NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Joey Logano does a burn out after winning the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., on Oct. 5, 2014.KANSAS CITY, Kan. – So many drivers studied NASCAR’s new championship Chase format and singled out the second round as the one they feared the most.
The difficult three-race stretch of Kansas, Charlotte and Talladega will knock four drivers from the field, and none wanted their championship hopes to be dependent on a good day at Talladega. It meant they had to be solid in the opener of the second round at Kansas Speedway, a notorious track for whittling the field of championship contenders.
Kansas lived up to its reputation Sunday as four Chase drivers finished 22nd or worse in a race that was plagued by tire problems for several contenders. The victory went to Joey Logano, who earned an automatic berth into the third round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship and can breathe easier the next two races.
“This is nice to get this win and get us through to the next round and not have to worry about Talladega,” Logano said. “We came into here thinking we need a solid finish – we can’t win the championship (at Kansas) but we can definitely lose it.”
That was the harsh reality for six-time and defending NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, his Hendrick Motorsports teammates, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne, and Logano’s Team Penske teammate, Brad Keselowski.