For just the second time this season, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to a traditional 1.5-mile track. This weekend, Kansas Speedway, site of Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 (2 p.m. ET, FOX, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Kansas is an important litmus test as the Cup Series begins a stretch of six intermediate-type tracks over the next eight points-paying races, stretching through Pocono Raceway in mid-June. The last time the Cup Series conquered a mile-and-a-half, Denny Hamlin prevailed at Las Vegas, and according to Racing Insights, he’s expected to be in the mix again on Sunday.
Advertisement
RELATED: Full starting lineup
Kyle Larson is the defending race winner of the spring Kansas event, but despite earning the series title last fall, he hasn’t returned to Victory Lane since then. Racing Insights suggests that Larson’s 32-race drought will end this weekend, and he’ll return to prosperity in the heartland. Here’s a look at more drivers to keep an eye on, and full projections for 267 laps in the Midwest.
DRIVERS TO WATCH
CHRIS BUESCHER: The No. 17 RFK Racing driver paced the Blue Ovals with a seventh-place starting position and has generally been solid at 1.5-mile tracks. Buescher finished sixth at Las Vegas earlier in the spring, and two of his last four trips to Kansas resulted in top-10 finishes — including his 0.001-second runner-up to Larson in 2024. Through eight races this season, Buescher’s average finish is eighth-best in the series at 13.4.
Advertisement
CHRISTOPHER BELL: No matter where the Cup Series heads, Bell is a threat. While he hasn’t broken through with a heartland triumph, the Oklahoma driver has led in eight consecutive races — a track record. Bell’s finished inside the top 10 in each of the last five Kansas races, by far the longest streak among active drivers. His average finish is fifth best all-time at 11.6, so something has to finally give, right? He swept the stages at Las Vegas in the spring before finishing fourth.
ALEX BOWMAN: In his second race back from vertigo, the No. 48 driver will have some significant work to do starting 33rd — but Kansas is one of Bowman’s best tracks. He’s led 191 laps at the track, and his 14.8 average finish is his second-best among all ovals. Bowman’s turned top 10s 11 times at the Midwest venue, his most at any circuit, and enters Sunday with top 10s in six of his last seven races here. A 2026 turnaround could finally be in order for the Hendrick Motorsports driver.
MORE: Saturday recap | At-track photos
FULL PROJECTED RESULTS FOR 2026 ADVENTHEALTH 400 (2 p.m. ET, FOX)
|
FINISH |
CAR NUMBER |
DRIVER |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
5 |
Kyle Larson |
|
2 |
20 |
Christopher Bell |
|
3 |
11 |
Denny Hamlin |
|
4 |
9 |
Chase Elliott |
|
5 |
45 |
Tyler Reddick |
|
6 |
12 |
Ryan Blaney |
|
7 |
17 |
Chris Buescher |
|
8 |
24 |
William Byron |
|
9 |
54 |
Ty Gibbs |
|
10 |
22 |
Joey Logano |
|
11 |
19 |
Chase Briscoe |
|
12 |
60 |
Ryan Preece |
|
13 |
6 |
Brad Keselowski |
|
14 |
23 |
Bubba Wallace |
|
15 |
77 |
Carson Hocevar |
|
16 |
48 |
Alex Bowman |
|
17 |
7 |
Daniel Suárez |
|
18 |
1 |
Ross Chastain |
|
19 |
8 |
Kyle Busch |
|
20 |
38 |
Zane Smith |
|
21 |
71 |
Michael McDowell |
|
22 |
97 |
Shane van Gisbergen |
|
23 |
34 |
Todd Gilliland |
|
24 |
2 |
Austin Cindric |
|
25 |
21 |
Josh Berry |
|
26 |
47 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
|
27 |
43 |
Erik Jones |
|
28 |
3 |
Austin Dillon |
|
29 |
4 |
Noah Gragson |
|
30 |
16 |
AJ Allmendinger |
|
31 |
42 |
John H Nemechek |
|
32 |
67 |
Corey Heim |
|
33 |
35 |
Riley Herbst |
|
34 |
41 |
Cole Custer |
|
35 |
10 |
Ty Dillon |
|
36 |
88 |
Connor Zilisch |
|
37 |
51 |
Cody Ware |
Read the full article here
