Intermediate tracks are a staple on the 2024 NASCAR Cup schedule, but the races at Kansas Speedway have consistently been on another level -- especially in the Next Gen era.
Kansas Speedway hosts two events per year. In 2024, this track serves as the playoff race that kicks off the Round of 12 in just a couple of days. Why the hype?
Even with Talladega looming next week, drivers approach with caution, because recent races in Kansas have had a tendency to get wild. As a result, the 1.5-mile oval has earned a reputation — and you don't have to look back very far to find out why.
A few months ago, it played host to the closest finish in all of NASCAR history when Kyle Larson beat Chris Buescher by just 0.001s. It dethroned the iconic 2003 Darlington finish (0.002s) and was just the exclamation mark on a thrilling race from green flag to checkered flag.
The 400-miler began with an 60-lap duel for the lead between Larson and Ross Chastain before Denny Hamlin passed them both. The following restart saw a daring five-wide pass down the frontstretch that somehow didn't end in disaster. The race featured 27 lead changes, more than any non-drafting track this year, excluding the bizarre tire wear race at Bristol earlier in the season.
This year's Kansas thriller was no anomaly. In the 2023 playoff race, Tyler Reddick made a three-wide pass for the lead coming to the white flag to win and lock himself into the next round. The spring race was even more bonkers, featuring 37 lead changes, which was more than any non-drafting track once again.
And how about the finish? It ended with Hamlin wrecking Larson for the win, and Chastain punching Noah Gragson in the face!
Yeah, things get wild in Kansas and this weekend should be no exception.
On Sunday, drivers will be using every inch of the track, and possibly a little extra on either side of it. While the line right up against the wall is favored, passing in the lower lanes is very possible -- thank you, progressive banking. After 500 unexpectedly civil parade laps at Bristol, Kansas may be the perfect medicine for both fans and drivers as the final positions are being claimed in a playoff battle for the Cup.
Looking at the intermediate tracks on the NASCAR calendar, where does Kansas Speedway ranks?
Race in Charlotte, Las Vegas, Nashville and even the PJ1-scarred Texas have had their moments. Homestead is its own challenge, as is Atlanta — though, this track is now more of a Frankenstein's monster of a superspeedway than an intermediate oval. In the modern era, has Kansas managed to assert itself as 'the' action track among its fellow intermediates?
