- NASCAR heads to Kansas Speedway for third intermediate race of the season.
- Hendrick Motorsports is the most successful team at Kansas.
- Kyle Larson returns as defending winner, but teammate holds best average.
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to its ninth race of the season this weekend at Kansas Speedway. Kyle Larson will be coming with the 2025 Spring Busch Light Pole Award and as the defending race winner. Yet it is the 2024 finish that is still in everyone’s mind.
On that day, Larson edged Chris Buescher by 0.001 seconds, with the result unclear until the cool-down lap. The photo finish sparked debate, with some claiming the line was not straight. It later came out that the line was straight, and the view was skewed by camera angle, while Larson was running the upper lane.
Fans will hope for some more similar late drama this weekend as well, but Kansas often turns on aero. Entry speed into the corners puts a premium on grip, and clean air tends to call the tune as track position can make or break the run to Victory Lane.
Tire setup for the weekend
A Goodyear combination will return to both the Cup Series and the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. A right-side tire with an updated construction made its debut at this 1.5-mile oval last September and will be used again for Sunday’s AdventHealth 400. The same setup also appeared this season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Darlington Raceway.
NASCAR Cup teams will have 10 sets in total: eight new sets for the 400-mile race, one for practice, and one for qualifying that carries into the race.
Which team and OEM has held the upper hand?
A year ago, Larson set the pace at Kansas, taking the pole, sweeping the stages, and leading 221 of 267 laps on his way to a second straight spring win at the track. When the series returned in the fall, Chase Elliott sealed a season sweep for Chevrolet, driving from eighth to first on an overtime restart to win and book a place in the Round of Eight.
The result pushed Chevrolet’s total to 17 wins at Kansas and extended a run of four straight wins, matching the longest such streak by a manufacturer at the track.
Hendrick Motorsports stands alone with a double-digit win tally at Kansas, with Elliott’s fall victory marking its 11th at the venue.
Late passes have been a theme of the track. In four of the last six Cup races at Kansas, the move for the win came in the final two laps, with three decided on the last lap. The track has also produced the closest margin at a 1.5-mile venue in three of the past five seasons, including the last two.
Favorite NASCAR drivers of the weekend
By average finish, Elliott leads the list entering the weekend. In 20 starts at Kansas, he owns a 9.9 average, with two wins and eight top-five runs. Even so, Larson is likely to draw the bulk of attention. In 22 starts, No. 5 driver averages 12.1, with three wins and nine top fives.
Since 2024, he has two wins in four starts. Across his last nine starts at Kansas, he has finished outside the top eight once, in September 2024, when he started 11th and finished 26th.
Christopher Bell also enters the frame among the favorites. Among active drivers, he holds the best average over the past two years at the track.
In his last four starts, he has a 4.5 average, with two top-five finishes and four top-10 runs. Across 12 starts, he has yet to win at Kansas, but he has four top-four finishes and nitop-10s10s, for an overall average of 11.6.
Alongside him is teammate Denny Hamlin, the winningest active driver at Kansas. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has four wins in 35 starts, with a 12.6 average. He has logged 15 top-five finishes and 17 top 10s at the track.
