Last time the Cup Drivers were here at Kansas, the race turned out to come down to fuel mileage - as so many other races have come to. And that includes the first two races of the Chase: Chicago and London, both of which were won by Tony Stewart, the best fuel saver in NASCAR.
But Tony Stewart didn't win this fuel strategy battle in June. It was a surprise driver that out survived ALL. His name was Brad Keselowski, driver of the #2 Miller Lite Dodge. One would think that was a fluke win, but he has backed it up with following wins at Pocono and Bristol. If he didn't struggle with inconsistency early in the season, he'd only be six points back of point leader Kevin Harvick. His three wins would count he had of cracked the top ten before Chicagoland.
But that's all behind us now. It's the fourth race of the Chase and drivers from point leader, Kevin Harvick, to ninth place Jeff Gordon, are all within 19 points of each other. It'll be all about protection and gaining, as it is every race. So who should look forward to Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400?
Favorites
Kurt Busch
He was the driver who dominated the STP 400 in June leading 152 laps. But alas, fuel mileage ruined his chances of victory. He has momentum on his side coming off a victory at Dover last week, while holding off rival Jimmie Johnson. He has a great chance of continuing it this Sunday. Let's see if Kurt will have close to the same setup underneath as he did in June.
Tony Stewart
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| Stewart led the last 30 laps to take home the flag in 2009. |
Smoke has won two Chase races here, most recently in 2009. He's coming off a disappointing, yet, expected finish at Dover last week. You bet he's relieved to be gone from there. Tony has led at least one lap in the six of the last seven Kansas races. That trend should continue. Expect Tony to have a "speedy" recovery from last weekend.
Darkhorses
Brad Keselowski
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| Brad K. only led 10 laps en route to an upset win at Kansas. |
He won the June race; Why not? He only led 10 laps while doing so. Brad and Co. have shown they're better the second time around visiting a track. Let's see if that holds true again.
Jeff Gordon
This track has been very kind to the 4-time Champ. He has two wins with the best average finish of anyone in the field: 8.1. After the performance at Chicagoland, Jeff needs to continue to chip away at the point lead. He survived Dover enough to do so, despite a disappointing 12th place finish. Kansas is a great track for him to continue to embark on his push for championship No. 5.
Risktakers
Kyle Busch
Kansas is one of Kyle's worst tracks - unless his average finish of 22.4 says otherwise. Kyle is entering 8th in points, 15 back. Because points mean more than ever, he's going to have to gut this race out. The good news is that he led 11 laps and finished 12th this June. He only has one top ten in eight starts. I'd like to think he's due for one, but maybe I'm wrong.
So like every race, I'm going to obviously tune in. If Kurt Busch runs close to how he ran in the first Kansas race, he has a chance of "pulling a Tony Stewart." I just hope it doesn't come down to fuel mileage. Those races are fine every once in a blue moon. But I don't like to see the fastest car lose, even if it's somebody other than Jeff Gordon. Although, I don't mind seeing the #48 shut out of victory circle. The irony of that is I'm picking the #48 to win his second race of the 2011 season. Let's not forget, Jimmie has an average finish of 9.1 with two wins as well. But, of course, that's one man's opinion and I'm sticking with it.
All race stats are retrieved from http://www.racing-reference.info/
Credit to photos from http://racingwin.com/tag/brad-keselowski/
http://www.skirtsandscuffs.com/2010/10/tv-schedule-oct-1-3.html
http://www.bernardbusservice.com/Bernard%20Coach%20Kansas.htm
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