And then there were 12.
Four drivers were eliminated from the NASCAR playoffs last week, as the second round is set to get underway Sunday at Kansas Speedway.
Kansas has hosted a playoff race every year since 2004, when the first postseason was held. The 1.5-mile oval produced the closest finish in NASCAR history earlier this season, when Kyle Larson edged Chris Buescher at the finish line by 0.001 seconds.
So, who is racing in Kansas? What’s the schedule for TV and streaming? And what drivers could contend for the win? Here’s everything you need to know for 2024 Hollywood Casino 400:
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When is the NASCAR race in Kansas?
The Hollywood Casino 400 is set for Sunday, Sept. 29 at 3 p.m. ET.
Before the race, there were practice and qualifying sessions on Saturday. The 38 drivers were split into two groups (found here) with each group getting 20 minutes of free practice and then competing in two-round qualifying. Here’s how it worked:
- Each driver will make one lap in the first round, with the five fastest drivers in each group advancing.
- In the final round, the remaining drivers each get one lap to set the top 10 starting order. The fastest driver overall will start on the pole, the fastest driver in the other group will start second.
- Positions 3 through 10 are set on final round times – Group A filling the even-numbered positions (4th, 6th, 8th, 10th), Group B filling the odd-numbered positions (3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th).
- Positions 11 through 38 are set based on first round times – Group A filling the even-numbered positions, Group B filling the odd-numbered positions.
You can find the full starting lineup here, with Christopher Bell and Ty Gibbs starting on the front row.
What is the NASCAR TV schedule this weekend?
Leigh Diffey (play-by-play), Jeff Burton (analyst) and Steve Letarte (analyst) will be on the call for NBC Sports all weekend. Marty Snider, Kim Coon, and Parker Kligerman will serve as pit reporters. Here’s the full TV and streaming schedule:
Saturday, Sept. 28 (streaming)
- Practice: 1 p.m. ET, NBC Sports app
- Qualifying: 1:45 p.m. ET, NBC Sports app
Sunday, Sept. 29 (USA Network and streaming)
- Countdown to Green: 2:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports app
- Hollywood Casino 400: 3 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports app
- NASCAR Cup Series Post Race: 6 p.m. ET, USA Network, NBC Sports app
NASCAR Kansas entry list, drivers
Thirty-eight drivers will race at Kansas – the 34 full-timers, plus four others.
The headliner is seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson, who will drive the No. 84 for his seventh of nine starts this season. Then there’s Ty Dillon and Kaz Grala, who will continue their part-time schedules for Kaulig Racing and Rick Ware Racing, respectively. Elsewhere, J.J. Yeley will make his fifth start of the season for NY Racing Team.
Also of note, Justin Haley and Corey LaJoie will swap rides after a trade was announced last week between Spire Motorsports and Rick Ware Racing. Haley takes over the No. 7 for Spire, LaJoie will finish the season in the No. 51 for RWR.
Here’s the full entry list for Kansas:
| Car number | Driver | Team | Sponsor |
| 1 | Ross Chastain | Trackhouse Racing | Kubota Tractors |
| 2 | Austin Cindric | Team Penske | Menards |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Bass Pro Shops |
| 4 | Josh Berry | Stewart-Haas Racing | Bed Bath & Beyond |
| 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | HendrickCars.com |
| 6 | Brad Keselowski | RFK Racing | Solomon Plumbing |
| 7 | Justin Haley | Spire Motorsports | Gainbridge |
| 8 | Kyle Busch | Richard Childress Racing | BetMGM |
| 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | UniFirst |
| 10 | Noah Gragson | Stewart-Haas Racing | Bed Bath & Beyond |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | FedEx |
| 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Wurth |
| 14 | Chase Briscoe | Stewart-Haas Racing | Mahindra Tractors |
| 15 | Kaz Grala | Rick Ware Racing | Remixers.com |
| 16 | Ty Dillon | Kaulig Racing | FitRx |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | RFK Racing | Fastenal |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Bass Pro Shops |
| 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Rheem |
| 21 | Harrison Burton | Wood Brothers Racing | Menards |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Shell/Pennzoil |
| 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Columbia Sportswear |
| 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Valvoline |
| 31 | Daniel Hemric | Kaulig Racing | South Point Hotel & Casino |
| 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Horizon Hobby |
| 38 | Todd Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Rasmussen Air & Gas Energy |
| 41 | Ryan Preece | Stewart-Haas Racing | Haas Tooling |
| 42 | John Hunter Nemechek | Legacy Motor Club | Pye-Barker |
| 43 | Erik Jones | Legacy Motor Club | AdventHealth |
| 44 | J.J. Yeley | NY Racing Team | Urban Racing School |
| 45 | Tyler Reddick | 23XI Racing | DraftKings |
| 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Dillons/NOS Energy |
| 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Ally |
| 51 | Corey LaJoie | Rick Ware Racing | Children's Mercy Hospital |
| 54 | Ty Gibbs | Joe Gibbs Racing | Monster Energy |
| 71 | Zane Smith | Spire Motorsports | Focused Health |
| 77 | Carson Hocevar | Spire Motorsports | Premier Security |
| 84 | Jimmie Johnson | Legacy Motor Club | Family Dollar/Dollar Tree |
| 99 | Daniel Suarez | Trackhouse Racing | Worldwide Express |
NASCAR Kansas predictions, picks, favorites
Two drivers have ruled this track in recent years: Larson and Hamlin.
Since 2022 at Kansas (five races), the two have combined for two wins, nine top-fives, 10 top-10s and 444 laps led – ranking first or second in all four categories. Larson won there in May, while Hamlin won the spring race last year.
Beyond Larson and Hamlin, many of the other playoff drivers are set up for success at Kansas. Elliott leads all drivers with a 10.2 average finish in 17 starts, with top-12 finishes in 13 of his last 14 races. There’s also Reddick, who won the Kansas playoff race last fall for 23XI Racing.
The Toyotas of Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing and the Chevrolets of Hendrick Motorsports are typically leading the pack at Kansas. Aside from Hamlin, JGR has Bell (four Kansas poles, including 2024) and Truex (12.6 average finish). Wallace is a past Kansas winner for 23XI, and the duo of Byron (seven top-10s) and Bowman (four straight top-10s) have strong Kansas history to match their HMS teammates Larson and Elliott.
Aside from the powerhouse Toyota and Chevy drivers, Ford teammates Logano and Blaney expect to make some noise. The former is a three-time Kansas winner, though he hasn’t found victory lane since 2020. Blaney is a two-time stage winner at Kansas, but the defending champion hasn’t quite had the finishes there recently (one top-10 in last seven starts).
NASCAR Kansas winners list, race history
Ten of the 38 drivers in the field are past winners at Kansas, including seven with multiple victories.
Hamlin leads all drivers with four Kansas wins, followed by Johnson and Logano with three apiece. Busch, Truex, Larson and Keselowski have two wins each, and the one-time winners are Elliott (2018), Wallace (2022) and Reddick (2023).
NASCAR playoff standings entering Kansas
The standings are reset for the Round of 12, with each driver getting 3,000 points plus their playoff points earned in the first 29 races. Cindric, Suarez, Bowman and Briscoe are below the cut line, but they have three races to either win or put themselves into the top eight.
You can find a full explanation of NASCAR’s playoff format right here.
Here’s the playoff standings entering Kansas:
| Rank | Driver | Points |
| 1. | Kyle Larson | 3,047 |
| 2. | Christopher Bell | 3,032 |
| 3. | Tyler Reddick | 3,028 |
| 4. | William Byron | 3,022 |
| 5. | Ryan Blaney | 3,019 |
| 6. | Denny Hamlin | 3,015 |
| 7. | Chase Elliott | 3,014 |
| 8. | Joey Logano | 3,012 |
| 9. | Austin Cindric | 3,008 |
| 10. | Daniel Suarez | 3,006 |
| 11. | Alex Bowman | 3,005 |
| 12. | Chase Briscoe | 3,005 |
