 29.899-second lap time. Reddick was the leader of five Chevrolets in the top 10, followed by Alex Bowman, Chastain, Kyle Larson and William Byron. Bell was the top Toyota and Joey Logano, joining Reddick on the front row, starts second to lead the Fords. | Full practice, qualifying recap
Jennifer Fisher | NASCAR Studios
Race-day staples ✅
Our biggest pieces of the week — get covered for race day from all angles.
• Paint Scheme Preview: See the new schemes for Sunday | Pick a favorite • Power Rankings: Christopher Bell looking like an early contender | Updated driver rankings • NASCAR betting: Odds for 2022 Kansas playoff race | Underdogs, value bets • Fantasy Fastlane: Which team will find the Yellow Brick Road? | Top plays, sleepers • Title contenders: Analyzing the playoff drivers after Darlington | Read more
Catch the pack 💨
Read up on the top headlines from the week leading up to Sunday’s race.
• In-car: Cameras debut for full field at Kansas | Read more
• Rule change: New changes to address fire issue from Darlington | Read more
• Suárez vs. Bell: Suárez still heated after Darlington |Bell will watch his back
• Alex Bowman: Hoping to shake off summer struggles at Kansas | Read more
• Kyle Busch: Reportedly picks a team for 2023 | Full Jayski report
• 2023: North Wilkesboro set to hold All-Star Race | Read more
• Champion’s Week: Event returns to Nashville for 2022 | Read more
• Kyle Larson: Chimes in on Hendrick Motorsports vs. JGR at 1.5-mile tracks | Listen here
• Stacking Pennies: Austin Dillon joins to recap the weekend | Full podcast
Get in on the action 💰
Think you know NASCAR? Put your mettle to the test with gaming, fantasy.
• BetMGM: Breaking down driver matchups for Kansas | Read more
• The Action Network: Daniel Suárez battles Erik Jones | Matchup insight • Play it LIVE: Full guide to 2022 NASCAR Fantasy Live game | New rules for playoffs
• Going all the way: 2022 Cup Series championship odds | See them here
• The Action Network: Why Elliott, Buescher are good race-day bets | Read more
• Fantasy update: Dustin Albino’s lineup after Saturday’s action | Read more
Coming back to Kansas 🌻
Heading back to Kansas is always a treat, especially in the playoffs. Take a look at some important history.
• Do you remember?: Memorable moments at Kansas Speedway | Relive them here
• Earlier this year: Kurt Busch holds off Kyle Larson for electric win | Race recap
• Race Rewind: Next Gen takes on Kansas for the first time | Watch highlights
Fast facts ⏩
Hard-hitting, race-relevant statistics, brought to you by the experts at Racing Insights.
• All six Toyotas entered in May at Kansas finished in the top 10. • The pass for the win came in the final 10 laps in 15 of the 27 races in 2022. • Kevin Harvick is the only active driver with an average finish in the top 10 at Kansas. • The last seven playoff races were won by drivers under the age of 30. • The last time Ford won a playoff race was 15 races ago in 2020 at Kansas, won by Joey Logano.
Say what? 🎙
Notable quotes from the stars of the sport heading into Sunday’s race.
• “We’re looking forward to Kansas this weekend. We feel like this is an opportunity to run well based on how our season has gone and how we ran there in the spring. For us, we need to be a little bit better than what we were then, but we feel like we can certainly do that. It’s also an exciting weekend welcoming Acumatica on board for their first NASCAR race, so we want to put on a good show for them and hopefully continue building momentum here in the playoffs.” — Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
• “Racing at Kansas earlier this year, I felt like we made so many gains and learned so much as a team. Kaulig Racing has made some steps in the right direction over the past few weeks, so I’m looking forward to getting back in the No. 16 Camaro with CURE Token onboard this week and showing the progress we have made together.” — Noah Gragson, driver of the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
• “Thankfully, the points situation is much better than I expected, but we’ve still got to have two solid races. I felt like Darlington was where we’d struggle the most out of these first three tracks. The plan for Kansas and Bristol is to get some stage points and be there at the end. We don’t necessarily need a win, even though that would make it a lot easier, we just need to have a really good points day.” — Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — During Saturday’s qualifying session at Kansas Speedway, NASCAR Cup Series drivers soon migrated to the top of the track — which was fine with notorious rim rider Tyler Reddick.
The last of 10 drivers to make a qualifying run in the final round, Reddick knocked Joey Logano off the provisional pole and claimed the top starting spot for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400, the series’ second Playoff race (3 p.m. ET on USA, NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
In the money round, Reddick toured the 1.5-mile speedway in 29.899 seconds (180.608 mph), nearly matching his lap of 29.853 seconds from the first round. Reddick was .037 seconds than faster than Logano (180.385 mph), who narrowly missed out on his second straight Playoff pole.
“It’s reassuring,” Reddick said of the pole-winning performance of his No. 8 Richard Childress Racing team. “The last few times we’ve been here, we’ve had a car capable of leading, and we’ve been able to do that. It’s just been a matter of putting together the whole day, which is something we’ve fought at time throughout the year …
“Starting first is great any weekend, but being able to have that first pit stall is going to be key.”
The Busch Light Pole Award was Reddick’s first at Kansas, his second of the season and third of his career — and his first on an oval.
Alex Bowman (180.216 mph) qualified third, followed by Christopher Bell (179.659 mph) and Ross Chastain (179.605 mph). Bubba Wallace, Kyle Larson, Austin Cindric, William Byron and Chris Buescher claimed grid positions six through 10, respectively.
Reddick won two NASCAR Xfinity Series championships running the wall at Homestead-Miami Speedway. That’s also where he expects to find speed on Sunday at Kansas.
“It certainly will be for large amounts of this race,” Reddick said. “I think it has the potential under green-flag cycle to move around off of that wall. The fastest car here in the spring was Kurt Busch, and he was able to really do a good job of running on the top seam.
“It’s going to lay rubber with 30-plus cars out there all running in the majority of the same area of the race track. So I think it’s going to open up that opportunity for other lanes to come into play because there will be less rubber on it.”
The 36 drivers were split into two groups for practice and qualifying, and the top five from each bracket reached the final round to go for the pole. Bell was fastest in Group A’s time trials, and Reddick was best in Group B.
Reddick also tops Cup Series practice
Tyler Reddick posted the fastest overall speed in NASCAR Cup Series practice, topping the chart during Saturday’s warm-up session at Kansas Speedway.
Reddick clocked a lap of 178.903 mph at the 1.5-mile track, moving the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet to the top of the speed chart. He was also fastest in the consecutive 10-lap averages category.
Ross Chastain was second-fastest in No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevy at 178.418 mph. Christopher Bell led the Group A session and was third-fastest overall (178.412) in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. scraped the wall with his JTG Daugherty Racing entry, but the damage was not enough to keep the No. 47 Chevrolet from participating in Busch Light Pole Qualifying.
Aric Almirola was last in the 36-car field, and he told NBC Sports that his Stewart-Haas Racing crew was looking into engine issues under the hood of the No. 10 Ford. Almirola did not qualify and is scheduled to start last in Sunday’s 400-miler.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Carson Hocevar wasn’t focused on the points. He wanted the win.
“I didn’t care a single bit about points, I just wanted to win the race,” Hocevar said in a post-race interview. “If I could win the race, everything took care of itself. I wanna win a race more than I care about points, honestly. It’s a terrible philosophy, but I mean if we’re gonna win a championship, we gotta win a race.”
But in the blink of an eye, on the final lap of Friday night’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Kansas Speedway, Hocevar’s hopes of a win and a championship were both trampled by John Hunter Nemechek.
After two runner-up finishes this season, the most painful of which came to Nemechek at Darlington Raceway in May, the stars seemed to be aligning for Hocevar and the No. 42 Niece Motorsports camp to finally reach Victory Lane. Doing so meant it would be Hocevar’s first career win and would spur him into the Round of 8 after entering Kansas three points below the cutline.
When the majority of the field followed the dominant No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports truck of Nemechek down pit road for green-flag stops after Lap 102, Hocevar and a handful of others gambled to stay out with over 30 laps remaining. It was the break that Hocevar needed after starting the race 15th and hardly making up any ground throughout either of the first two stages.
“Even though we struggled and had an ill-handling truck, I mean [crew chief] Phil Gould and we somehow figured out how to get it up front,” said Hocevar.
Jennifer Fisher | NASCAR Studios
And Hocevar put together a valiant effort from there, leading the field for a second-best 28 laps on the night.
Their strategy was masterful, putting them in the lead, which they needed. But it meant the No. 42 had to save tires and fuel for longer than almost anyone in the field.
As his tires wore down, Nemechek’s advantage of more than a second per lap quickly erased Hocevar’s lead. Their valiant effort proved costly only on the last circuit of the 134-lap thriller.
Heartbreak for Hocevar.
“I thought I saved too much and then I sputtered before the first whole lap,” Hocevar said. “That’s why the 4 caught me all of a sudden down the straightaway. He was catching me at a ridiculous amount — like he nailed me down the front straightway because I was already out of fuel.”
Nemechek easily overtook Hocevar on Lap 134 and cruised to his second win of the season, with both victories coming at the expense of the hopeful 19-year-old.
“I’ve been in this spot a lot of times and it’s been a lot behind the 4,” Hocevar said. “So when I find out how to beat him, I’ll let you know.”
And although he wasn’t focused primarily on points, it turned out to be his downfall. Christian Eckes finished 10th, knocking Hocevar out of the playoffs by a mere three points.
Four opportunities remain this season for Hocevar to earn his elusive first Truck Series victory. But as for his championship hopes, they will have to wait until next year.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. – With less than a lap left in Friday night’s Kansas Lottery 200 at Kansas Speedway, John Hunter Nemechek passed Carson Hocevar and spoiled one of the unlikeliest long-shot gambles in the long history of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
At the end of a dominant evening, Nemechek had the race victory and two stage wins to go with the pole he had won earlier in the afternoon.
All Hocevar had was a fourth career runner-up finish and a pink slip where the 2022 Truck Series Playoffs are concerned.
Over the final 28 laps, Nemechek, who pitted under green on Lap 103, overcame a 20-second deficit to Hocevar, who had made his last pit stop on Lap 80 to top off the fuel cell in the No. 42 Chevrolet and tried to make it the rest of the way without another pit stop.
Hocevar gained the lead on Lap 106 when the last contender in front of him came to pit road during the final 53-lap green-flag run. Throughout the final run, Hocevar’s advantage shrank by more than a second per lap, as Nemechek pursued him.
After Hocevar’s truck sputtered coming to the white flag, Nemechek charged to the front and powered his No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota across the finish line 1.815 seconds ahead of Hocevar’s Silverado. The victory was Nemechek’s second of the season, his second at Kansas (with one coming in the NASCAR Xfinity Series) and the 13th of his Truck Series career.
Hocevar was eliminated from the playoffs by three points, as Christian Eckes rallied to run 10th and claim the final berth in the Round of 8. Fifteenth-place finisher Matt Crafton, a three-time series champion, also was ousted from the playoffs.
Nemechek advanced to the Round of 8, along with Grant Enfinger, Chandler Smith, Zane Smith, Ty Majeski, Stewart Friesen, defending series champion Ben Rhodes and Eckes. Enfinger and Chandler Smith had already advanced thanks to their victories earlier in the round. Zane Smith, Nemechek and Majeski had clinched spots in the next round on the strength of their finishes at the stage breaks.
“It’s huge,” said Nemechek, who added seven playoff points to his total entering the Round of 8. “I just want to say thank you to everyone at Kyle Busch Motorsports. I can’t thank them enough for the truck they gave me tonight. It was absolutely unreal.
“We started on the pole, won both stages, led a ton of laps and won the race. We came in really good in points, but we were able to get some more playoff points, and it puts us in a good spot. We have some momentum on our side heading into Bristol (for the first race of the next round).”
Hocevar was crestfallen after crew chief Phil Gould’s strategic gamble fell just short.
“Into (Turn) 3 coming to the white flag, I started to sputter, and I knew it was game over,” Hocevar said. “The 19 (Derek Kraus) had an issue, and I lost three seconds there. Looking back, I wish I could have gotten those back. Phil Gould made a hell of a call. I didn’t see it. Fifty-six laps to go, there’s going to be a yellow, right? Cutoff race, and it’s the Truck Series of all things… How was I to know the 19 was going to have a flat (tire) right in front of me?
“We deserved to win that race, just on strategy. We were nowhere near the best car. Seems like I always run second to him (Nemechek), but they were the class of the field all night. We got beat. We had the winning strategy. It just didn’t work out…
“I think I’ll be the bridesmaid at my own wedding.”
Non-playoff driver Ryan Preece finished third on Friday night, followed by Zane Smith, Enfinger, Chandler Smith, Corey Heim, Majeski, Colby Howard and Eckes.
The Camping World Truck Series’ next race is the UNOH 200, scheduled Thursday (9 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN) at Bristol Motor Speedway. That event opens the three-race Round of 8, the next set of races in the postseason.
NOTE: Post-race technical inspection concluded with no issues, confirming Nemechek as Friday’s winner.
