Hendrick Motorsports Media Advance: Kansas – Speedway Digest

5 KYLE LARSON
 

Age: 32 (July 31, 1992)
 

Hometown: Elk Grove, California
 

Last Week: 4th (Texas)
 

Crew Chief: Cliff Daniels
 

Standings: 2nd
 
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No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet
 

2025

Cup Career

Kansas

Races

11

377

20

Wins

2

31

2

Poles

0

21

0

Top 5

7

126

8

Top 10

8

190

11

Laps Led

596

9,852

703

Stage Wins

6

68

4

Average Finish

10.6

14.0

13.0

Kyle Larson scored the most points in last Sunday's race at Texas Motor Speedway, piling up 50 markers and winning a stage en route to a fourth-place finish. It was the second straight event in which he logged the most points.
The 32-year-old is the only driver in the NASCAR Cup Series to finish in the top 10 in all three events at 1.5-mile race tracks this season. His average finish of 4.67 on such circuits is tops in the sport, five full positions ahead of teammate William Byron (9.67) in second. 
Larson also picked up his second NASCAR Xfinity Series win in just three starts in 2025 last week at Texas. He remains the leader in laps led in the Cup Series (596) and the Xfinity Series (440). 
Thus far, Larson leads the Cup Series in top-five finishes (seven) and top 10s (eight), both of which are career highs through a season's first 11 races. 
The driver of the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet enters this weekend's race at Kansas Speedway as a two-time winner at the track. He is the career leader in average finish (13th) and laps led (702) at Kansas among active drivers. 

 
9 CHASE ELLIOTT
 

Age: 29 (Nov. 28, 1995)
 

Hometown: Dawsonville, Georgia
 

Last week: 16th (Texas)
 

Crew Chief: Alan Gustafson
 

Standings: t-3rd
 
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No. 9 Prime Video Chevrolet
 

2025

Cup Career

Kansas

Races

11

333

18

Wins

0

19

1

Poles

0

12

0

Top 5

3

107

7

Top 10

6

177

12

Laps Led

45

5,571

249

Stage Wins

0

38

2

Average Finish

11.4

12.8

10.1

Chase Elliott heads to Kansas Speedway tied for third in the NASCAR Cup Series points standings, 83 markers behind leader and teammate, William Byron.
Elliott visited victory lane in the fall of 2018 at Kansas. He is riding a streak of four straight top 10s at the track, the second-longest such streak in the series.
The 2020 Cup Series champion’s 12 top-10 finishes at the 1.5-mile circuit are his second most at any track behind Martinsville Speedway (13).
Elliott is tied for the fifth-most stage wins at Kansas with two.
The Dawsonville, Georgia, native is tied with teammate Alex Bowman for the ninth-best average finish (14.67) on 1.5-mile tracks this season. Elliott’s most recent win at a mile-and-a-half facility came last year at Texas Motor Speedway.
Elliott is the only NASCAR Cup Series driver this season to finish all 11 races in the top 20. His average finish of 11.36 ranks third. 

 
24 WILLIAM BYRON
 

Age: 27 (Nov. 29, 1997)
 

Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
 

Last Week: 13th (Texas)
 

Crew Chief: Rudy Fugle
 

Standings: 1st
 
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No. 24 RAPTOR Chevrolet
 

2025

Cup Career

Kansas

Races

11

263

14

Wins

1

14

0

Poles

2

15

1

Top 5

5

59

3

Top 10

7

111

8

Laps Led

386

3,364

160

Stage Wins

3

26

2

Average Finish

8.9

14.9

13.9

William Byron is off to his best start in a NASCAR Cup Series season, with an average finish of 8.9 through 11 races, bettering his previous best of 10.2. That mark leads all drivers. He's also maintained the top spot in the points standings since the third race of the season and leads the Cup Series in average starting position at 9.6.
In addition, he has run 1,272 laps in the top five (second most), 2,292 laps in the top 10 (most) and led 386 laps (second most).
On 1.5-mile tracks this year, the Charlotte, North Carolina, native has an average finish of 9.67, good enough for second best. He’s also scored the second-most points on this track type with 111.
Since the start of 2023, Byron has 10 top-five finishes, 13 top 10s and an average finish of 6.65 at 1.5-mile tracks, all best in the series.
In the Next Gen era, Byron has run 547 laps in the top five at Kansas Speedway – fourth most.
This weekend, Byron will pull double duty competing in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race Saturday night behind the wheel of the Spire Motorsports No. 07 HendrickCars.com Chevy Silverado, his second start this season.

 
48 ALEX BOWMAN
 

Age: 31 (April 25, 1993)
 

Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
 

Last Week: 35th (Texas)
 

Crew Chief: Blake Harris
 

Standings: 10th
 
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No. 48 Ally Chevrolet
 

2025

Cup Career

Kansas

Races

11

336

18

Wins

0

8

0

Poles

2

7

0

Top 5

1

41

3

Top 10

6

102

10

Laps Led

108

1,476

189

Stage Wins

0

7

2

Average Finish

18.0

19.3

14.7

Alex Bowman ranks 10th in the NASCAR Cup Series points standings, 137 points behind teammate and leader, William Byron.
Earlier this season, Bowman won the pole at Homestead-Miami Speedway, a 1.5-mile track. Two of his career wins have come on such circuits (Chicagoland Speedway in 2019 and Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2022).
At Kansas Speedway, site of this week's event, Bowman has earned three top-five finishes and 10 top 10s including a career best runner-up result in May 2019. He's earned more top 10s at Kansas than any other track in his Cup Series career.
For Best Friends Animal Society programming, Ally and Bowman will be partnering with Humane Society of Greater Kansas City as their selected shelter for this weekend at Kansas.
Ally and HendrickCars.com are teaming up again to give fans the chance to win prizes with this year’s “Open Road Sweepstakes.” Fans can win VIP experiences at various races throughout the season and one lucky winner will hit the open road in a Chevy Silverado LT Trail Boss with an Airstream camper. Fans can stop by the Ally Fan Zone to enter the sweepstakes in-person and check out the camper. Fans can also enter at ally.com/sweepstakes/nascar. 

 
HENDRICK
MOTORSPORTS /
Hendrick Motorsports
 

2025

All-Time

Kansas

Races

11

1,392

38

Wins

3

315*

9*

Poles

4*

257*

6**

Top 5

16*

1,295*

47*

Top 10

27*

2,214*

88*

Laps Led

1,135*

83,447*

2,210*

Stage Wins

8*

124

9

 
*Most all time
**Tied for most all time

Hendrick Motorsports is the all-time leader in NASCAR Cup Series events at Kansas Speedway in wins (nine), top-five finishes (47), top 10s (88) and laps led (2,210). The organization's six poles are also tied for the most. 
The team's four drivers have combined to lead 1,135 laps this season, 419 more than any other organization. That total represents the most circuits Hendrick Motorsports drivers have paced through a season's first 11 events since 2010 and the company's 27 top-10 finishes are its most ever to start a year.
With Kyle Larson's stage win last Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports drivers have now won six of the last eight stages. They've also taken the pole in four of the last eight events. 
Larson's finish also extended Hendrick Motorsports' string of consecutive races with at least one car in the top five to 19 races, the organization's third-longest such streak. The team is the only Cup Series entity to have a car come home in the top five in all 11 races this year and no other organization has had a car in the top 10 in each race. 
Hendrick Motorsports remains the Cup Series all-time leader in wins (315), poles (257), top fives (1,295), top 10s (2,214) and laps led (83,447).  

 
QUOTABLE /
 

Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet, on Kansas Speedway: “I think Kansas is a track that really suits my driving style. You spend the run really searching all over the track, just trying to find grip. Usually by the end of the run, we’re right up against the wall. I didn’t close it out in Texas last weekend, so hopefully I can redeem myself this weekend and get the job done.”

Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet, on Kansas Speedway: “Kansas Speedway is a track I really enjoy going to. I think it has really aged well since the repave and it has some different lanes to choose from, so we’re not all married to the same spot all the time on the track. From a driver’s perspective, that’s all you can really ask for.”

William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet, on Kansas Speedway: “Kansas has always been a pretty good track for me, (crew chief) Rudy (Fugle) and the No. 24 team. Plus, I’m going to have some extra track time in the truck this weekend which always helps. Obviously, we were disappointed with how Texas ended but also it just shows the level this team is working at that a 13th-place finish is a ‘bad day.’ It makes me proud to be a part of this group. Hopefully we can regain momentum in Kansas.”

Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet, on Kansas Speedway: “Kansas (Speedway) is one of those tracks where you can really hustle the car and search for grip. We were good there in the fall and I felt like we had an Ally Chevrolet that could have won the race but it just didn’t work out. This is one of my better tracks and a place that I have always enjoyed. I’m looking forward to getting on track this weekend.”

Hendrick Motorsports PR