By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer
The last time the NASCAR Xfinity Series visited Kentucky Speedway, Kyle Busch took home the victory in dominant fashion. Busch led 185 of the 200 laps and beat fellow NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular Austin Dillon by 0.455 seconds. Daniel Suarez was the highest finishing NASCAR Xfinity Series regular in third.
The last time a NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship contender won at Kentucky was Brendan Gaughan in 2014. Ryan Blaney won at Kentucky in 2015, but was not competing full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series that year. Blaney and Gaughan are the only past winners in the field this weekend.
Xfinity Series Chase
The 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series Chase Grid has been set. Erik Jones assumes the point lead because of his four wins.
The 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series Chase Grid looks like this:
- 20 Erik Jones [4 wins], 2012
- 1 Elliott Sadler [2 wins], 2006
- 19 Daniel Suarez [1 win], 2003
- 7 Justin Allgaier, 2000
- 3 Ty Dillon, 2000
- 6 Darrell Wallace, Jr., 2000
- 62 Brendan Gaughan, 2000
- 48 Brennan Poole, 2000
- 39 Ryan Sieg, 2000
- 16 Ryan Reed, 2000
- 33 Brandon Jones, 2000
- 11 Blake Koch, 2000
What to Watch For
There are several storylines going into this weekend’s race to watch for:
- Will a Cup Series regular win again, or will an Xfinity Series regular take the win?
- Will a Xfinity Series Chase contender take the victory, or will another driver play the role of spoiler?
- Points leader Erik Jones is looking extend his six point lead even further over Elliott Sadler.
- Sam Hornish Jr. will be in the No. 2 Rheem/Johns Manville Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing.
- Matt Tifft will be in the No. 18 NOS Energy Drink Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. This is the first Xfinity Series race for Tifft after having brain surgery to remove a benign tumor 11 weeks ago.
- Ryan Blaney will be in the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang for Team Penske.
- Justin Marks returns for another start in the No. 42 Katerra Chevrolet Camaro for Chip Ganassi Racing.
- Josh Berry will be in the JR Motorsports ‘All-Star No. 88 Car.’
- The only NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular in the field this for Saturday night’s race is Ryan Blaney.
Where and When to Watch (All Times Eastern)
Practice 1: Friday, September 23, at 3:30 p.m. on NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra
Practice 2: Friday, September 23, at 6:00 p.m. on NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra
Qualifying: Saturday, September 24, at 4:45 p.m. on NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra
Race: Saturday, September 24, at 8:00 p.m. on NBCSN, NBC Sports Live Extra, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, and the Performance Racing Network.
