2016 Kansas Speedway, Go Bowling 400

The reason I caution people about how to select drivers at restrictor plate races showed up in a big way this weekend at Talladega. Of the nine drivers in group A of the Yahoo league, only four finished on the lead lap. There were five B group drivers that finished in the top ten, but they weren’t Carl Edwards, Kasey Kahne, or Martin Truex Jr. You might argue that Chase Elliott sat on the pole and finished fourth, but was the risk worth the reward? Landon Cassill and Michael Waltrip were better picks as you won’t use up these drivers starts during the year and they finished eleventh and twelfth respectively. All I have to say is that it isn’t just about picking the driver that finishes best every week, but picking drivers who give you a legitimate shot at a top fifteen finish. You will see how this works out as the season continues.

GO BOWLING 400

This week the series heads to Kansas Speedway for the Saturday night running of the Go Bowling 400. Kansas Speedway is another of the mile-and-a-half tri-oval tracks on the circuit with quite a bit of banking in the corners as well as on the straightaways. The track was reconfigured and resurfaced in 2012, so I think tire wear shouldn’t be a big issue this week as long as the teams don’t put too much camber into their cars.

Joey Logano: Joey is my pick to win the race this weekend at Kansas. He has won the last two fall races here and has finished in the top five in his last five starts here. This team is looking for their first win of the season and they will have a great chance at picking it up here. The only thing that makes me a little leery of using him is that he just doesn’t seem to have many drivers who don’t have some on track issues with him.

Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie leads all drivers with three wins at this track and he has been stellar on the intermediate tracks this year. The bulk of the Chase is made up by this type of track and this is where you can make hay during the Chase. This team learned last year not to try to change to much once you have something that is working, so I think they will be there at the end of the race to challenge Joey for the win.

Kevin Harvick: Kevin finished second in the last two spring races here and won his only race here in the fall of 2013. This team is a force to be reckoned with each and every week. With the win at Phoenix under their belt, they aren’t worried about having to qualify for the Chase anymore. What they really want to do is improve on this type of track so they can turn those runner-up finishes into victories.

Kyle Busch: Kyle is another driver who is just looking to get back to his winning ways. He is also looking for his first career win at Kansas and the way he has driven this year, he could pick up that first win this weekend. I think this team is capable of winning every week no matter what type of track they are racing on. Kyle has also been able to keep a bit of a cooler head than he had when he first entered the series and that is what got him his first championship last season.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Dale has had some races where he has come close to winning this season and then he has had some races where nothing has gone right for him. He is looking for his first win of both this season and at Kansas. I think this is going to be one of those weekends where this team will be at the top of their game and will compete for the checkered flag and might get to visit victory lane for the first time this year.

Carl Edwards: Carl is also looking for his first win at Kansas and will be looking for his third win of the season on Saturday night. All of the Joe Gibbs teams have been fast each and every week and that shows by the five wins they have on the season. Like all other drivers looking to win a championship, you need to be very good on these intermediate tracks if you want to have a legitimate shot at winning that championship.

Matt Kenseth: Matt has had the worst luck of all of the top tier drivers in the series. It seems that every week he is in the hunt to pick up his first win of the season and then something goes drastically wrong for him either on the track or mechanically. I think this team is poised to win multiple races before the Chase starts and Matt has always been good on the mile-and-a-half and two-mile tracks.

Kasey Kahne: Kasey has eight top ten finishes in seventeen starts at this track. This team has been getting better and better every week if you don’t count the hiccup known as Talladega last weekend. I think this team has some pressure to perform better on a weekly basis and they are coming together and doing that. I look for Kasey to finish in the top fifteen once again this weekend and a top ten is not out of range for him either.

Brad Keselowski: After another win at Talladega last weekend, this team looks poised to compete for their second championship. They head to Kansas with momentum on their side and knowing that Brad has won here in the past and finished in the top ten in half of his starts here. This team could reel off multiple victories in a row because Brad and his crew-chief, Paul Wolfe, get along so well when it comes to making race decisions.

Chase Elliott: Chase has been very impressive each and every week this year and I think this is the type of track where he could pick up his first Sprint Cup win. He has never run a Sprint Cup race here, although he finished in the top ten in his last two Xfinity series starts. This team has looked very good on this type of track all season and will pick up a win before the end of this season. That win could come this weekend.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR KANSAS SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Joey Logano
• Jimmie Johnson

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Carl Edwards
• Martin Truex Jr.
• Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
• Kasey Kahne

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Chase Elliott
• Landon Cassill

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT KANSAS SPEEDWAY

1. Joey Logano
2. Jimmie Johnson
3. Kevin Harvick
4. Brad Keselowski
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Dark Horse: Chase Elliott

Stay Away From: Austin Dillon

Big 18: Brad Keselowski