KANSAS CRITICAL FOR CHEVY’S ‘FAB FIVE’ FOR CHASE ADVANCEMENT

· Chevrolet is the most successful manufacturer at Kansas Speedway with 10 wins
· Team Chevy driver Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers with three wins at the 1.5-mile track
· Chevrolet’s Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne are all tied for the most pole wins at Kansas, each with three top starting spots
· Kansas Speedway marks the halfway point in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship

DETROIT – (October 11, 2016) –Fall is in the air with the leaves turning bright colors and the morning air becoming crisp, even on the prairie of eastern Kansas. This weekend, the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series brings its own form of colors and excitement to fill the air at Kansas Speedway for Round Five of the 10-race battle for the title.

Chevrolet’s five remaining Chase contenders will take on the 1.5-mile oval in the 400-mile battle in hopes of capturing a win so they do not have to depend on a solid finish in next weekend’s 500-mile event at treacherous Talladega Superspeedway – the universally acknowledged ‘wild card’ race of the Chase.

Last weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway, six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson punched his ticket into the Round of 8 by recording his eighth victory at Charlotte. Johnson and his No. 48 Chevy SS team can rest easy as they head to Kansas and Talladega knowing their quest for a record-tying seventh series title will continue into the next bracket of races.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kurt Busch earned a solid eighth-place finish last weekend at Charlotte, putting the driver of the No. 41 Chevrolet SS fifth in the point standings. However, the former series champion would love nothing more than to record his first win at Kansas Speedway this weekend assuring him a spot in the next round of the Chase.

For Team Chevy’s Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott and Kevin Harvick, Charlotte Motor Speedway was not kind. All three Bowtie branded drivers experienced trouble leaving each of them in need of strong runs at Kansas this weekend. Fortunately for these three competitors they drive the most successful brand that has even competed at Kansas Speedway. Chevrolet drivers and teams have won 10 of the 21 races completed at the 1.5-mile track located in Kansas City, Kansas.

Despite a repave and slight reconfiguration of the track in 2012, the new smooth surface has begun to age and get some character to it. The surface has developed some bumps and produces great side-by-side racing. For the four Chevy chasers trying to secure a spot in the Round of 8, they must first find the right balance, have solid pit stops and make no mistakes in order to get through 267 laps of hard racing at Kansas Speedway.