Edwards was part of a four-car stable from Joe Gibbs Racing that qualified for NASCAR’s version of the postseason.
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Although Edwards is in reasonably good shape post-Charlotte, he recognizes the potential pitfalls Sunday on the very fast Kansas track and the following week in the chaos that is Talladega.
Keselowski, who led practice earlier in the day, led the first round of 20 minutes.
From there, the drivers and their teams will jockey to finish in the top four spots during another three-race battle with the victors earning a chance to race for the Cup title November. 22 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
What would Edwards give to be Sunday’s victor and the first local driver to win a Sprint Cup race in Kansas Speedway history?
The top eight drivers in the Contender Round, which started last week at Charlotte Motor Speedway and concludes October. 25 at the unpredictable Talladega Superspeedway, advance to the Eliminator Round. “As a team we’ll have to deal with it the best we can”. “Since we wrecked, I most likely wasn’t clear so I’m sure at the end of the day it was my fault”. “It just feels like as a group we’re able to get the best finishes, most consistent good finishes. If we could go out and win this championship, it’s a Cinderella story”. And, if he can make it through the next two races and move to the next round of the Chase, Martinsville awaits to propel him into the Championship round. After a pit road collision with Kyle Larson last weekend at Charlotte, Busch finds himself in 10th place in the points, ten points outside the elimination point. Kyle Busch has defied odds all season long through injury and bad luck and once again he needs to fight his way back into contention. Even though he has yet to win a Cup race at the track closest to his hometown, Edwards has run really well at Kansas with eleven top ten and six top five finishes in sixteen races there.
“We are just going to go out there and race and see how it works out for us and try to win”, Earnhardt said.
Brad Keselowski won his second pole of the season on Friday. He’s now sixth in the standings, a fairly safe spot.
Busch finished eighth during the spring race at Kansas Speedway, where his best finish was a runner-up performance in the fall of 2013.
The Chase’s elimination format offers no consolation.
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Carl Edwards threw out the first pitch for the Kansas City Royals last season, and remembers walking back to the dugout afterward when one of the players pulled him aside. His lap would hold to secure the fastest time in the second round. “We weren’t anywhere near as fast as we wanted to be at Charlotte, which was frustrating”. Truex led the most laps in Kansas in May on his way to finishing ninth.
