Kansas Hollywood Casino 400 Fantasy NASCAR Front Runner Rankings

Austin Cindric
Kansas Fantasy Outlook – At Kansas, I would view Austin Cindric as a low double-digit who’ll have a good chance to finish in the top ten. That’s the weekly baseline level of performance from the #2, and it matches up with his Kansas performance this spring (12th). This year at high-speed 1.5’s which have correlation, Cindric ranks 11th for Speed and in terms of the results column minus Charlotte where he crashed his average finish is 14.8.
Kansas History – At Kansas in the Next Gen, Austin Cindric ranks 26th for average finish (23.2) but then 17th for both Speed and Driver Rating. In terms of the Next Gen results column, Cindric has four results between 11th to 12th but over the other five he’s finished 30th or worse. This spring, Cindric had a solid showing. In the race, Cindric started deep in the field in 34th, had a 14.9 average running position and then finished 12th. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Cindric ranked 17th. Last fall, Cindric was a teens performer but finished an asterisk mark 30th. In the race, Cindric started in the back, finished Stage #1 in about 19th, finished Stage #2 in about 17th, was running in 17th on lap 215 but then on lap 216 he was caught up in a restart wreck. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, he ranked 23rd with his speed over the segments being 23rd, 17th, 18th and then 36th. Last spring, Cindric started 13th, finished 5th in Stage #1, got an uncontrolled tire penalty during green flag pit stops in Stage #2 while running around 13th and then raced his way to an 11th when the checkered flag waved. In terms of speed stats, Cindric ranked 3rd for Speed Late In A Run and had the 9th best Total Speed Ranking. In fall 2024, Cindric was a top ten contender but finished 34th. In the race, Cindric started 17th, finished 7th in Stage #1 but then following his Stage pit stop, Cindric had to pit twice for a loose wheel which dropped him to the back. Then in Stage #2 on lap 157 when he battled back up to 13th, he was spun and crashed. In spring 2024, Cindric finished 37th but you can get out an asterisk mark for that result and “Performance Wise” I would argue he looked like a low double-digit to mid-teens driver. In the race, Cindric had the 12th best Total Speed Ranking but then crashed on lap 184 while running around 13th.

Ryan Preece
Kansas Fantasy Outlook – At Kansas, I would view Ryan Preece as a low double-digit to mid-teens driver. This year at high-speed 1.5’s, Preece started the season in solid fashion with his first three results being 11th, 11th and 14th but over the last two he’s finished in the 30’s. In terms of 2026 Track Type Total Speed Rankings this year minus Chicago where he had trouble right at the start his average Speed Ranking is 12th. At Kansas, Preece ran well this spring (11th) and in 3 of the last 4 he’s finished in the top 16.
Kansas History – In the Next Gen at Kansas, Ryan Preece has the 15th best average finish (19.0) and then ranks 24th for Speed and Driver Rating. In April, Preece had a solid showing and ran well throughout. In the race, Preece started 12th, had a 14.9 average running position, ranked 16th for Total Speed Rankings and then finished 11th overall. Last fall, Preece didn’t run well but his race also wasn’t incident free. In the race, Preece finished 26th, had a 27.7 average running position and ranked 32nd in terms of Total Speed Rankings. On lap 90 while running around the high-teens, he had contact with the #42 and spun into the grass. Last spring, Preece had a great performance, notching his best Kansas Next Gen result. In the race, Preece started 30th, finished 8th in Stage #1, finished 10th in Stage #2, earned the 6th best Driver Rating, had the 6th best average running position, ranked 7th in terms of Total Speed Rankings and then finished 7th when the checkered flag waved.

Alex Bowman
Kansas Fantasy Outlook – Alex Bowman has been running better over the last month, so hopefully Kansas will play out well and he’ll potentially be a top ten contender. Kansas has typically been a bright spot for the #48 and in the Next Gen, he’s 6 for 8 at finishing in the top ten, has the 5th best average finish (10.9), ranks 7th for Driver Rating and then 9th for Speed. This year at high-speed 1.5’s, Bowman has a 10.8 average finish and in 2 of the last 3 races he’s finished in the top 5.
Kansas History – Alex Bowman has performed at a high-level at Kansas. Since 2018 #2 minus spring 2021 where he had alternator problems and last fall where he had power steering problems and also got into the wall, Bowman has an 8.6 average finish. This spring, Bowman just wasn’t good and finished 18th. Additionally, Bowman had a 16.7 average running position and ranked 20th for Total Speed Rankings. Last fall, Bowman was a top ten contender but finished a misleading 28th. In the race, Bowman started 17th, finished Stage #1 in 12th, was running in 12th on lap 150 but then shortly after that it was mentioned that he had a power steering problem. Bowman than hung tough around the low double digits but then on lap 226 while running in 14th, he had hard contact with the wall and his afternoon went south after that, leading to his 28th. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Bowman ranked 15th but take note his speed over the segments were 12th, 12th, 11th and then 34th. Last spring, Bowman had a great performance. In the race, Bowman earned the 4th best Driver Rating, had the 5th best average running position (6.6) and then finished 5th overall. In terms of speed stats, Bowman ranked 5th for Total Speed Rankings and then 7th for Speed Late In A Run. In 2024, Bowman had strong showings of 6th and 7th.

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