Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth have to be thankful for the simple formula that embodies the new Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup format — “win and you’re in.” Earnhardt, 11th in the Chase standings, sits 19 points behind Brad Keselowski on the cutoff line. Kenseth, 12th on the Chase standings is 32 points below the cutoff line.
Both drivers essentially need wins in one of the next two races (Kansas and Talladega) to advance from the Contender Round to the Eliminator 8 Round.
And both drivers get to race at tracks where they perform well.
In 19 starts at Kansas, Kenseth has two wins, six top fives and 11 top 10s. His 104.9 driver rating there is the second-highest total in NASCAR.
Earnhardt has solid stats at Kansas with nine top-10 finishes in 18 starts there, but gets to close out the Contender Round at Talladega where he owns six wins — tied with Jeff Gordon for the second-most victories in track history.
Kenseth hasn’t been very strong at Talladega. In 31 starts at the superspeedway, he claims one win, six top fives and 10 top 10s.
Here’s a look at this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule:
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Next Race: Hollywood Casino 400
The Place: Kansas Speedway
The Date: Sunday, Oct. 18
Race Time: 2:15 p.m. (ET)
TV: NBC, 1:30 p.m. (ET)
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM Ch. 90
Distance: 400.5 miles (267 laps)
Practice on TV: Friday, 1 p.m., NBCSN; Saturday, 2:30 p.m., NBCSN.
Qualifying on TV: Friday, 6 p.m., NBCSN.
Chris Buescher has a 26-point lead over Chase Elliott in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Roush Fenway Racing’s Chris Buescher is currently leading the NASCAR Xfinity Series standings by 26 points over second-place Chase Elliott with just four races remaining in the season. Buescher does control his own destiny — but it’s tough, very tough. If he finishes second in each of the next four races, he’ll clinch no matter what any other driver does.
Buescher got to this point in the season by being impressively consistent. In 29 starts, he has posted two wins (Iowa and Dover), 11 top fives and 19 top 10s (a top-10 finishing percentage of 65.5 percent). And to boot, his average finish this season is an 8.1 — best among championship contenders.
Buescher returns to Kansas Speedway to make his third career start at the 1.5-mile facility. In his previous two starts at Kansas he has had mixed results. In his series debut at the track, he finished 16th and last season he was caught in an accident and finished 28th, 51 laps down. This season, expect him to turn it around at Kansas, because in 2015 he has the third-best average finish among championship contenders on 1.5-mile tracks with an 8.3.
Here’s a look at this week’s race:
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Next Race: Kansas Lottery 300
The Place: Kansas Speedway
The Date: Saturday, Oct. 17
Race Time: 4 p.m. (ET)
TV: NBCSN, 3:30 p.m. (ET)
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM Ch. 90
Distance: 300 miles (200 laps)
Practice on TV: Friday, 4:30 p.m., NBCSN.
Qualifying on TV: Saturday, 12:30 p.m., NBCSN.