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To some fans, Kansas is just a 1.5 mile cookie cutter. To these drivers, it is anything but. The progressively banked tri-oval provides a unique challenge to drivers and teams that has the tendency to trip some drivers up more than others.
Here is a list of five current Cup Series drivers who struggle at Kansas Speedway.
Numbers: 19.8 avg. finish, 3 top 5s, 5 top 10s, 1 DNF in 13 starts
Breakdown: Recency bias does apply here as Jones at one point had five straight finishes of seventh or better at the track while with Joe Gibbs Racing. However, since his move to what is now known as Legacy Motor Club, he has failed to find the top 20. As a matter of fact, his best finish with the team at Kansas is merely 25th in May of 2021.
Numbers: 20.1 avg. finish, 0 top 5s, 2 top 10s, 1 DNF in 7 starts
Breakdown: Reddick has qualified quite well at Kansas with an average starting position of 12.1. However, four finishes outside of the top 20 mean that it has not always translated to Sunday. Last season was the perfect depiction of that with two front row starts and finishes of 30th and 35th respectively, including crashing from the lead in the fall race.
Numbers: 20.1 avg. finish, 0 top 5s, 1 top 10, 3 DNFs in 20 starts
Breakdown: His numbers may be worse than some drivers on this list, but I’m going to cut Stenhouse some slack because of his overall pedigree in the Cup Series. Regardless of that pedigree, only one top 10 in 20 starts at the track is likely not something Stenhouse is thrilled with. His only top 10 did come in the spring race at Kansas last season, so maybe he is starting to figure it out?
Numbers: 19.3 avg. finish, 0 top 5s, 7 top 10s, 0 wins, 3 DNFs in 22 starts
Breakdown: Kansas is a track that has not been kind to Aric Almirola. On top of having only one top 10 finish in the last eight races there, it was also the sight of the most horrifying crash of Almirola’s career in 2017 which sidelined him for weeks with a fractured vertebra. Simply put, this is not a track Almirola has many fond memories of.
Numbers: 21.3 avg. finish, 0 top 5s, 2 top 10s, 0 wins, 2 DNFs in 12 starts
Breakdown: Sandwiched between two top 10s in his first and most recent start at the track is a myriad of difficult days for Suarez. Half of his 12 starts at the track have been finishes outside of the top 20. However, his last start was a top 10 with eight laps led, so could he be starting a turnaround at the track?
