Kevin Harvick leads a pack of cars during May’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway. Photo by Will Schneekloth/NASCAR via Getty Images
KANSAS CITY, KS – Twelve drivers persevered through a Challenger Round that tested the versatility of the world’s best drivers. Four failed to navigate through the early gauntlet.
And now, starting in just a few days, the surviving dozen will kick off the second segment of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, known as the Contender Round, this Sunday in the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.
The Contender Round spans three events (Kansas, Charlotte, Talladega), and just like the Challenger Round, the four winless drivers with the lowest points totals will be eliminated at its conclusion. Any championship-qualifying driver that wins one of the three races automatically moves on to the eight-driver Eliminator Round. The 12 Contenders are all on a level playing field – each had their points reset to 3,000 for Kansas. They are officially ordered in the same way they finished the Challenger Round in points.
Jeff Gordon will attempt to become the first driver to sweep Kansas after winning the May race there for his first victory of the season. The No. 24 Chevrolet SS driver might have a tough time pulling off the feat, however. Six championship-qualifying drivers have also won before at the 1.5-mile tri-oval: Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Brad Keselowski, Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman. Also, don’t count out hot-shot Sunoco Rookie Kyle Larson, who is chomping at the bit for his first victory after posting finishes of third, second and sixth his last three races.
One Chase driver who Kansas has not treated well – Kyle Busch. The track has been Kryptonite for the No. 18 Toyota Camry driver, who has just two top-10 finishes in 14 starts there (and finishes outside the top 30 in three of the last four). If Busch can make it past Kansas in good shape, he will have good chances of advancing to the Eliminator Round. Rowdy traditionally makes strong runs at Charlotte and has won at Talladega.
NASCAR Nationwide Series: Smith Has Five Races To Catch Elliott
Time is running out for Regan Smith to catch his JR Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott in the NASCAR Nationwide Series driver standings. Just five races remain and a daunting but not insurmountable 26 points separate the two teammates.
Smith has already scored a career-high 24 tops 10s, but it still hasn’t been enough to earn the top spot. He has posted one win (Daytona), seven top fives.
Smith’s consistency this season is unmatched, but it will take a slip-up by Sunoco Rookie Elliott for Smith to close the points gap. Elliott has not only been impressive all season long, but near perfect. Elliott heads to Kansas having posted three wins (Texas, Darlington and Chicago), 14 top fives and 22 top 10s. If Elliott can continue to produce like he has the first 28 races of the season, then the championship is his to lose. Though, among the five remaining tracks, Elliott has yet to compete at Kansas and Homestead-Miami. He also must rebound from his first time around at Charlotte where he posted his worst finish of the season (37th).
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Smith’s experience at these five final tracks just might be what gives him a shot at the series title. Smith dominated most of the race last season at Kansas leading 81 laps and finishing third. He has four top 10s in his last six starts at Charlotte, three top 10s in his last three starts at Texas, two top 10s in his last two starts at Phoenix and he won at Homestead in 2012.
Smith’s season-to-date Driver Rating is 99.2 and his Average Running Position is 8.8.
NASCAR Camping World Trucks: Jones Hits Jackpot In Vegas
In a race that featured a Las Vegas Motor Speedway NASCAR Camping World Truck Series track-record 18 lead changes, Erik Jones played his cards right to pull off the last one. The 18-year-old NASCAR Next driver passed his Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate Darrell Wallace Jr. with 14 laps remaining and held him off the rest of the way to win Saturday’s Rhino Linings 350.
Don’t cue up the victory to beginner’s luck either. Jones has collected three wins and 10 top-10 finishes in a mere 14 starts over the span of 10 months. His Sin City statement came just one week after Cole Custer broke his record for youngest winner of a NASCAR national series race.
While Jones stood front and center, it was also a banner weekend for KBM. The racing outfit posted its 10th victory of the season and its first-ever triumph in its owner’s hometown of Las Vegas. Only three tracks remain on the current NCWTS schedule at which KBM has yet to win.
Furthermore, KBM’s No. 51 Toyota Tundra extended its dominance on 1.5-mile tracks, capturing its fifth win in the last six races on courses of that distance. Jones’ victory was his first on a 1.5-mile track in only his second start. Busch won each of the other four races.
With five NCWTS races remaining on the docket, Jones is scheduled to pilot the No. 51 three more times this season with Busch taking the wheel for the other two. Jones will hit the pavement next in the Fred’s 250 Powered By Coca-Cola at Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, Oct. 18.
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