By Roy J. Akers — www.skyviewsports.net
With Ty Gibbs achieving his first career win at Bristol, the CUP drivers start their tenth race of 26 of the season at Kansas Speedway. A wide variety of drivers run well at the speedway, and all three manufacturers have at least one driver in the top four in what could be a wide open race.
| LOGANO’S KANSAS SUCCESS: Joey Logano has three career NASCAR Cup Series wins at Kansas Speedway, one of five tracks currently on the circuit where he has three or more. The others are Las Vegas (4), Phoenix (4), Michigan (3) and Talladega (3). Qualifying has been a particularly strong suit for the Connecticut native as he’s started first or second on seven occasions and been among the top 10 in 19 of his 33 starts. |
 KESELOWSKI AND KANSASBrad Keselowski has won at 17 different racetracks during his NASCAR Cup Series career, including twice at Kansas Speedway. In 32 career Cup Series starts, the Michigan native has a pair of victories (2011 and 2019), seven top-5 and 15 top-10 finishes. He’s led at least one lap in four of the last five events and is coming off an eighth-place effort the last time the series visited in September. |
 BLANEY RETURNING TO SITE OF CUP DEBUTRyan Blaney made his NASCAR Cup Series debut on May 10, 2014 and it came at Kansas Speedway driving the No. 12 Ford for Team Penske. That marked the first of two starts for Blaney, who started 21st and finished 27th that day. He also ran the fall race at Talladega that season and finished 22nd. Overall, Blaney is still looking for his first Cup win at the intermediate track, but he’s had a pair of top-five runs in the last three races. |
NASCAR National Series – NCS/NOAPS
Toyota continues incredible start to 2026 … With Ty Gibbs’ triumph at Bristol Motor Speedway last Sunday, Toyota has now won six of the first eight Cup Series races in a historic start to the 2026 season. Gibbs’ win follows the four victories by Tyler Reddick and one by Denny Hamlin for Toyota’s count so far this year. Kansas Speedway offers Toyota a prime position to continue the streak this weekend, as the manufacturer traditionally runs well around the mile-and-a-half track, and is seeking its 13th win in the Cup Series there.
Gibbs coming off maiden win, extends top-10 streak … In what has been a successful start to 2026, Gibbscomes to Kansas this weekend off his first career Cup Series win last Sunday at Bristol. The driver of the No. 54 Toyota Camry XSE led the final 25 laps and held off hard chargers, while on old tires, in an overtime restart to take the checkered flag. He also extended his top-10 finishing streak to six straight races, which dates to Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in March. The streak is a career-best for Gibbs and is the longest in the series so far.
Wallace hits 300 career starts … Sunday’s Cup Series race at Kansas will be the 300th in the career of Bubba Wallace. To-date, the 23XI Racing driver has three career victories, 28 top-fives, 64 top-10s and three pole positions. One of those victories for Wallace came at Kansas in 2022, when he piloted the No. 45 Camry. Sunday will be Wallace’s 17th career Cup Series start at the mile-and-a-half oval.
Heim returns to the Cup Series … For the first time since the Daytona 500, where he led eight laps late in the race, Corey Heim is back behind the wheel of the 23XI Racing No. 67 Toyota Camry XSE this weekend at Kansas. Sunday will be the ninth career Cup Series start for the Georgia native, and his third at Kansas, after running the spring race there the last two seasons. Heim is a former winner around this oval, winning both races in the Truck Series in 2024, leading 143 of the 268 total laps run.
Hamlin, Bell look to continue Kansas success … Kansas has been a favorable track for Joe Gibbs Racing’s (JGR) Hamlin and Christopher Bell. Hamlin, who’s made 35 career starts there, enters the weekend with top-10 finishes in 12 of the last 17 races – which includes wins in 2019, 2020 and 2023. Hamlin has four wins, 15 top-fives and 17 top-10s at Kansas. For Bell, Sunday will be his 13th career start at Kansas, where he’s earned nine top-10s in his 12 previous starts. He’s also earned four pole positions and has started inside the top-10 in nine of his 12 starts.
| ON THE HORIZON OF A RECORD-SETTING STREAKOne year ago, it was Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson that drove a near-dominate race at Kansas Speedway – sitting on the pole, sweeping the stages and leading 221 of 267 laps en route to his second consecutive victory in the track’s spring race. When the series returned to Kansas in the fall, Chase Elliott completed the Chevrolet season sweep at the track when he drove from eighth to first during an overtime restart to take the victory and an automatic berth into the Round of Eight. The victory not only extended Chevrolet’s series-leading record to 17 all-time wins at Kansas, but also boosted the Bowtie brand to a streak of four-straight to tie the track’s record for the longest win streak by a single manufacturer in NASCAR’s top division. |
 Kyle LarsonNo. 5 Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletKansas Speedway – May 11, 2025   Chase ElliottNo. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kansas Speedway – Sept. 28, 2025 |
| HENDRICK’S HEARTLAND HISTORYHendrick Motorsports is the only organization to own a double-digit win record in NASCAR’s top division at Kansas Speedway, with Chase Elliott’s victory last fall marking their 11th all-time triumph at the track. The organization’s winning ways date back to the series’ inaugural visit to the Kansas-based oval in 2001 when career Chevrolet driver, Jeff Gordon, put the famed No. 24 entry in victory lane – his first of three wins at the track. Gordon is one of four drivers who have earned a victory under the Hendrick Motorsports banner at the track, joining the likes of Jimmie Johnson (three wins) and the organization’s current drivers, Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott, who own two wins each. Along with their wins, Larson and Elliott have each earned other notable leading feats among the series’ active drivers at the track, including Larson’s most laps led of 925 and Elliott’s best average finish of 9.9. |
 STACKING STAGE POINTSDespite falling just short of his return to victory lane, yet another strong run by Kyle Larson and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team at Bristol Motor Speedway paid great dividends in the points standings. The Elk Grove, California, native swept the stages before bringing home a third-place finish – ultimately netting a 54-point day, which was the second-highest of the field. The effort was enough to propel the reigning champion up four positions in the standings to sixth as he heads to the site of his most recent triumph. For the Cliff Daniels-led team, collecting stage points has been their forte throughout the early-season run. Within the first eight races, Larson has accumulated 72 stage points – the second-highest of the series. During Larson’s tenure at Hendrick Motorsports, his resume at Kansas Speedway is nothing short of impressive. In 10 career starts, the driver has accumulated three wins (second-most of the series’ active drivers), six top-fives and eight top-10s. Qualifying has also been a strong suit for the No. 5 team, owning two pole wins and seven top-five starting positions. From a points perspective, Larson’s earned points in both stages in six events, with the 2025 season seeing him finish no worse than third in each stage, including a sweep of the stages in the spring race. |
