Kansas Track Facts: 2013 Hollywood Casino 400

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2013 Top 13 at Kansas Speedway

Rank	Driver	Races	Poles	Wins	Top Fives	Top 10s	DNFs	Average Finish	Driver Rating
1	Matt Kenseth	15	2	2	6	9	2	14.8	110.0
2	Jimmie Johnson	14	3	2	6	12	1	7.6	119.1
3	Kyle Busch	12	0	0	0	2	3	22.4	79.0
4	Kevin Harvick	15	0	0	1	6	1	12.8	92.0
5	Jeff Gordon	15	0	2	8	10	2	11.1	99.0
6	Greg Biffle	14	1	2	7	9	1	10.1	110.1
7	Ryan Newman	15	0	1	3	4	3	18.1	68.7
8	Clint Bowyer	10	0	0	2	5	1	13.1	91.0
9	Kurt Busch	15	1	0	0	3	1	17.9	87.8
10	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	14	1	0	1	6	2	16.4	86.8
11	Carl Edwards	12	0	0	4	8	1	11.3	96.1
12	Joey Logano	8	0	0	0	0	1	26.1	60.6
13	Kasey Kahne	12	3	0	3	6	1	13.9	91.9

* – Based on last 11 races at Kansas Speedway.

Kansas Speedway:

History

·        Groundbreaking was held on May 25, 1999.

·        The official opening of Kansas Speedway was in 2001, with the first events being an ARCA race and a NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race on the same day – June 2.

·        The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was on Sept. 30, 2001 – won by Jeff Gordon.

·        During the 2012 season, between the April and October events the 1.5-mile track underwent a repave adding variable banking in the corners.

Kansas Speedway Data

Season Race #: 29 of 36 (10-06-13)

Chase Race #: 4

Track Size: 1.5-miles

Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 17 to 20 degrees

Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 17 to 20 degrees

Banking/Frontstretch: 10 degrees

Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees

Frontstretch Length: 2,685 feet

Backstretch Length: 2,207 feet

Race Length: 267 laps / 400 miles

 

Top 13 Driver Rating at Dover

Jimmie Johnson................. 119.1

Greg Biffle.......................... 110.1

Matt Kenseth...................... 110.0

Ricky Stenhouse Jr............ 101.7

Jeff Gordon.......................... 99.0

Tony Stewart........................ 97.5

Carl Edwards....................... 96.1

Martin Truex Jr.................... 93.4

Kevin Harvick....................... 92.0

Kasey Kahne........................ 91.1

Mark Martin.......................... 91.0

Clint Bowyer......................... 91.0

Denny Hamlin....................... 89.8

Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2013 races (11 total) among active drivers at Kansas Speedway.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2012 pole winner:

Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet

191.360 mph, 28.219 secs. 10-19-12

 

2012 race winner:

Matt Kenseth, Ford

115.086 mph, (03:28:48), 10-21-12

 

Track qualifying record:

Matt Kenseth, Toyota

191.864 mph, 28.145 secs. 4-19-13

 

Track race record:

Denny Hamlin, Toyota

133.611 mph, (02:59:51), 4-22-12

 

Notebook

·        There have been 15 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway, one NSCS event from 2001 - 2010 and two races per year since 2011.

·        109 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kansas; 82 in more than one.

·        Nine drivers have made all 15 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Kansas Speedway – Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Jeff Burton, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Mark Martin, Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart.

·        Jason Leffler won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Kansas Speedway in 2001 with a speed of 176.499 mph.

·        10 drivers have Coors Light poles at Kansas, led by Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne with three each.

·        Jimmie Johnson is the only driver to win consecutive Coors Light poles at Kansas Speedway (2007 and 2008).

·        Youngest Kansas pole winner: Jason Leffler (9/30/2001 – 26 years, 0 months, 14 days).

·        Oldest Kansas pole winner: Mark Martin (10/4/2009 – 50 years, 8 months, 25 days).

·        10 different drivers have won at Kansas Speedway, led by Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson with two each.

·        Roush Fenway Racing and Hendrick Motorsports are tied for the most wins at Kansas in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with four each; followed by Joe Gibbs Racing with threeand Penske Racing with two.

·        Chevrolet leads the series in wins at Kansas with seven victories; followed by Ford with four wins.

·        Three of the 15 (20%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway have been won from the Coors Light pole; Joe Nemechek (2004), Jimmie Johnson (2008) and Matt Kenseth (2013). 

·        Four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway have been won from the front row: three from the pole and one from second-place.

·        Nine of the 15 (60%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Kansas Speedway have been won from a top-10 starting position.

·        Two of the 15 (13.3%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

·        The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Kansas Speedway was 25th, by Brad Keselowski in the spring of 2011.

·        Youngest Kansas winner: Ryan Newman (10/5/2003 – 25 years, 9 months, 27 days).

·        Oldest Kansas winner: Mark Martin (10/9/2005 – 46 years, 9 months, 0 days).

·        Martin Truex Jr., Kasey Kahne and Ryan Newman are tied for theseries most runner-up finishes at Kansas Speedway with two each.

·        Jeff Gordon leads the series in top-five finishes at Kansas Speedway with eight; followed by Greg Biffle with seven.

·        Jimmie Johnson leads the series in top-10 finishes at Kansas Speedway with 12; followed by Jeff Gordon (10).

·        Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Kansas Speedway with a 11.357.

·        Two active drivers have a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series average finish in the top 10 at Kansas: Jimmie Johnson(7.6) and Brad Keselowski (9.2).

·        There has been one NSCS race resulting with a green-white-checkered finish at Kansas Speedway: fall of 2011 (267/272).

·        Only one of the 15 races at Kansas Speedway has been shortened due to weather conditions: fall of 2007.

·        Qualifying has never been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Kansas Speedway.

·        Denny Hamlin has participated in the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway without posting a DNF (10).

·        Jason Leffler (9/30/2001) is the only driver to post his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Coors Light pole at Kansas Speedway.

·        2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Austin Dillon (10/09/2011) and Denny Hamlin(10/09/2005) made their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career starts at Kansas Speedway.

·        Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth are the only two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers that have posted consecutive wins at Kansas Speedway: Gordon (2001 and 2002 – the first two NSCS events at Kansas) and Kenseth (fall of 2012, spring of 2013).

·        Nine of the 10 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners at Kansas Speedway participated in at least two or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Jeff Gordon won at Kansas in his first appearance.

·        Matt Kenseth competed at Kansas Speedway 13 times before winning last fall; the longest span of any the 10 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners at Kansas.

·        Matt Kenseth is the only driver to have made 10 or more attempts before his first win at Kansas Speedway.

·        Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, Kurt Busch and Bobby Labonte lead the series with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup starts at Kansas Speedway without visiting Victory Lane at 15.

·        Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Kansas Speedway was the (10/10/2004) race won by Joe Nemechek with a MOV of 0.081 second.

·        Jimmie Johnson leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Kansas Speedway with 556 laps led in 14 starts.

·        Danica Patrick is the only female driver that has competed at Kansas Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series:

Driver	Starting Position	Finishing Position	Date
Danica Patrick	40	32	10/21/2012
Danica Patrick	25	25	4/21/2013

 

NASCAR in Kansas

·        There have been 15 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Kansas.

Track Name	City	NSCS
Kansas Speedway	Kansas City	15

·        16 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as Kansas.

·        Two drivers from Kansas have won at least one race in NASCAR’s three national series; both have won in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Clint Bowyer	8	8	3
Jim Roper	1	0	0

 

Chase For The NASCAR Sprint Cup: Kansas Speedway

·        Kansas Speedway has been one of the 10 tracks of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup since the playoff’s inception in 2004.

·        Once the winner of the Kansas Speedway Chase race has gone on to win the championship: Jimmie Johnson(2008).

·        Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart and Greg Biffle are tied for the most Chase race wins (two each) at Kansas Speedway.

·        The worst finish by the eventual champion at Kansas Speedway was Tony Stewart in 2011 (15th).

·        Chase Contenders have won six of the nine Chase races at Kansas Speedway. The three drivers that were not Chase Contenders that won the Chase races at Kansas are Joe Nemechek (2004), Tony Stewart (2006) andGreg Biffle (2007).

·        Three of the 2013 Chase Contenders are former NASCAR Sprint Cup race winners at Kansas Speedway: Jimmie Johnson (2), Greg Biffle (2) and Matt Kenseth (1).

·        Chevrolet leads the series in Chase wins at Kansas Speedway with five followed by Ford with four.

 

Eventual champion’s points position and point deficit to the standings leader following the third Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race:

Season	Champion	Points Back From Leader	Points Position Following Third Chase Race
2004	Kurt Busch	0	1st
2005	Tony Stewart	0	1st
2006	Jimmie Johnson	-165	8th
2007	Jimmie Johnson	0	1st
2008	Jimmie Johnson	0	1st
2009	Jimmie Johnson	-18	2nd
2010	Jimmie Johnson	0	1st
2011	Tony Stewart	-9	3rd
2012	Brad Keselowski	0	1st

*Note: 2011 and 2012 are under the current points per finish system

NASCAR Notes heading into Kansas

Busch and Johnson don't want Kenseth to get too far away

Chase Leader Kenseth Gets Second Shot At ‘Triple’

 
For Matt Kenseth, the third time was not the charm.

The 2003 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion failed last Sunday to fashion a record, third consecutive victory to start the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup™ but finished seventh to maintain his championship lead.

Kenseth, who heads five-time champion Jimmie Johnson by eight points and Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch by 12 markers gets a second shot at a “triple” in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway (2 p.m. ET, ESPN, Motor Racing Network Radio, SiriusXM Satellite Radio).

The Wisconsin veteran is the reigning winner of Kansas Speedway’s fall event and returned earlier this year to capture the STP 400. He won in a Roush Fenway Racing Ford in 2013, and in his current No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota this April.

Chase rivals looking for Kenseth to stumble in the nation’s heartland may have a long wait.

Kenseth has finished among the top five in four consecutive races and top 10 six straight times. He’s also led nine of the track’s most recent 11 races and owns a third-best Driver Rating of 110.0 trailing only Johnson and two-time Kansas winner Greg Biffle. He’s also won two Coors Light Poles.

Kenseth, Busch and the Gibbs organization have dominated the schedule’s intermediate tracks in 2013, the debut season for NASCAR’s Gen-6 race car. Their Toyota Camrys have won nine times on intermediate tracks with Kenseth visiting Victory Lane at Kansas, Chicagoland, Kentucky and Las Vegas; six of those came at tracks measuring 1.5 miles.

Beginning with Sunday’s race, four of the post season’s final seven events will be conducted on 1.5-mile tracks.

“We had probably one of the best cars I’ve ever driven at Kansas and in the spring we were able to turn that into a pole and a win,” said Kenseth. “Things change a lot though and going back this weekend, they’re bringing a different tire and we all have a test there on this Thursday.

“You always look forward to going back to tracks where you’ve had some good fortune and some success. Hopefully, we can get the car dialed in and have a good day again.”

Johnson Summons Statistics From Title Seasons Past
Matt Kenseth and Joe Gibbs Racing are having a sensational season.

Jimmie Johnson, however, says don’t forget about me – and emphatically so.

Johnson’s Dover International Speedway victory on Sunday was his 23rd in 93 Chase races, a winning percentage of 24.7. His record-setting eighth win set a Dover record, separating Johnson from NASCAR Hall of Famers Bobby Allison and Richard Petty.

It also moves the five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion to second in standings, eight points behind Kenseth.

Johnson’s fifth victory of the season – and first in this year’s Chase – may have additional implications. In each of his championship campaigns, the 38-year-old Californian won at least five times overall and once during the postseason.

In other words, Johnson and the No. 48 Hendrick are on track to win title No. 6.

“We came to a good track,” said Johnson, “And we got what we needed to get done.
“You’ve got to win when you’re at your best race track.”

Statistically speaking, Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus can look ahead to Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 with continued optimism. The 1.5-mile track also is among the team’s best with two wins (most recently in fall 2011) and nine consecutive top-10 finishes for an overall average finish of 7.6.

Johnson also has led eight of the last 10 Kansas races, contributing to a series-best Driver Rating of 119.1.
“The bigger, faster tracks, I feel really good about our equipment,” said Johnson, who finished third in April’s STP 400 and ninth in last year’s Kansas Chase race.

Neither Johnson nor his Hendrick Motorsports teammates have been able to score on tracks measuring 1.5 miles in 2013 – the first season for their Gen-6 Chevrolet SS race cars. Conversely, Kenseth and teammate Kyle Busch have scored six such victories.

Busch Must Avoid Previous Kansas Speedway Pitfalls
With a trio of top-five finishes – two of them seconds – and an average Chase finish of 3.0, Kyle Busch very well could be on the way to his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship. Busch’s best previous average finish over the first three Chase races, 12.0, came in 2010.

To maintain the momentum, however, he’ll have to survive this weekend’s round at Kansas Speedway.
The 1.5-mile track has been anything but kind to the 28-time premier series winner. Besides being one of six tracks where Busch hasn’t won, Kansas truly has been a thorn in the 28-year-old driver’s side.

Busch has no top fives and just two top 10s – the best a seventh in 2006 – in 12 visits to Kansas Speedway. His average finish of 22.4 is third-worst in Sprint Cup competition behind two other Chase tracks, Homestead-Miami Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.

The Las Vegas driver has finished on the lead lap just 50% of the time and has failed to complete three starts – among them this season’s STP 400 and last fall’s Hollywood Casino 400 in which his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was felled by accidents.

His Driver Rating of 79.0 is 18th best in the series and 11th among Chase qualifiers. Busch, however, is not deterred by his previous lack of success.

“I’m looking forward to Kansas with the roll we’re on,” he said. “I thought we were running decent there last fall. Actually, I was leading and I spun myself out while I was leading. So, hopefully, we have a good car like that this time around and I don’t make a mistake.”

Mantra For Harvick, Gordon, Biffle: Nothing Is Over ’Til We Decide It Is
After three Chase races In 2006, Jimmie Johnson sat eighth in the standings, a whopping 165 points behind then-leader Jeff Burton. That, of course, was under the “old” points structure. Under the current one, that 165 figure roughly equates to 33 points.

Over the next seven races, Johnson slashed that deficit to shreds, winning his first championship.
So for the likes of Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon and Greg Biffle, there’s a precedent for major comebacks. Over? Nothing is over until they decide it is. Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Heck no.

A look at the aforementioned three, and how their prospects look at Kansas…

Kevin Harvick: Currently 39 points behind leader Matt Kenseth, Harvick has yet to score a win at Kansas. He has six top 10s at Kansas, but only one top five (a third in 2010).

Jeff Gordon: Currently 39 points behind Kenseth, Gordon won the first two NSCS races ever held at Kansas, in 2001-02. More recently, his results have dipped, with only one top 10 in the last four races.

Greg Biffle: Of the three, Biffle is probably the favorite to take home the Kansas trophy. Currently 41 points behind Kenseth, Biffle has two wins at Kansas, as well as seven top fives and nine top 10s.

Spoilers Sporting K.C. Swagger
Throughout the Chase’s nine-year history, Kansas Speedway has often offered a welcome opportunity for non-Chase drivers to enter back into the spotlight.

Joe Nemechek boasts the title as “first-ever spoiler,” becoming the first non-Chaser to win a Chase race – at Kansas Speedway in 2004. The trend continued in 2006 and 2007, with Kansas Chase victories by Tony Stewart and Greg Biffle, respectively.

So we may be in store for a surprise this Sunday in Kansas – but the odds remain heavily in favor of Chasers going 4-for-4 to open the Chase. For one, it’s been almost two years since a spoiler won a Chase race. The last came at Phoenix in November of 2011, when Kasey Kahne won while driving for Red Bull Racing. And secondly, Chase competitors are dominating in an unprecedented fashion. At Dover last Sunday, Chase drivers made up the entire top-10 – the first time in Chase history that has happened.

But two names, in particular, could play the spoiler role on Sunday: Brad Keselowski and Denny Hamlin.

Hamlin, who missed the spring Kansas race with a back injury, won at the 1.5-mile track in 2012, and has three top five finishes there in the last six races. Keselowski won at Kansas in 2011, and has finished in the top 10 at Kansas in four of the last five races.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Etc.
Justin Allgaier, currently sixth in NASCAR Nationwide Series points, will make his second career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start his weekend at Kansas in the No. 51 Phoenix Racing Chevrolet. He finished 27th in his first start, at Chicagoland Speedway in September. … Kyle Larson, currently ninth in NASCAR Nationwide points, will make his NASCAR Sprint Cup debut the No. 51 Chevrolet at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Oct. 12. In addition, he will run the NSCS race in Martinsville on Oct. 27. In August, EGR announced that Larson would take over the reins of the No. 42 Target Chevy SS beginning in 2014.


- NASCAR

Greg Biffle Looking For Third Kansas Win on Sunday

Greg Biffle is 20/1 to win his third Kansas race

Greg Biffle – Kansas Advance
Team: No. 16 Sherwin Williams Ford Fusion
Crew Chief: Matt Puccia
Primary Chassis: RK-863 Last ran Michigan – finished 9th
Backup Chassis: RK-822 Last ran Bristol – finished 9th

ADVANCE NOTES

Biffle at Kansas

o Kansas is the track where Biffle holds his best average finish of 10.1 from an average starting position of 14.9.

o In his 14 career Cup Series starts at the 1.5-mile track, Biffle has two wins, seven top-five and nine top-10 finishes.
· The Car

o Chassis RK-863 finished ninth at Michigan in August after suffering some damage to the nose after contact on pit road.

Earlier This Season At Kansas
o Biffle has one of the most successful track records at the 1.5-mile speedway, but a loose-handling Ford plagued the 3M team. Just when things were taking a turn for the better, the caution came out while the field was cycling through green flag stops. Biffle took the “wave around” to be back on the lead lap and worked his way up to a 19th-place finish.

Winning History with Sherwin Williams
o Biffle drove a Sherwin Williams car to victory in 2010 at Kansas Speedway.

Meet Greg Biffle
o Greg will be signing autographs on Thursday, October 3rd at Sherwin William’s located at 7000 Johnson Dr., Mission, KS beginning at 5pm.

Biffle on Kansas:
“I feel really good about Kansas this weekend. We’ve got a lot of speed in our cars and 1.5-mile tracks are our favorite type of tracks. I like Kansas and have a couple of wins there. We’ve been running well and we have a strong opportunity to get our first win of the Chase. Even though the tire for this weekend is different than what we tested a little while back, I think we still learned a lot. We’ve got to get a win this weekend to get back in the Chase.”

Puccia on Kansas:
“Kansas has been a pretty good track for us. It has similar characteristics as far as grip and handling package to Michigan. We were fortunate enough to participate in the Goodyear tire test about a month ago and think that will help us some this weekend. We are looking to get a good run and improve on our Championship standings.”

- Roush Fenway Racing

Jimmie Johnson brings track record 7.6 average finish and two wins to Kansas

Johnson is now 6/5 favorite to win 2013 Sprint Cup

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 1, 2013) – Kansas City is a barbecue town. Locals will steer folks to Gates, or Arthur Bryant’s on their first visit, and then on to one of the smaller establishments, like L.C.’s, Woodyard, or Oklahoma Joe’s. But barbecue (aka “BBQ”) for Jimmie Johnson this weekend may stand for something else – “Better Be Quick.”

The five-time champion certainly had that covered last weekend at Dover (Del.) International Speedway as he dominated at the Monster Mile to record his fifth win of the season, his first in this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and his 23rd win in the Chase’s 10-year history. The win, coupled with two top-five finishes in the first two events of NASCAR’s playoffs this year – fifth at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., and fourth at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon – has moved him into second in the point standings, just eight behind leader Matt Kenseth.

Johnson is hoping to continue that streak at the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, just west of the Missouri-Kansas state line. It just so happens to be one of Johnson’s best tracks. In 14 races there, he has finished outside the top-10 only twice – 14th in 2006 and 32nd in 2004 after he was collected in an accident. He has won twice and has finished in the top-three six times.

While the stats look good, that doesn’t always guarantee a good finish. But Johnson and the No. 48 Lowe’s team know a visit to victory lane would certainly help their chances at a sixth championship, or “Six Pack” as they’ve titled their quest, but they know this week they “Better Be Quick.”

Kansas Notes of Interest:
· Two wins (September 2008 and October 2011).
· Three poles (October 2003, September 2007 and 2008).
· Six top-five finishes (42.9 percent) and 12 top-10s (85.7 percent) in 14 starts.
· One DNF (did not finish – October 2004).
· Average start of 11.4 and average finish of 7.6.
· Completed 3,657 of 3,686 laps (99.2 percent) and led 556.
· Sprint Cup’s best driver rating (119.1 average of a possible 150 points).
· Sprint Cup’s best average running position (7.4).
· Sprint Cup’s best in fastest laps run (439).
· Sprint Cup’s most laps in the top-15 with 2,556 (88.6 percent).
· Sprint Cup’s best average green-flag speed at 165.518 mph.

2013 Season Notes of Interest:
· Currently second in points, eight behind leader Matt Kenseth in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
· Five wins (February and July Daytona, April Martinsville, June Pocono, September Dover).
· Two poles (Martinsville, August Pocono).
· 12 top-five finishes and 18 top-10s.
· Sprint-Cup’s best in laps led (17 races for 1,423 laps).

Driver, Team and Sponsor Notes
· Johnson will drive the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS at Dover.

JIMMIE JOHNSON, Driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS for Hendrick Motorsports:

www.twitter.com/jimmiejohnson, www.twitter.com/lowesracing and www.twitter.com/teamhendrick

What makes Kansas unique of all the 1.5-mile tracks?
“Well, it’s been resurfaced recently and the right tire, the tire has changed again. There will be a lot going into the test session on Thursday to understand the tire to get the most out of it. I know it’s not really relative to racing and the race itself, but I’m just impressed what that area has done around the racetrack, the sports venues that are there and the retail stuff. I think we all look at that example and say, ‘Why don’t we have more of that? This works so well.’ Our sport is really the centerpiece of what goes on around there. I enjoy going to the track. There are certainly challenges with the newer surface and the new tire we will have. We will just have to get out there and see.”

Talking about repaves, do you think the track has seasoned a little bit?
“I know tire wear was really low. Goodyear and NASCAR didn’t like the fact there wasn’t any tire wear and that is why they tested a couple of times and having this test day for us. They are trying to create the right tire fall-off so we can have that side-by-side racing that is everybody’s goal.”

- True Speed Communication for Team Lowe’s Racing

Newman looking for 'Super-Fast' Kansas on Sunday

2003 Kansas winner Ryan Newman is 30/1 to win Sunday

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (Oct. 1, 2013) – When a natural disaster strikes, coordinated efforts between architects, construction crews, local residents, individuals and volunteer groups focus their energies on recovery and rebuilding. Getting the area functioning as it was before the devastation becomes a priority for those involved.

While numerous organizations dedicate themselves to both relieving human suffering and the rebuilding efforts, the plight of animals affected by the disaster is almost an afterthought. That’s where Code 3 Associates, Inc., comes in. A 501(c)(3) non-profit, Code 3 is dedicated to providing professional animal disaster response and resources to communities, as well as providing professional training to individuals and agencies involved in emergency response. The group, founded in 1985, accomplishes its mission through hands-on animal rescue and care operations during disaster events in the United States and Canada.

The Colorado-based organization is a national response team that, at the request of local government officials, provides animal rescue and recovery in times of disaster.

Last season, Code 3 Associates began its partnership with Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). The collaboration has led to increased recognition for the efforts of Code 3 Associates and, in turn, increased donations to the national response team that at the request of local government officials provides animal rescue and recovery during any kind of disaster.

Just last month, Code 3 Associates was called in to help in Colorado. A week of relentless rain and flooding of historic proportions throughout the state left eight people dead and hundreds more missing. With parts of the state hit by up to 15 inches of rainfall, the floods destroyed thousands of structures, leaving many people and animals stranded. Boulder County Animal Control invited Code 3 Associates to assist pets in need and help with emergency rescue operations.

The partnership between Code 3 Associates and SHR takes center stage this weekend at Kansas when Newman carries the organization’s blue-and-yellow scheme on his No. 39 Chevrolet for the second time in 2013. While Kansas hasn’t been the strongest of racetracks for Newman in recent years, Newman does know what it takes to finish up front at Kansas as he has one win in 2003 and runner-up finishes in 2001 and 2002.

While SHR has helped bring attention to the efforts of Code 3 Associates, those efforts have also paid dividends for Kannapolis, N.C.-based team as the last time the “Riders on the Storm Animal Rescue Team” logo was displayed on the hood of one of its Chevrolets, Tony Stewart raced his way into victory lane at Dover (Del.) International Speedway in June. And for Newman, who enters Sunday’s race at Kansas seventh in points, a win would go a long way toward improving his standing in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Series championship. The South Bend, Ind., native is just nine points behind fifth-place Jeff Gordon and 48 points behind current points leader Matt Kenseth.

Through years of growth and change, Code 3’s mission remains the same – to provide professional disaster response for animal needs, and to train individuals involved in animal-related law enforcement and emergency response to safely and effectively carry out their responsibilities to the animals and people in their communities. Those wanting to learn more about Code 3 Associates and what they can do to support its mission can do so by visiting www.Code3Associates.org.

RYAN NEWMAN QUOTES

Kansas Speedway was reconfigured this time last year. So, it’s had a year of age. Do you think it’s changed in that time?
“No, because they haven’t repaved it since they repaved it, so it hasn’t changed (laughs). We did the tire test at Kansas a few months ago and it hasn’t changed much. It’s still super-fast. I don’t think the variable banking has really come into play, quite yet, but we’ll see if that changes by the time we unload there this weekend. It seems like these racetracks, going back to Michigan, which was a newer repave, that it’s really sensitive to not only how many racecars, but also what kind of racecar – be it a Nationwide Series car or a Camping World Truck – gets on the racetrack before the Sprint Cup cars do. To me, when we finished the Michigan race, we drove around the track in the rental car on our way out of there and I thought to myself, ‘Man, this place is just getting ready to race.’ There were three grooves where we could actually race each other. If we can get to those conditions Friday before we race rather than Sunday after we’ve raced, it’s going to make a world of difference. I think it’s all going to depend on how the rubber lays down, how fast the track is, and if we get to sliding around in practice and widening out the groove to see if the track will have changed for the racing conditions on Sunday.”

You enter Kansas seventh in points. With seven races remaining, is time to hit the panic button yet?
“We’re not going to get too worked up just yet. We’re only three races in, there are seven more to go. The bottom line is I can’t make the racecar any faster than we are currently making it go. A lot can happen in seven races. We can find ourselves having some misfortune, and we might find some of the guys we’re racing for this championship have some misfortune. We have to be in position, should they have misfortune, where we can capitalize on it.”

There are a lot of people that are saying it’s a three-man race, already. So, you don’t agree with that?
“Well, I think it is a three-man race right now. But, I don’t think it can’t be a four-, five- or six-man race by the time we get to Homestead. We didn’t have a great race at New Hampshire a few weeks back, so we gave up quite a few points right there. Who’s to say those guys won’t find themselves having an off-race like that just the way we did? It’s not over until it’s over. There is so much racing left. There are so many laps, so many opportunities for guys to make mistakes that I feel like it’s too early to be talking about it.”

Talk about your sponsor this weekend – Code 3 Associates – and the unique connection the organization has to one of your passions, rescuing animals.
“We are big fans of Code 3 Associates, and they are big fans of the Ryan Newman Foundation. It’s fun to be able to partner up and have Code 3 Associates on the car. Animal welfare is something that is very important to me and my wife Krissie. We’re in the process of opening up our Rescue Ranch facility in North Carolina. We know firsthand the costs involved and how important it is to create awareness of what you’re doing so you can not only see your project come to fruition, but to sustain it. All the things Code 3 does with animal rescues during times of need, whether it’s catastrophes or natural disasters, is pretty amazing. They are helping out and they are doing what they can to help the animals. That’s what we do through our foundation. Ours is more oriented to the dogs and cats of the world, but we have the same goals. We truly appreciate what Code 3 Associates is about and we’re proud to have them on our racecar and a part of Stewart-Haas Racing.”

- True Speed Communication for Stewart-Haas Racing

Kansas Storylines: 2013 Hollywood Casino 400

Jimmie Johnson is now 6/5 favorite to win Sprint Cup despite deficit

NASCAR Storylines for Week of Sept. 30, 2013

Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch enter Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway (2 p.m. ET ESPN, MRN Radio, SiriusXM Satellite Radio) with virtually identical finishing averages in the first three races of the 2013 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup™ - 3.0, 3.3 and 3.0.

Kenseth leads Johnson by eight points, his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Busch by 12 markers.

So who blinks first?

Kenseth? Probably not this week. Kenseth’s won the past two races at the 1.5-mile track.

Johnson? Unlikely. Johnson also is a two-time Kansas winner, sports a superlative average finish of 7.6 and has led eight of the most recent 10 Kansas events.

That leaves Busch as the potential odd man out. Busch claims two top-10 finishes (most recently 10th in 2012) at Kansas Speedway and an average finish of 22.4. Worse, Busch has been felled by accident in each of his past two Kansas appearances.

By improving one position over last year’s second-place performance in Saturday’s Kansas Lottery 300 (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2, MRN Radio, SiriusXM Radio), Austin Dillon can take the NASCAR Nationwide Series points lead from Sam Hornish Jr. The two drivers are separated by four points entering the season’s 29th of 33 events.

Matt Crafton’s 16-race run of top-10 finishes ended in Las Vegas but the Californian will enter the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series’ final five events with a 41-point lead over reigning champion James Buescher when competition resumes Oct. 19 at Talladega Superspeedway.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES – HOLLYWOOD CASINO 400, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2 P.M. ET ON ESPN

Kenseth Chases Another ‘Triple’ At Kansas Speedway
Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup™ leader Matt Kenseth failed in his bid to become the first to win the three opening postseason events. Kenseth goes for another triple this week hoping to fashion Kansas Speedway’s first run of three consecutive victories. The 2003 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion won last year’s Hollywood Casino 400 as a Roush Fenway driver and April’s STP 400 racing for Joe Gibbs Racing.

Dover Victory Pushes Johnson To Past Title Thresholds
Sunday’s record-setting eighth Dover International Speedway victory gives Jimmie Johnson five wins in 2013. In each of Johnson’s five championship seasons, the driver of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet won five or more times – including at least one Chase triumph. Johnson trails Kenseth by eight points. He has two Kansas Speedway victories, in 2008 and 2011.

Busch’s Title Hopes May Rest On Erasing Past Kansas Troubles
Kyle Busch logged his third consecutive top-five Chase finish at Dover – and dropped from second to third in the standings, 12 points behind JGR teammate Matt Kenseth. Busch’s championship hopes may hinge on overcoming past performances at Kansas Speedway. Sidelined by accidents in the past two races, Busch’s best Kansas finish is seventh – one of just two top-10 finishes in 12 starts.

Intermediate Tracks Results Favor Joe Gibbs Racing
Four of the Chase’s final seven races will be contested on intermediate-style tracks beginning with Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400. Joe Gibbs Racing has mastered the layouts in 2013’s roll-out of the Gen-6 car. Matt Kenseth has won four times; Kyle Busch three times. Rival Hendrick Motorsports has yet to post an intermediate track victory this season.

Past Kansas Winners Gordon, Biffle Eye Deficit Reduction
Two former Kansas Speedway double winners – Jeff Gordon and Greg Biffle – could reduce their points- deficit this weekend. Gordon is fifth in the standings, 39 points out of the lead while Biffle ranks sixth, 41 points arrears. Gordon and Biffle’s 2013 Chase stats are virtually identical: one top five and two top 10s and average finishes of 8.3 and 9.3, respectively.

Harvick, RCR Yet To Visit Kansas’ Victory Lane
Lurking probably describes Kevin Harvick’s current Chase positioning. Harvick ranks fourth having scored an identical number of points – 2,110 – as fifth-place Jeff Gordon, the tie broken by the Bakersfield, Calif. veteran’s two victories. Neither Harvick nor Richard Childress Racing has won at Kansas Speedway. Harvick’s best finish is third in 2010. RCR’s best is Clint Bowyer’s runner-up finish in 2007.

‘Spoilers’ Have Crashed Previous Kansas Chase Parties
Three previous fall Kansas Speedway races have been won by non-Chase qualifiers – Joe Nemechek (2004), Tony Stewart (2006) and Greg Biffle (2007). Among "spoilers" bidding to raise their stature this week include former Kansas winners Brad Keselowski and Mark Martin. Martin’s No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet was the winning ride in 2009.

- NASCAR

LVH Super Book NASCAR Odds: 2013 Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas

Matt Kenseth has won the past two Cup races at Kansas

HOLLYWOOD CASINO 400
KANSAS SPEEDWAY
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2013

JIMMIE JOHNSON 4
MATT KENSETH 7-2
KYLE BUSCH 6
KASEY KAHNE 6
DENNY HAMLIN 30
JEFF GORDON 12
KEVIN HARVICK 18
BRAD KESELOWSKI 15
KURT BUSCH 18
MARTIN TRUEX JR 18
CLINT BOWYER 18
DALE EARNHARDT JR 18
CARL EDWARDS 20
JOEY LOGANO 20
GREG BIFFLE 20
BRIAN VICKERS 30
RYAN NEWMAN 30
JAMIE McMURRAY 60
JUAN MONTOYA 75
MARK MARTIN 100
PAUL MENARD 100
RICKY STENHOUSE JR 75
ARIC ALMIROLA 100
JEFF BURTON 100
MARCOS AMBROSE 300
AJ ALLMENDINGER 500
DANICA PATRICK 1000
FIELD 500