Below is a look at how the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field has performed at Kansas Speedway, going into the Hollywood Casino 400 on Oct. 9.
1 - Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 92.6
2011 Rundown
· Four wins, eight top fives, 15 top 10s
· Average finish of 11.2
· Led 14 races for 343 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· One top five, four top 10s
· Average finish of 14.3 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 13.9, eighth-best
· Driver Rating of 89.4, ninth-best
· 64 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
· 492 Green Flag Passes, third-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.424 mph, 12th-fastest
· 1,073 Laps in the Top 15 (59.2%), eighth-most
· 197 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), 10th-most
2 - Carl Edwards (No. 99 AFLAC Ford)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 100.2
2011 Rundown
· One win, 14 top fives, 20 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 10.4
· Led 19 races for 713 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· Three top fives, six top 10s
· Average finish of 11.4 in eight races
· Average Running Position of 12.1, sixth-best
· Driver Rating of 98.7, fifth-best
· 111 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
· 443 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.734 mph, fifth-fastest
· 1,300 Laps in the Top 15 (71.7%), sixth-most
· 265 Quality Passes, fifth-most
3 - Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 90.0
2011 Rundown
· Two wins, five top fives, 13 top 10s
· Average finish of 13.7
· Led 15 races for 377 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· Two wins, five top fives, eight top 10s
· Average finish of 11.9 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 9.1, fourth-best
· Driver Rating of 105.3, fourth-best
· 127 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.950 mph, fourth-fastest
· 1,483 Laps in the Top 15 (81.8%), fourth-most
4 - Kurt Busch (No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 98.1
2011 Rundown
· Two wins, eight top fives, 16 top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 12.6
· Led 17 races for 706 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· Three top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 18.1 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 15.1, ninth-best
· Driver Rating of 91.8, eighth-best
· 106 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.474 mph, eighth-fastest
· 1,027 Laps in the Top 15 (56.7%), 10th-most
5 - Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 100.0
2011 Rundown
· One win, 12 top fives, 19 top 10s
· Average finish of 10.6
· Led 17 races for 852 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· One win, three top fives, eight top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 9.1 in 10 races
· Average Running Position of 7.6, second-best
· Driver Rating of 116.5, second-best
· Series-high 227 Fastest Laps Run
· Series-high 526 Green Flag Passes
· Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 162.457 mph
· 1,612 Laps in the Top 15 (89.0%), third-most
· Series-high 333 Quality Passes
6 - Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 87.2
2011 Rundown
· Three wins, eight top fives, 12 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 14.9
· Led 15 races for 275 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· One win, one top five, one top 10
· Average finish of 12.3 in three races
· Average Running Position of 15.2, 10th-best
· Driver Rating of 84.8, 12th-best
7 - Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Crown Royal Ford)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 96.1
2011 Rundown
· Two wins, eight top fives, 16 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 11.8
· Led 16 races for 628 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· Two top fives, five top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 19.3 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 12.1, fifth-best
· Driver Rating of 98.6, sixth-best
· 98 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.514 mph, sixth-fastest
· 1,319 Laps in the Top 15 (72.8%), fifth-most
· 221 Quality Passes, eighth-most
8 - Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&Ms Toyota)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 107.5
2011 Rundown
· Four wins, 13 top fives, 17 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 11.1
· Led 21 races for 1,189 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· One top 10
· Average finish of 22.4 in eight races
· Average Running Position of 18.6, 16th-best
· Driver Rating of 79.5, 16th-best
· 52 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most
· 483 Green Flag Passes, fifth-most
· 915 Laps in the Top 15 (50.5%), 12th-most
· 236 Quality Passes, seventh-most
9 - Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 98.4
2011 Rundown
· Three wins, 11 top fives, 15 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 11.8
· Led 18 races for 799 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· Two wins, eight top fives, nine top 10s
· Average finish of 8.1 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 8.5, third-best
· Driver Rating of 107.3, third-best
· 87 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.187 mph, third-fastest
· 1,645 Laps in the Top 15 (90.8%), second-most
· 284 Quality Passes, third-most
10 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 83.8
2011 Rundown
· Four top fives, 10 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 14.3
· Led 8 races for 50 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· One top five, five top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 17.5 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 18.7, 17th-best
· Driver Rating of 83.2, 13th-best
· 61 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most
· 491 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.238 mph, 13th-fastest
· 199 Quality Passes, ninth-most
11 - Ryan Newman (No. 39 Haas Automation Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 89.0
2011 Rundown
· One win, eight top fives, 14 top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 13.7
· Led 14 races for 347 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· One win, three top fives, four top 10s
· Average finish of 17.3 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 23.3, 27th-best
· Driver Rating of 63.4, 27th-best
· 508 Green Flag Passes, second-most
12 - Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 89.0
2011 Rundown
· One win, four top fives, 10 top 10s
· Average finish of 17.1
· Led 14 races for 392 laps
Kansas Speedway Outlook:
· Two top fives, two top 10s
· Average finish of 15.7 in seven races
· Average Running Position of 16.4, 14th-best
· Driver Rating of 85.2, 11th-best
· 44 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-most
· 473 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.454 mph, ninth-fastest
· 1,060 Laps in the Top 15 (58.5%), ninth-most
· 240 Quality Passes, sixth-most
At Kansas Speedway:
History
· Groundbreaking was held on May 25, 1999.
· The official opening of Kansas Speedway was in 2001, with the first events being an ARCA race and a NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race on the same day – June 2.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was Sept. 30, 2001.
Notebook
· There have been 11 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Kansas
since the track opened in 2001.
· All of the races have been scheduled for 267 laps.
· 10 drivers have competed in all 11 races at Kansas.
· Jeff Gordon won the first two NASCAR Sprint Cup races.
· Jason Leffler won the first pole in September 2001.
· Eight different drivers have won poles, led by Jimmie Johnson with three.
· Eight different drivers have posted victories, led by Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart (each with two).
· Seven of the 11 races have been won from a top-10 starting position.
· Two drivers have won from the pole: Joe Nemechek in 2004 and Jimmie Johnson in 2008.
· The furthest back in the field that a race winner started was 25th, by Brad Keselowski earlier this season.
· Three active drivers with more than one start have averaged a top-10 finish: Greg Biffle (8.3), Jeff Gordon (8.1) and Jimmie Johnson (9.1).
· Jeff Gordon leads all drivers in top fives (eight) and top 10s (nine). Gordon’s only two non-top 10s were a 39th in 2006 and a 13th in 2004.
· Seven of the 11 races that ended under green had a margin of victory under one second. The 2007 race ended under caution.
Kansas Speedway Data
Race #: 30 of 36 (10-9-11)
Track Size: 1.5 miles
· Banking/Corners: 15 degrees
· Banking/Frontstretch: 10.4 degrees
· Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees
· Frontstretch: 2,685 feet
· Backstretch: 2,207 feet
Driver Rating at Kansas
Greg Biffle 118.8 Jimmie Johnson 116.5 Jeff Gordon 107.3 Tony Stewart 105.3 Carl Edwards 98.7 Matt Kenseth 98.6 Mark Martin 92.7 Kurt Busch 91.8 Kevin Harvick 89.4 Clint Bowyer 86.5 Denny Hamlin 85.2 Brad Keselowski 84.8
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2011 races (7 total) at Kansas.
Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner: Kasey Kahne (174.844 mph, 30.920 seconds)
2010 race winner: Greg Biffle, 138.077 mph, 10-03-10)
Qualifying record: Matt Kenseth (180.856 mph, 29.858 seconds, 10-08-05)
Race record: Greg Biffle (138.077 mph, 10-03-10)
NASCAR in Kansas
· There have been 11 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Kansas, all at Kansas Speedway. The only other Kansas track to hold a NASCAR national series race was Heartland Park in Topeka, which hosted five NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races from 1995-99.
· 16 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as Kansas, including Jim Roper who won the very first NASCAR Sprint Cup race – Charlotte in 1949.
· There have been two race winners in the top three NASCAR series from Kansas:
Driver NSCS NNS NCWTS Clint Bowyer 4 8 3 Jim Roper 1 0 0
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