Written By Gabriel Tsui, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
After an amazing race in Darlington, which saw Kyle Larson take his third win of the season, and secure a spot in the Round of 12, the field will be heading to Kansas City for the second race of the round of 16. Denny Hamlin is the driver with the most wins in Kansas, will he carry the momentum from Darlington, and add yet another Kansas win to his resume? Or would any other driver in the field, especially the Chevys, take the black-and-white chequered flag before he does?
Track Preview
The Kansas Speedway is located in Kansas City, Kansas. The track is shaped like a tri-oval, spanning 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometres) in length. The drivers will take to the track for 267 laps, with 80 laps each in the first and second stage, and 107 laps for the final stage of racing.
The pit window would be around 50-60 laps, which would equate to around five to six pit stops. However, it is doubtful if there would even be an uninterrupted green flag period for more than 30-40 laps, given the last couple of Kansas races saw eight to eleven caution flags.
The weather will be clear for the race weekend, with no signs of rain. Tyre wear could be an issue, as the weather forecast predicts an extremely warm race with temperatures going past 30 degrees Celsius. The race will start at 15:00 ET (12:00 PT, 21:00 CEST).
Race Prediction
Currently, the Toyotas hold the best odds, with five drivers in the top seven, and Denny Hamlin leading the way. As mentioned above, he has the most wins in Kansas, including a controversial win earlier in the season, which saw him send Larson into the wall on the final lap, before taking the chequered flag. Other Toyotas such as Martin Truex Jr and Christopher Bell will also have a shot at the win, if they can avoid unlucky crashes.
On the other side, Team Hendricks are performing really well. Having started 18th, Kyle Larson came all the way to take the top spot, while William Byron started 23rd and finished 4th. They have the third and fourth highest odds in the field to win the race, and one of them might just do that. Hendricks has the most wins in Kansas for a reason, and they are ready to add one more, to make it ten in Kansas.