NASCAR Xfinity Series News & Notes – Kansas Speedway

NASCAR Xfinity Series, Kansas Speedway

Next Race: Kansas Lottery 300
The Place: Kansas Speedway
Track Length: 1.5 Mile Asphalt Oval
The Date: Saturday, September 27
The Time: 4 p.m. ET
The Purse: $1,651,939
TV: CW, 3:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR (Channel 90)
Distance: 300 miles (200 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 45),
Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 90), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200)

Where To Watch NASCAR This Week:

Friday, Sept. 26

ARCA Race: Reese’s 150 (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM at 8 p.m. ET)

Saturday, Sept. 27

NXS Practice & Kennametal Pole Qualifying (CW App at 10:30 a.m. ET)

NCS Practice & Busch Light Pole Qualifying (truTV, MRN, SiriusXM at 1 p.m. ET)

NXS Race: Kansas Lottery 300 (CW, MRN, SiriusXM at 4 p.m. ET)

Sunday, Sept. 28

NCS Race: Hollywood Casino 400 Presented by ESPN BET (USA, MRN, SiriusXM at 3 p.m. ET)

Kansas Speedway Storylines and Insights:

• This weekend marks the 26th running of a NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Kansas Speedway (2001-2025).
• Kansas has been on the Xfinity Series schedule every year since inaugural race in 2001.
• Kansas is the fifth of six races on 1.5-mile tracks this season.
• Kansas is the second race in the Round of 12; the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course will be the cutoff race next week.
• The four lowest drivers in points after the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course will be eliminated from the Xfinity Series Playoffs.
• This is the eighth Xfinity Series Playoff race Kansas has hosted since the Playoffs started in 2016; Kansas was in the regular season in 2022 and 2023.
• Any driver who leaves Kansas 57 points above eighth place will advance to Round of 8 on points.
• Connor Zilisch enters Kansas 85 points above the cut line and 82 points above eighth place.
• Carson Kvapil (+16), Harrison Burton (+9) and Sheldon Creed (+7) all climbed above the cut line at Bristol.
• Nick Sanchez (-3), Jesse Love (-3) and Sammy Smith (-24) all fell below the cut line at Bristol.
• Both Richard Childress Racing drivers enter Kansas below the cutline: Jesse Love (-3), Austin Hill (-16).
• Aric Almirola won at Bristol, the third straight Playoff race won by a non-Playoff driver.
• Joe Gibbs Racing ended an 18-race winless streak at Bristol, their longest in the Xfinity Series since a 34-race streak between 2006-2007.
• Connor Zilisch tied Xfinity Series record with 15 straight top-five finishes; he can break the record set by Sam Ard in 1983 this weekend.
• Connor Zilisch’s 2.1 average finish in the last 15 races is the best in series history in a 15-race span.
• Connor Zilisch’s nine wins this season are record for most wins by a rookie.
• Connor Zilisch won seven of the last nine races this season, tied with Sam Ard for most in a nine-race span.
• Connor Zilisch won 33% of his starts, the best win percentage all-time.
• Randall Burnett was announced as Connor Zilisch’s crew chief next season when he moves to Trackhouse Racing in the Cup Series.
• JR Motorsports won 16 races this season with a series-record six different drivers, all six drivers won in the last 18 races (does not include Parker Kligerman who won in relief role at Daytona).
• Sheldon Creed got his 15th career runner-up finish at Bristol, the most in series history without a win.
• JR Motorsports had at least one car finish top-five in a record 29 straight races.
• Brandon Jones, with two wins, is the only active driver to win at Kansas in the NXS.
• Seven drivers on the entry list won at Kansas: Jones (2 Xfinity), Eckes (Trucks, ARCA), Hill (Trucks), Sanchez (2 ARCA), Creed (ARCA), Love (ARCA), Queen (ARCA).
• Joe Gibbs Racing won 13 of last 18 Kansas races with nine different drivers.
• Brenden “Butterbean” Queen will make his second career start at Kansas driving the Kaulig Racing #11, he finished 20^th in his NXS debut at Bristol last race.
• Rajah Caruth will drive the Hendrick Motorsports #17, his first start for HMS since Phoenix in 11/2023 where he finished 14^th.
• Four of the 25 Kansas races went to overtime, last was July 2020.
• JR Motorsports won three of the four races on 1.5-mile tracks this season.
• Justin Allgaier has six wins on 1.5-mile tracks, the most among active drivers.
• The pass for the win came on an overtime restart in the last three races on 1.5-mile tracks.
• Toyota snapped an 18-race winless streak at Bristol, their longest streak since their first Xfinity Series win in 2007.
• Connor Zilisch leads the series with nine wins, 16 top fives, 848 laps led, an 8.4 average finish and seven poles this season.
• Justin Allgaier leads the series with 11 stage wins this season.
• Connor Zilisch and Jesse Love lead the series with 18 top 10s this season.
•  Justin Allgaier and Connor Zilisch each won the Fastest Lap Award five times this season.
• Justin Allgaier’s 28 career wins are 9^th on the all-time wins list and one away from tying Matt Kenseth.
• Justin Allgaier is two top 10s away from becoming the first driver to reach 300 NXS top-10 finishes.
• Justin Allgaier will make his 499^th career start at Kansas.
• Chevrolet led 3,291 of 4,301 laps this season (77%).
• Chevrolet won 23 of 27 races, the most all time by a manufacturer through 27 races in series history.
• Five races this year ended with a last lap pass.

NXS Clinch Scenarios for Kansas Speedway (Playoff Race #2)

Already Clinched

• No drivers have clinched a spot in the 8-driver field of the next round.

Can Clinch Via Points

• If there is a repeat winner or a win by a driver who cannot advance to the next round, the following drivers could clinch by being 57 points above the 8th winless driver in the standings.  The same point requirements listed below would hold true if a new win comes from among Connor Zilisch, Justin Allgaier or Sam Mayer.
  • Connor Zilisch: Would clinch with 23 points
  • Justin Allgaier: Would clinch with 52 points
  • Sam Mayer: Could only clinch with help
  • Carson Kvapil: Could only clinch with help
  • Harrison Burton: Could only clinch with help
  • Brandon Jones: Could only clinch with help
  •  Sheldon Creed: Could only clinch with help
• The following drivers could clinch on points with a win by Carson Kvapil
  • Connor Zilisch: Would clinch with 24 points
  • Justin Allgaier: Would clinch with 53 points
  • Sam Mayer: Could only clinch with help
  • Harrison Burton: Could only clinch with help
  • Brandon Jones: Could only clinch with help
  • Sheldon Creed: Could only clinch with help
• The following drivers could clinch on points with a win by Harrison Burton, Brandon Jones or Sheldon Creed:
  • Connor Zilisch: Would clinch with 26 points
  • Justin Allgaier: Would clinch with 55 points
  • Sam Mayer: Could only clinch with help
  • Carson Kvapil: Could only clinch with help
  • Harrison Burton: Could only clinch with help
  • Brandon Jones: Could only clinch with help
  • Sheldon Creed: Could only clinch with help
• If there is a new winner from Taylor Gray or another winless driver lower in the standings but still eligible to advance to the next round, the following drivers could clinch by being 57 points above the 7th winless driver in the standings.
  • Connor Zilisch: Would clinch with 27 points
  • Justin Allgaier: Would clinch with 56 points
  • Sam Mayer: Could only clinch with help
  • Carson Kvapil: Could only clinch with help
  • Harrison Burton: Could only clinch with help
  • Brandon Jones: Could only clinch with help
  • Sheldon Creed: Could only clinch with help

Can Clinch Via Win

• The following drivers would clinch on their win alone: Connor Zilisch, Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer, Carson Kvapil, Harrison Burton, Brandon Jones, Sheldon Creed, Taylor Gray, Nicholas Sanchez, Jesse Love, Austin Hill, Sammy Smith.

NASCAR & Kansas, Etc.

Historical & Significant Events at Kansas Speedway:

• In 1996, International Speedway Corporation (now NASCAR) began exploring options to build a speedway in the Midwest. Lesa France Kennedy spearheaded the search process. In 1997, Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, were selected as the site for the new speedway at the intersection of interstates 70 and 435.
• On December 18, 1997, International Speedway Corporation (now NASCAR) announced plans to build a 1.5 mile speedway to seat approximately 75,000.
• Architecture firm HNTB designed the facility and Turner Construction provided construction management. Construction began on the 1,200 acre, 1.5 mile speedway in May of 1999.
• Completion was targeted for 2000 but was delayed by weather and lawsuits from nearby landowners. Paving began in September 2000, and the speedway completed in early 2001.
• Estimated project cost was $250 million. The speedway had a significant impact on the area even before construction was finished. New commercial and entertainment developments sprung up near the speedway, including a movie theater complex, an outdoor retail mall, and hotels.
• The official opening of Kansas Speedway was in 2001, with the first events being an ARCA Menards Series race and an ARCA Menards Series West race on the same day – June 2.
• The first NASCAR Cup Series race was on September 30, 2001. The event was won by Hendrick Motorsport’s driver and NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon (Chevrolet).
• In 2011, the track held the Kanrocksas Music Festival, a rock music festival. The event was first announced on April 26, 2011, and was held in August; the inaugural festival featured acts such as Eminem, The Flaming Lips, Kid Cudi, Primus, and others.
• Following the 2012 STP 400, the track underwent a massive renovation project that included repaving the track surface, reconfiguration of the oval, and addition of a new infield road course. NASCAR’s in-house design and construction group utilized state of the art computer modeling to develop track geometry with up to 20 degrees of variable banking. Construction crews removed the existing oval track asphalt pavement and regraded the underlying soil to create the variable banking. In addition to the turns, the frontstretch, backstretch and pit road were reconstructed.
• The Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway overlooking turn 2 opened February 3, 2012 with 2,000 slot machines, 52 gaming tables and 12 poker tables on a 100,000 square-foot gaming floor. It also features 28,000 square-feet of other amenities including restaurants, clubs and nightlife attractions.
• The casino is estimated to bring 440,000 tourists per year and create 1,050 full time jobs elevating the state to a first class, year-round tourist destination.
• The inside of the $411 million Hollywood Casino facility is modeled after the golden age of Hollywood. There are soaring columns with ornate scrollwork, video screens rolling historic clips of Grace Kelly and James Stewart and vintage movie posters of Steve McQueen in “Le Mans” and James Garner in “Grand Prix,” a nod to the motorsports element of the unique partnership.
• Prior to the fall race in 2015 Kansas Speedway added 1,250 linear feet of SAFER barrier to the backstretch and 525 linear feet to the frontstretch; all outside walls are now protected by SAFER barrier. 1,700 linear feet of barrier was also added to the interior walls at the entry and exit of the corners. In total Kansas Speedway added a total of 3,475 feet or 6 tenths of a mile of SAFER barrier in 2015.
• Since 2016, the track has been the host of the American Royal World Series of BBQ competition.
• Kansas Speedway is located in the state of Kansas, 13 miles west of Kansas City, Mo.
• There have been 39 NASCAR Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway, one event from 2001 – 2010 and two races per year since 2011.

Latest News from Kansas Speedway:

• Kansas Speedway is proud to announce that Johnny Dare and members of the wildly popular Johnny Dare Morning Show will serve as Grand Marshals for this Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 presented by ESPN BET. The race, a key event in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, will feature Kansas Speedway’s signature blend of high-speed action with an added dose of Kansas City flavor.
• Johnny Dare was a mainstay of Kansas City’s airwaves for 32 years and host of the long-running Johnny Dare Morning Show on 98.9 The Rock. He became a local legend not only for his bold and entertaining radio style but also for his unwavering commitment to the community.