Asterisk Mark Report – Kansas Fall 2020

Kurt Busch – Kurt Busch was a top ten contender last fall at Kansas, but he finished an asterisk mark 38th after his engine couldn’t go the distance. In the race, Busch started in 3rd but during the competition caution around lap 25 while he was in 6th he was caught speeding on pit road which dropped him to the back. Busch rebounded and finished 9th in Stage #2. In the final Stage around lap 194 while he was running around 8th, Busch told his team he was losing power and a few laps later his engine blew up.

Denny Hamlin – Denny Hamlin had a great car last fall at Kansas and was a top five contender, but he finished an asterisk mark 15th. In the race, Hamlin finished 3rd in Stage #1, won Stage #2, led 58 laps and had the 6th best Total Speed Ranking. In the final Stage on lap 180 while battling for 5th he got into the wall which led to an unexpected pit stop which dropped him off the lead lap back to 29th.

Tyler Reddick – Tyler Reddick looked pretty sporty at Kansas last fall early in the race, but he finished a clunker 25th. In the race, Reddick finished just short of the top ten in Stage #1, but then during that Stage caution something happened to him (10th on lap 76, back to 28th on lap 90). There  was no penalty shown so perhaps it was just a super slow stop. Reddick never fully rebounded but he was up to 15th on lap 206. Then on lap 220, Reddick got into the wall which brought out the final caution of the race.

Erik Jones – Erik Jones finished 20th last fall at Kansas, but I thought he was better than his result. In the race, Jones finished 5th in Stage #1, but then in Stage #2 he started falling back in the running order. On lap 90 he was in 8th, but then on lap 110 he was back to 18th. Then on lap 144, Jones had fallen back to Matt Kenseth (Mid to high 20’s) and then at that time they both got into the wall.