Kansas 5-Hour Energy 400 Fantasy NASCAR Mid Pack Predictions

Kyle Busch – Kyle Busch will be happy walking away from the Kansas 5-Hour Energy 400 with a mid-pack performance. Based off his history my prediction is that he’ll finish around that range. Him and Kansas don’t mix. It’s arguably his worst track and is the only venue he’s never finished in the top five. When he just thinks about Kansas he gets in a mentally defeated state because of how tough its been on him over the years. Last fall Kansas didn’t show him any mercy. When the green flag waved he started in the back because of a practice wreck. On lap #1 Danica Patrick brought out a caution and Kyle Busch spun to avoid hitting her. Without using pit strategy he was able to race his way up to about 19th by lap 100. Then later in the race on lap 181 while he was running around 19th he spun. He didn’t get any damage but Kansas had one more trick up it’s sleeve for him. With 68 laps to go Kyle Busch got into the wall hard and that marked the end of his day. In spring 2013 the race went south for him quickly. On lap #5 he was running in 3rd but he spun on his own. Later in the race he was running in the low twenties but he spun again and this time he collected Joey Logano. In the first race on the current track surface he had a good car but finished poorly. In the race he ran as high as 2nd but around lap 40 he spun and didn’t sustain any damage. He was able to rebound from that and later in the race found himself in the top ten again. With 86 laps to go he was battling Newman for 7th but they got together and wrecked. In the three combined races on the current Kansas surface Busch has a 34.3 average finish, 25.7 average running position and the 26th best driver rating. This season on high-speed intermediate tracks Kyle Busch has been one the strongest drivers. On these tracks in 2014 he has a 5.0 average finish, 7.0 average running position and the 2nd best driver rating. (Yahoo A Driver)

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Tony Stewart – Tony Stewart hasn’t shown the speed that I would feel comfortable picking him at a 1.5 mile track this season. At Las Vegas he was horrifically bad and supposedly that performance was due to a slight oversight in his setup. At Texas he showed more promise but he was by no means a contender. In that event he started on the pole, led 74 laps, had an 8th place average running position and finished 10th. Last fall at Kansas Tony Stewart missed the race due to injury. In the spring race at Kansas last season Stewart’s performance fit the definition of mediocre. He started 18th, had a 21st place average running position, finished 21st and earned the 20th best driver rating. In the first race on the new surface Tony Stewart had by his best performance and finished 5th. In the race he started deep in the field (33rd) and around lap #80 he incurred a speeding penalty. Since he was running around 20th at the time that penalty wasn’t a major set back. Then on lap #165 Stewart had rebounded from his penalty and was running in 11th but he spun on his own while racing Kahne. Then in the last segment of the race (last 40 laps) when a caution came out Stewart elected not to pit and then found himself in second. From there he raced hard and that’s how he got a top five finish with both of his problems. (Yahoo B Driver)

Recommended Reading – Kansas Top Tier Elite Picks, Kansas Front Runner Rankings, Kansas Yahoo C List Preview, Who will win the Kansas 5-Hour Energy 400?, Kansas Scouting Report Fall 2013, Kansas Scouting Report Spring 2013

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